Last Sunday saw the close of Capsule in Paris; Capsule is the premiere gathering of the finest apparel and accessories brands from around the world. More than a tradeshow, the brands who participate in Capsule make up a community that is shaping the future fashion landscape.
The FW15 Capsule collective set up shop in Tapis Rouge for three days to coincide with Paris Fashion Week and provided a platform for fresh and emerging talent to showcase their FW15 womenswear collections. Amongst the designers presenting at Capsule was Brit Kelly Shaw who set up her womenswear label Kelly Shaw London in 2011. Part of the Young British Designers collective, Shaw is undoubtedly one of the most innovative and exciting designers to emerge from London and her FW15 collection entitled The Liminal Journey, is testament to that. Clearly influenced by Victoria Beckham, Shaw’s collection is made up of clean, simple lines and bold proportions.
Kelly Shaw has a close working relationship with artist Jem Doulton who creates bold oil paintings borne out of Shaw’s thoughts and ideas and these, in turn, are scanned and turned into digital prints on fabric. For this particular collection Shaw was inspired by the process of self-transformation, complex human emotions and the paradox of good and bad, of light and dark.
A clever and original way of working this collaboration ensures that the designers personality and flair is translated into each individual piece. Shaw is confident, her mantra is this; discover your soul, be bold, be yourself, create, rebel, revolutionise and above all, enjoy. Each piece in her current collection depicts a quiet protest, from the slogan tees and dresses to the bold prints on delicate silk. Shaw uses British materials and produces her collections in the UK, this is truly a girl who is proud to be British and supporting the British fashion industry.
Despite her roots being firmly in the UK, Kelly Shaw took her FW15 collection to present in Paris, why you might ask? Well the answer to that is an interesting one and requires some background….
Producing a collection costs money. Lots of it. The biggest issue for a young designer fresh to the fold is having the cashflow to meet the level of supply and demand for their current collection, but to also fund the next collection and be able to present it to the masses. This is something Shaw knows only too well and after taking to the streets during London Fashion Week SS15 in September 2014 with the Occupy movement to protest against the fashion industry’s lack of support for British designers showing at London Fashion Week, Shaw set up a crowd funding project in order to present her FW15 main line collection offering up personal notes, collection pieces, drawings and whatever she could to those who contributed in order to draw attention and backing for the project, and it worked. Shaw raised the full capital amount required to show her collection during arguably the most prolific event of Fashion Month; Paris Fashion Week.
Fast forward to March 2015 and Kelly Shaw has packed up her collection and her team and travelled to Paris to show her collection at Tapis Rouge, an amazing venue in the centre of Paris steeped in history and a fantastic place to present a fashion collection. Shaw’s star is rising and Paris may just send her stellar, Kanye West was spotted browsing and as we know, anything Kanye gives the seal of approval has a tendency to skyrocket.
If you’re a fan of British design and British fashion this is one designer you should back; Kelly Shaw has real talent, with a knack for knockout simplicity and a “fuck you” attitude to conforming, Shaw is not afraid to push the boundaries or to challenge proportions. Edgar Allen Poe once said “There is no exquisite beauty without some strangeness in the proportion” and Shaw’s designs are the very definition of this, with each collection she comes more into her own and with The Liminal Journey I think she’s found her niche.
Prices for the Kelly Shaw London FW15 collection start at a very reasonable £65 for a slogan tee up to £550 for an evening dress and that divine British mohair coat that so many of you have asked about is £1200.
Fashion Voyeur and Kelly Shaw London have teamed up to offer readers a fantastic 20% discount on pieces from the FW15 collection if ordered before March 30th 2015. This is an exclusive offer not available anywhere else and the collection is not currently available to purchase so you’ll be amongst the first to get your hands on it when it drops in August 2015 for the FW15 season.
To order at the discounted price simply:
- Browse the full collection in the gallery at the bottom of the post
- Choose your favourite piece(s)
- Email kelly@kellyshaw.co.uk to place your order quoting Fashion Voyeur for your exclusive 20% discount
- Sit back and gloat knowing you’re amongst the first to pre-order the Kelly Shaw London FW15 collection and that you got it at a knockout price
Top of my shopping list from this collection:
I absolutely have to have the grey Cloud type dress, (I feel that it will improve my life exponentially & it absolutely will as I’ve already ordered it) and the oversized slogan sweat speaks for itself. The trend for co-ord dressing shows no signs of abating and this two piece with the mix of print and proportion is absolute perfection. Lastly the British mohair coat, just look at it, it’s a thing of beauty and in the midst of a British Winter we all need something beautiful!
To find out more visit www.kellyshaw.co.uk, the FW15 collection will be available from August 2015 via the Young British Designers website at: http://www.youngbritishdesigners.com/designers/arising/kelly-shaw/ or you can currently shop the SS15 collection via the same website.
Here’s the full Liminal Journey collection, pick out your favourite pieces, take advantage of the fantastic discount offer, and circle August in your diaries.
Pixie x
Want to engage with Kelly Shaw London on social media?
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kellyshawlondon
FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/kellyshawlondon
