The perfect amount of classic with a flawless touch of twist, Mother of Pearl is a brand on a mission to evolve the way we consume fashion: reducing the impact we have on the planet while always remaining style forward. Never boring and always on trend, the London based sustainable label is one of the industry’s leaders in terms of quality and contemporary design while also being uber conscious of bringing an all important element of heart and spirit to the market: a transparent label that celebrates individuality and authenticity.

With a base in East London, the relatively young fashion label never compromises on design, creating inspired collections that bring strength to our intricacies and a softness to the power dresser within. Printed luxe fabrics and carefully designed details come together to form it’s foundations with an equal focus on casual and luxury. Each piece has a voice of it’s own and can play both roles, that of an effortless everyday wardrobe staple or with a little elevation, can be brought out for something more significant and special.

The British luxury womenswear brand was founded back in 2002. It’s current Creative Director, Amy Powney, who joined in 2006 - just 4 years after it’s formation, began her journey within from the bottom, sweeping the floors of the cutting-room floor, working her way up to the top and stepping into the role of Creative Director in 2015. Understanding each and every element of the company as a whole, she has brought the label the forefront of the industry and continues to build the brand’s stellar reputation season by season. Informed and inspired by her upbringing in Northern England, Powney draws upon her love of the 90’s and 2000’s - the era of her teenage years and is often creatively motivated by the critical social photographers and fashion shoots of those times.

Showing at London Fashion week and stocked at some of the world’s most prestigious retailers including Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Net-a-Porter, Harrods and Goop, Mother of Pearl is something of a modern day beauty, combining a distinctive elegance with that cooler-younger-sister-IT-girl vibe.

SHOP MOTHER OF PEARL

Images: AW19 Mother of Pearl Campaign

Designer Spotlight: Gareth Pugh

November 4, 2019Style 02Rebecca O'ByrneComment

Gareth Pugh is a British fashion designer renowned for his fantastical and futuristic designs, an aesthetic unparalleled in the industry since perhaps the dark and dreamy era of McQueen’s. Born August 31st 1981, Pugh grew up in Sunderland in the United Kingdom and was an avid dancer as a child. The famed designer started his career in fashion, close to where his passions lay, at the youthful age of 14 when he began working as a costume designer for the English National Youth Theatre as part of the Wayne McGregor Company, the celebrated resident choreographic company at Sadler’s Wells, London.

Later he went on to study his craft, beginning his fashion studies at the City of Sunderland College and later completing his formal education at the prestigious Central Saint Martin's. Upon graduating in 2003, his final collection was selected for the cover of cult British magazine Dazed & Confused, something that catapulted him into a whole new realm of fame and popularity as a young budding designer.

In 2005, Pugh was asked to design for Kylie Minogue’s Showgirls tour, a project from which came the opportunity to design for Lady Gaga, Roisin Murphy, Beyonce and Rihanna on their world tours. His earlier life as a dancer has continued to have a thread throughout his career in fashion, seeing him design costumes for Alea Sands at the Paris Opera Ballet and Eliogabalo at the Paris Opéra.

His creative tendencies do not stop at dressing the worlds most elite stars and fashionistas though; his love of film has seem him collaborate with director Ruth Hogben and creative genius Nick Knight on fashion films, one of which, A Beautiful Darkness examines our internal dispute between chaos and control alongside the journey we take through the fluctuating states of sanity. His work holds an immense profoundness and he consistently seeks to wow through his search for the dark, unapologetic depths of creativity that aren’t always perfectly placed or wonderfully beautiful.

He opened his first boutique in Hong Kong in 2010 and is stocked in major international boutiques and department stores such as Opening Ceremony, SAKS Fifth Avenue, Barneys and Bergdorf Goodman in New York, Selfridges and Dover Street Market in London, Colette in Paris, IT and Joyce in Hong Kong and Side by Side in Japan. His work has been featured in all the top fashion publications including W, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and LOVE.

Pugh lives and works in London where he currently shows at London Fashion Week and has an ongoing collaboration with choreographer Wayne McGregor.

garethpughstudio.com