Playing with Randoms

Olivia Stewart

For, Olivia the fashion industry often feels overwhelmingly serious, leading her to question, “Why am I doing this?” The collection is an exploration into rediscovering Olivia’s childhood joy of choosing clothes. Personal eclectic references include the UGG boot, the Michael Kors’ Voyager tote, a Primark camo parka and the ubiquitous sequin body-con. By subverting recognisable garments and fabrics, she recalls mass fashion favourites so that her work feels oddly familiar and strangely nostalgic. An oversized sequin becomes the perfect balance of silly and chic. ‘It’s just clothes’ succeeds as a personal and playful endeavour to make clothes feel fun again.

Olivia is a womenswear designer whose work centres around juxtaposing feelings of curiosity and familiarity. Born in Scotland, she moved to England aged 14 to pursue a career in classical ballet. Despite a big career change due to injury, Olivia's classical and contemporary training remains in integral part of her work ethic and design methodology. Her attention to detail is evident in her meticulous textile development and subtle hints of tailoring.