The world of fashion has so many dates in the diary that if they were all on one iphone calendar it would probably have hit capacity by now. Fashion Weeks in Milan, London, Rome, New York, Berlin… the list goes on. These events are vital for both up and coming and established designers to showcase their work. It takes a lot of hard work and years of promotion to get a slot at such a fashion week. That’s why events such as the Clothes Show London or Glasgow’s Glam in the City are so important to budding designers.

Anya Wilkinson – Statement Fashion

Lady M Presents came across one such designer who could just be the next big thing, during our trip to The Clothes Show London in June this year. Anya had a pop-up shop amongst many other fabulous new labels, but her collection stood out from the rest and showed real potential.

Anya Wilkinson, up and coming designer

The Anya Wilkinson label was created in September 2009, after Anya’s graduation with a Bachelor of Arts from London College of Fashion. Russian born Anya, had studied fashion prior to that at the College of Mode in Yekaterinburg, Russia and Nottingham College of Fashion as well as having placements with such established designers such as Jasmine di Milo and Roksanda Illincic. Anya also owned a small online boutique called Dressmania. She used to travel to countries such as China and Turkey to look for new, interesting garments. But she always knew that she wanted to design her own fashion collection and from there her label was born.

Inspiration

Anya works out of her studio off Kingsland Road in London, an area popular with upcoming fashion designers. She works in the same building as other young designers and finds it an encouraging and inspiring environment to work in. When asked about her inspiration for her collection Anya explained;

“For this collection it came from 3-D floral ornaments but it was also a little bit inspired by the flamboyant and vibrant Sex and the City style that was popular in recent times. I always get inspired by the process of creating. For example, I’ll come up with one small idea, I will develop it more. I’ll play around with it on the mannequin, look how the fabric folds. Out of one idea, I can create 10 ideas. It’s like a never ending process. I could never say exactly where my inspiration comes from, where it ends.”

The Collection

The Anya Wilkinson label consists of day and cocktail dresses, tailored jackets and stylish coats. Each piece in the collection is made using luxurious materials, that look tactile and inviting to the onlooker. Her use of deep colours, layering and strong textures really give her pieces that something special.

Foxy Dress, by Anya Wilkinson

The fabulous Foxy dress will be a hit for an end of summer wedding, or that Christmas party where you want to stand out from the crowd.

On trend for A/W 10, Anya Wilkinson

This camel coloured stylish coat will work fabulously for this A/W’s trends, smart enough for the office, cool enough for a shopping trip with the girls. Also bang on trend is this deep green velvet dress, sumptuous and plush, perfect for a winters party.

Statement Pieces by Anya Wilkinson

This is the dress that caught Lady M Presents eye at the Clothes Show Live London, a real flashback to Carrie Bradshaw’s heyday in Sex and the City. This dress is simply fabulous. Bold, attention grabbing and makes a statement.

Smart, Sophisticated coats, by Anya Wilkinson

This A/W catwalks saw the trend for strong tailoring yet sophisticated coats, capes and jackets. Anya already has pieces right on this trend. Prominent, clever tailoring is shown off with these fabulous coats.

A piece from Anya WIlkinson's Avant Garde Graduate Collection 2009

Anya’s favourite piece so far is from her Avant-Garde Graduate collection, the Shell Dress “Only knowing how much time it took me to create that piece and seeing the reaction of other people. It’s not just a piece of clothing, but, for me, a piece of art.”

Pieces from the Anya WIlkinson collection will be available to buy online at Not Just A Label, you can contact the designer directly there to discuss the collection.

What is next for Anya Wilkinson?

Looking ahead after a season that was feminine with 3-D floral style, Anya has described next season as ” more edgy, a more angled style”.  Anya plans to take her designs to another level. For the next season Anya wants to combine safe, femininity with a more avant-garde, out of the boundaries collection. “I finally started to work out what is right and what is wrong. From what I’ve realised so far, it’s important to believe in to yourself.”

The Anya Wilkinson Collection will feature at the Strand Palace Hotel in Central London, during London Fashion Week this September, an event run by Fashion Mavericks.