AN EVENING WITH MARY KATRANTZOU

Posted December 1, 2011 by Robin in FASHION

There is a reason that Americans are in love with London, and no, it’s not because of the Royal family, the castles, the history, or even the accent, although all of the above are big reasons that a lot of them do. There is one reason we are unreservedly enchanted with it, and that’s Fashion. London has a fashion appeal like nowhere else in the world, eccentric, vivid, outrageous, and whatever your style, it works here, and it works wonderfully. London was voted this year as the fashion capitol of the world, and for good reason.

I was sent an invite from Mydaily, AOL for an intimate get together evening at Kettners chic, trendy, glamorous, restaurant in Soho. An evening to be spent with a few select bloggers, fashion writers and fashionistas, for canapé’s, champagne, and best of all, a chance to meet and get to know one of my most favourite, fashion designers ever, Mary Katrantzou. Over the moon does not begin to describe my immediate thoughts while getting ready for the evening. Enchanted, excited, intimidated, and panicked is a minimal start.

Deciding what to wear was almost a no brainer, I wanted to stay safe, comfortable, under the radar and my uniform tends to be so similar to Mary’s as I was to find out later, black and white never goes wrong. Especially if you have ever had the joy of seeing her incredible designs up close, bursts of colours and patterns that when described out loud, would never be thought to work. But when put together by an incredible designer with an eye for things that has brought us face to face with something so new and breathtakingly ‘right’ that Avant guard is simply an understatement.

After grabbing a last minute train into London, following my map to find Kettners, and after finding it I actually walked past, around the corner and caught my breath before composing myself and through the front door I breezed. Directions led me up the stairs into a cozy room that was starting to fill with chattering people, sipping cocktails, and enjoying the anticipation that was building. Trays of lovely canapés were being brought around, the atmosphere was mellow and comfortable and I was looking for a good observation point, when I was met with a smile from a lovely gal that introduced herself as Carla Bevan, editor in chief of Mydaily. Immediately putting me at ease offering me a Prosecco and warmly engaging me in a chat where by now she probably knows more about my life than most people I’ve met since moving here 4 years ago.

Chairs were seated around with adorable black and white gift totes with Mydaily and Mary Katrantzou printed on them. It was a close, cosy, setting, one that is the wish of every fashion writer to be so near and intimate with one of the fashion world’s newest, most impressive, and revered designers, and here we all were, the luckiest of them all.

Your first expectation of meeting a designer of this calibre, at the highest level, was for them to be either reserved, quiet, and shy or a bit of L’Enfant terrible. Being an American, only one thing sprang immediately in my mind upon first seeing Mary Katrantzou, and that was she appeared ‘as wholesome as apple pie’ the girl next door, the best gal friend you have that your sharing either coffee, wine or clothes with. She DOES indeed wear black and white, and it actually becomes her very nicely, nothing to detract from her lively and smiling demeanour. And even better, she is just as warm, friendly and bubbly to match. Libby and Mary sat at the front of the room, and the closeness made it so easy for even those seated at the back to hear comfortably. There was a flat screen on the wall off to the side behind them with tweets starting to float across it being picked up from all of us that were tweeting to the world, everything from Marys quotes, to all that was happening in that room, which the rest of the fashion world wanted to know.

Mary Katrantzou was born in Greece, her mother was an interior designer and her father was in textiles. She developed an interest in architecture and moved to the states to study at the Rhode Island School of Design, but then moved to the UK to study textiles for interiors at Central St. Martins School of Art and Design. While there, she realised her designs of her patterns and her textiles could actually be worn, being transformed entirely by a model. Her mentor Louise Wilson was instrumental in helping her confidence and vision grow. She also collaborated on a textiles portfolio with Sophie Kokosalaki and free lanced for Bill Blass. She received her Master’s degree in fashion and was awarded a Newgen Sponsorship, a scheme put forward by the British Fashion Council for 6 full seasons which started in S/S 2009 to A/W 2011. In 2010 she was awarded the coveted Swiss textiles award.

Although she studied in the states, she also acknowledges her designs were much better suited to be seen and introduced first from a platform in London than anywhere else. And it was there that her brilliant, explosive, patterns took the fashion world by storm in the Autumn/Winter London Fashion Week 2008. Taking ideas from art and design and transforming it into something to wear has been a driving inspiration and a challenge, and surprisingly but wonderfully she has the absolute ability to do so. While it’s hard to imagine, she seems to do it effortlessly.

Mary said that her influences were Balenciaga, Miuccia Prada, and I had also read that Coco Chanel was as well, and that is reflected in some of her patterns resembling the Coromandel screens that coco so loved too. Her dresses are meant to be like a second skin, feeling and appearing to be almost a part of the body, something that is so much more appealing than some of the harder to wear art projects of other designers. Her fabulous patterns can be worn by women of any size, and the larger she is, the more pattern she receives as they are cut to fit, not just repeating patterns meshed and sewn together. Bold and industrial patterns have never been so beautiful, Faberge eggs, Ming vases and Coromandel screens were delightful influences, and just recently, almost as an epiphany she also started incorporating serious structure with corsets and sculptured skirts and shoulders into styles with patterns mashed together that really shouldn’t have worked but did so perfectly that it became one of the most desired collections to have and wear. I should know, I’ve saved every Vogue, Elle and Harpers from the last year just to peruse and covet every piece we have been blessed with to see.

There are no plans for a Paris show,(although we know she would explode there) or a perfume,(doesn’t every designer have one?) there are plans for a potential men’s collection , unsurprisingly, highly desired and clamoured for by men who are on top of fashions new and exciting, bold, designs. And also now, a capsule collection for Topshop in February! In creating a ready to wear line that is available to the general public, who are as much of an impact on fashion as the elite are, Mary extends her brilliance to be worn by whoever loves her designs. And although she has no plans to enlarge her empire to uber commercial standards and proportions of products other designers start manufacturing, she does have a vision of creating a lifestyle brand, and the best part of that is that I wouldn’t look for any toilet brushes or toothbrush holders patterned with her designs anytime soon, or actually, EVER !

One of the reasons for such a perfect dreamed about interview, actually more almost a tete a tete, was that Mary is also rebuilding her web site and she wanted ideas for it from the followers of the fashion world. We were treated to be able to listen to Libby and Mary touch on so many of the questions we have for any designer, but then the coup de grace was when we were invited to ask our OWN questions and give our opinions on what makes a web site user friendly and easy to use. As much as I love drifting to fabulous webpages, I and others find some of them are although gorgeous and intriguing, they are also difficult to navigate and often don’t provide the information we want or need easily or worse, at all. Mary took every question, comment and suggestion on board, and I expect her web site will be incomparable to the bog standard, shopping cart, buy here, click here site.

She is a huge fan of face book and twitter, engaging with the public in the closest way any designer ever has. And although her advertising budget is quite small compared to the big houses of Prada , Louis Vuitton and Dior, her interacting with the movers and shakers, the bloggers and writers and most of all, the buyers and the wearers on such an intimate level brings her designs closer to us and therefore recognition and acclaim that money just can’t buy.

And after an evening spent interacting,(bad word), actually, nattering with a woman who delights, enchants and even better, warmly appeals personally to myself, and a group of lovely fashion lovers, having gone above and beyond the typical, out of reach, off limits, celeb designer, she has touched something inside of us all, and we can’t wait to share it and bring it to the bigger fashion world. But that said, her fashions, and designs have been and still are speaking louder and clearer than any designer has for a very, very, long time, and long may it continue.

Lady Robin Budd

BSF Online Lifestyle Magazine Nov 2011