hfmFASHIONINSIDER
PHOTOS: KRIS ATOMIC. GORUNWAY‘I DESIGN
DRESSES
FOR GIRLS
THAT DON’T
WEAR
DRESSES’FROM TOP
A dressmaking
dummy in the
studio; two of
Sharon’s designs
on the runway at
her SS19 show;
magazine inspo
for her collections;
the designer’s own
style is luxurious
but laid-backsoftly tailored trousers, with a cashmere
jumper placed over her shoulders. She
tells us that, personally, she wears her
own label, “Sometimes I’m checking
things out and testing them, but then
there’s accessibility and availability,”
she says, pointing to the rails as we
walk through the whitewashed former
warehouse. She’s very natural (no
make-up make-up and flesh-coloured
nail varnish) and very chilled as we
walk into the office at the back of her
atelier. Sharon only switched from
Paris to London in 2016. “I think it’s
good to make a change,” she tells us.
“There’s a comfort factor, but I
thought ‘let’s challenge that’ and it
has allowed us to rethink the woman
we’re designing for.”
Sharon grew up on a sheep farm
in Newtownstewart in County Tyrone,
Northern Ireland. “I did think that
taking over the business was going
to be the next step for me; but then my
brother came along,” she laughs. “Growing
up I was interested in art and drawing, then
fashion as some form of escapism from
where I was living in Northern Ireland.”
She laughs when we ask how it was
moving to London to study: “I came
fromNorthern Ireland, on the border,
so I don’t think I found it scary. Where
we grew up gave us a good perspective
of reality [due to the
political tensions] and
you developed a sense ofhumour, whichhelps – especially in our
industry... Along with a sense of irony.”
She explains that her father was very
musical and, “It all [creativity] rubs off”, but it
seems the influence of the women in her life
was the most significant. She did her thesis at
Saint Martin’s on rural women and femininity
and that is still a huge inspiration to her. “I was
only talking to one [strong woman] the other
day – they are everywhere, but the ones that
I’ve met from where I came from still amaze
me. Their perspective and how they deal
with things that would floor a lot of people.”
Fittingly, Sharon describes her own
designs as “both feminine and masculine”
and tells us, “I always say I design dresses
for girls that don’t wear dresses. And I
think those girls know what I mean”.
We ask her who she thinks is dressing
well at the moment. “Here in London, I do
see people pushing the boundaries,” she says.
“I enjoy seeing people experimenting in
an effortless way. [But] luxury can be
experimental and interesting as well.
That’s the key, to get the balance.”
Now Sharon and her 15-strong team
produce four collections a year. “Two’s a
luxury. Four’s not a problem and I’ve done
more,” she reasons. “I don’t think it’s a case
of, ‘Let’s do two collections instead of four’, I
think it’s the case of editing and focusing on
what we are doing. The move to London has
helped us reassess all of that, which is good.”
Another thing the move
to London has enabled
Sharon to do is pick up
some collaborations. “Early
[in my career] I was quite
independent. I think it’s
important to do collaborations
for the right reasons.”
More recently she has
been part of a British Fashion
Council pop-up at Bicester
Village. “It was a nice surprise, nothing that
expected. At the moment people are
looking at new customers and new ways
to reach those customers. So I think
that’s great,” she says, of the temporary
space at the discount retail destination
that also stocked Christopher Kane,
Nicolas Kirkwood and Roksanda Illinic.
Desiree Bollier, chief merchant of
Bicester Village, has also set up a Business
of Retail development programme to
support talents spotted by the Fashion Trust
and the BFC. “As a professional designer,
you cannot run your business while you’re
designing – but if you’re a young designer,
you have no choice but to do both,” she
says, of their support.
When Sharon leaves us, she’s off to
view some show locations for her next
collection. She explains that she doesn’t
have much spare time. “Whatever time
I have off work I spend with my daughters,
they often decide what I’m doing.”
Two other strong women in the making.Q