Fashion News

University of Wolverhampton Fashion & Textiles students have been designing clothes and accessories from car interior leather donated by a local business.

Aldridge Trimming, based in Wolverhampton, donated 13 bags of leather cut-offs to the Wolverhampton School of Art’s “New Use” project which tasked students with designing and creating clothes and accessories from the material as part of Career Development Week.

Aldridge Trimming was founded in the 1930s and initially provided a local general trimming service for cars of the 1920s and 1930s era.  It now provides quality British-made interior trim fitting services for over 100 classic cars per year.

Jo Bloodworth, Lecturer in Fashion & Textiles in the Wolverhampton School of Art, said: “The Fashion & Textiles Degree course focuses the next generation of creative designers to learn about the impact they will have in the future and students are challenged to think about how they can instigate change by encouraging sustainability to be at the heart of everything they do.

“As part of Career Development Week, we offered students a two day workshop to allow them to study different techniques and to give them the opportunity to explore other ideas. Leather is a recyclable textile, and since it is a sturdy, long-lasting fabric, it can have a second life in a number of ways and students really engaged with the subject matter, being given the freedom to explore new ideas.”

Aldridge Trimming was founded in the 1930s and initially provided a local general trimming service for cars of the 1920s and 1930s era.  It now provides quality British-made interior trim fitting services for over 100 classic cars per year.

Lauren Neville, 23 from Penkridge, who graduated with a Fashion & Textiles degree in 2016, now works as a Trimmer for Aldridge Trimming.  She said:  “We’ve developed a really good relationship with the University and we want to continue to build on this. As a former student I know how difficult it can be sourcing good, quality fabric for use on your course.

“As a business, we would have to pay for leather off-cuts to be picked up and recycled which is why we thought it would be a great idea to make a donation to the University in order to extend its life further.  We use the leather to trim centre consoles, door panels and gear gaters and it’s a real contrast to see the off-cuts being used to create handbags, clothes and even jewellery!”

Keith Makombe, 31 from Wolverhampton, is a final year Fashion & Textiles student. He said:  “I’ve been learning how to attach things to the leather garments I’ve been making and also learning how to cut it – it’s completely different to cutting fabric so it’s really interesting to be able to use new materials.”

London fashionistas were in shock as they discovered the trendy threads of one showgoer’s came straight from the aisles of Poundland.

The discount retailer’s fashion brand partnered with professional prankster, Zac Alsop to get PEP&CO seen by the most influential names in fashion – and it was all caught on camera.

The fashionable fella was decked out in Britain’s fastest growing fashion brand, PEP&CO, from the brand’s SS18 collection, and was strutting his stuff through London Fashion Week shows and events turning heads as he went.

Over the week, Zac infiltrated the Toga show, BFC Showspace, Designer Showspace and the highly anticipated Burberry Show, kitted out in top to toe PEP&CO.

Here he rubbed shoulders with fashionistas and chalked up compliments for his outfit which featured items such as a £2 all cotton T-shirt, £9 jeans and £9 trainers.

Whilst at the show, Zac also managed to fulfil the dream of every fashion up -and-comer by going backstage, walking the catwalk and partying with the most stylish people in the UK.

Everyone was keen to know who Zac was wearing with people complimenting the material, detail and acknowledging that PEP&CO really is the next big thing!

Whether you’re an activewear advocate, hot for hipster threads or a designer diva, the average Brit spends £572 a year to fit in with their fashion tribe, equating to a staggering £16.2 billion nationwide, according to new research from VoucherCodes.co.uk.

Choosing a tribe

The study found that more than four in ten Brits (43 per cent) identify with a fashion tribe in the UK. Of those that belong to a ‘clothing cult,’ the majority see themselves as ‘High-street Hoarders,’ with 41 per cent regularly shopping for affordable high street fashion from the current season, while one quarter of Brits describe their signature style as ‘Classic and Preppy’ and 12 per cent identify with the ‘90’s Grunge’ look which has recently come back into fashion. Conversely, over half of individual Brits (57 per cent), claim they don’t have a signature style.

Brits fork out an average of £48 per month on buying clothing, shoes and accessories that relate to their chosen fashion cults, amounting to a substantial £572 per year. While ‘Designer Divas’ are prepared to spend the most on buying branded garments to complement their look (£164 per month), interestingly, fans of activewear are prepared to splurge significantly more than those who prefer high street clobber (£66 versus £41 per month), perhaps as a result of the rising popularity of fitness YouTubers and Instagrammers which has prompted a surge in people choosing to wear luxury leggings and gym gear day-to-day.

Signature Style

The study of over 2,000 UK adults, undertaken in conjunction with YouGov, found that most Brits are keen to stay safe when it comes to their signature style; nearly one third (32 per cent) admit they stick to just one timeless look throughout their lives, whereas 3.9 million fashion-focused Brits (six per cent) feel obliged to refresh their wardrobe every season. Many also admitted to changing their look depending on what day it is, with one in five (20 per cent) confessing they sport alternative looks on the weekend.

Fashion Icons

When it comes to influencing Brits’ signature style, nearly one fifth (18 per cent) say their friends inspire them to identify with a particular clothing cult, while 17 per cent admit their style is defined by the city they live in or plan to move to.

Nearly one in ten (7 per cent) of the UK take inspiration from browsing through their favourite fashion magazines and social media is also starting to have an impact on the clothes we wear, with six per cent of Brits looking to bloggers and Instagrammers for fashion pointers. Surprisingly though, half of the nation (50 per cent) have no idea what inspires their signature look, claiming that they can’t pinpoint what makes them dress the way they do.

Clothing Cult Counties

Wales was revealed to be the high-street hoarder hotspot of the UK, with over half of Welsh residents (54 per cent) identifying with fast, affordable fashion. Meanwhile, Yorkshire was found to be the Hipster capital, with 16 per cent of shoppers in the region admitting the trend best described their signature style, while those in the West Midlands are most likely to be seen in a pair of cut-out leggings, with more activewear fans than anywhere else in the UK (18 per cent).

The study also revealed that those from the North-East are the biggest fashion spenders, forking out more than the rest of the UK on their chosen style at £63 per month, while Yorkshire was found to be the least materialistic, setting aside an average of just £35 per month on conforming to their chosen fashion tribe.

They may be tiny shoes to fill but family footwear retailer Charles Clinkard is looking for the UK’s next top model to showcase its range of first shoes.

It may be baby steps to a full time career on the catwalk but new parents are invited to put their children’s terrific tootsies forward to feature in the company’s marketing campaign.

The award-winning North East-based company is launching a nationwide campaign to find a tiny tot aged between ten months and 18 months.

All parents or carers have to do is send in a fun snap showing how much their children love their first shoes – it can be anything from trying them on to putting them under the pillow at night.

Managing Director Charles Clinkard said: “First shoes are probably the most important ones you’ll ever have in your life – the start of a lifetime journey,

“We’ve been providing children with their first shoes for generations, and there are many people who will remember having their feet measured at Charles Clinkard as they grew up.

“So as we prepare to launch our new first shoe experience, we thought it would be lovely to see one of our very own customers as the face - or should I say feet - of our campaign.”

A talented Shaheen Khan, of Khanz, a social entrepreneur and fashion designer represented Pakistan at the Women Vendors Exhibition and Forum (WVEF) organized by the ITC where 42 countries participated and was held at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Turkey.

Starts with a parallel session that prepares women vendors to take advantage of trade opportunities and achieve commercial success. Women vendors receive mentoring and training from sector specialists in advance of facilitated business-to-business meetings.

Established in 1964, the International Trade Centre is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. The theme of this year’s conference was to empower Women Vendors in order to bring greater economic benefits to women and their communities.

(ITC) International Trade Centre is based in Germany and Arancha Gonzalez is the Executive Director. It is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. ITC’s main focus is to facilitate SME success in international business. Having worked with SMEs for 50 years, ITC is familiar with the unique needs of SMEs, including women-owned enterprises, and has vast experience in improving their international competitiveness and connecting them with markets.

Master milliner Stephen Jones will be discussing his most famous designs and opening his extraordinary archive as part of a special event at Blenheim Palace at 7pm on Monday, March 20th. The royal hat maker, whose work is currently on display as part of the Oxfordshire stately home's 'A Passion For Fashion' exhibition, is hosting an exclusive event in the Long Library. Guests will be welcomed with champagne before enjoying an entertaining evening in the company of one of the world's greatest hat makers.

Local fashion designer, Paul Burbridge from Burbo K’Ture, was on hand to give University of Wolverhampton students cutting edge industry advice recently. First year Fashion and Textiles students based in the Wolverhampton School of Art were tasked with an upcycling project as part of their course - fashioning new garments made from unwanted shirts by creating new designs and reusing the fabric, buttons, cuffs and collars.

Miss Caribbean UK 2016, was held at the Broadway Theatre, Catford, SELondon on 3.12.2016. The event was very well attended, with a near capacity crowd enjoying a night of culture and entertainment. The contestants showcased one of their many talents with a fantastic  chroegraphed opening dance section, which had a surprise ending with the founders joining the girls onstage and dancing to a few bars of the “electric Boogie”.

With Christmas fast approaching, men across the UK are set to receive their annual present of novelty boxers, however research released today by Bullring shows that 13% of Birmingham men confess to returning underwear bought for them and 1 in 3 leave them in the wardrobe unworn to gather dust. The reason for this negative reception appears to be family and friends buying the men in their lives the wrong style of underwear, with findings showing that boxer briefs are the most popular pants style, whereas the risqué thong is a favourite for the brave few.

A leading West Midlands designer of wedding shoes is hoping to expand her brand across North America and beyond when she attends a major bridal fair in New York next month. Rachel Simpson, of Rachel Simpson Ltd, is heading to the trade show, as part of International Bridal Week (8-10 October), thanks to support from the Department for International Trade team in Birmingham.

Wolverhampton based Vaal & Vaal and Birmingham based Barberology had both been short-listed in the category of Barbershop of the Year, at this year’s Barber Awards. The barbershops are two of only three establishments from across the country to be shortlisted for the honour, marking a turning point for gents grooming and style in the West Midlands. The award recognises institutions that have performed exceptionally well in 2016 and those that have pushed the boundaries in male grooming and customer services.

This weekend, eBay premiered a hilarious series of shows in the Bullring Birmingham, entitled Shop Live! with eBay. Taking place centre stage in the city’s shopping destination, the series of live performances took place on yesterday, Saturday 14^th and will continue today, Sunday 15^th May. In a tongue-in-cheek homage to home shopping television programmes, Shop Live! will consist of two interactive performances; each allowing the audience to take advantage of deals straight from the convenience of their mobiles, whilst they watch.

Now celebrating its 21^st year, eBay has unveiled the spending habits of Birmingham residents with new shopping data launched this week. With sales of handbags and lycra soaring, the latest data from the online marketplace shows that fitness is having a major moment in fashion. Shoe and bag mad Brummies will always step out in style, with a whopping 97,400 shoes and handbags sold every year, whilst activewear purchases are also on the up, as we hurtle towards summer dressing.  

Pantomime football villain turned respected TV pundit Robbie Savage has always been able to successfully marry traditional masculine norms with more fashion-conscious sensibilities – epitomised by his no-nonsense playing style on the pitch alongside a staunch dedication to personal grooming. Today, however, he brought these two traits together in the most astounding of ways yet: by being sprayed from head-to-toe in gold as he opened the John Smith’s Golden Tanning Pub.

The official Mr. & Miss Nigeria UK Annual Cultural Beauty Pageant is BACK and ready to take over London later this year. The extravagant Pageant aimed to empower and enrich the Nigerian culture within the UK, is on the hunt again to find their new King and Queen.

Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell have been photographed by Mario Testino to celebrate the 20^th anniversary of Fashion Targets Breast Cancer in the UK, as the campaign launched this week. Since the two supermodels helped to launch the iconic campaign in 1996, Fashion Targets Breast Cancer has raised £14 million for Breast Cancer Now’s vital research. The stunning 2016 images unveiled across UK billboards today see Testino re-invent Moss and Campbell’s original bold and beautiful poses, 20 years on.