BARE NECESSITIES
When nude actually means bare. And when Chanel is all we need. Fashion's bare necessities.
"BE TRUE TO YOURSELF,"
Stella McCartney interviewed at Selfridges by Alexandra Shulman
This year Stella McCartney will be showing at London Fashion Week, and only two weeks later again at Paris Fashion Week. She was appointed Creative Director of Team GB's outfits back in 2010, meaning all British athletes competing in the Olympic and Paralympic Games shall be boasting a touch of home-bred high fashion.
Alexandra Shulman: What is your starting point for your collections, is it the same as it used to be?
Stella McCartney: The process has changed over the years, when I started out I used to have more time. Nevertheless my focus is on what women want, what they need in their wardrobe.
AS: How do you brief your team?
SM: Things trigger off other things. For example, I could be riding a horse in the countryside and see a particular colour of orange leave, or it could be a film that inspires me. Art inspires me too. I go into the office and give trigger words to my team and they bounce back different ideas.
AS: What does your office look like?
SM: White! And lots of storage. However we are between moving between two places, but I have to have everything white and every corner used for storage.
AS: Do you think about yourself when you design?
SM: I think about what I like, but I am more intrigued by other women and what they need or want in their wardrobes.
AS: What are the most useful items in your wardrobe? what should everyone have?
SM: A tailored jacket. A t-shirt, preferably a very old one. I have my husband's one and every season I take it in to the team and ask if we can do something like it again. A good pair of jeans, good shoes and underwear. Most people start with what they're wearing with their top, but it's your underwear you start with when I think of an outfit.
AS: How does it feel to be copied by high street shops?
SM: Was very flattering at first, but now it's become more irritating. But it's life and I don't really think about it. For the the most important is that they do it responsibly, that's what I'm all about too.
AS: Your sources, how do you check them?
SM: We use small manufacturers, the current one is based in Italy. You just have to be on top of it, know where and what, monitor it closely and have legal documents in place.
AS: You don't use any leather, how do you go about that?
SM: We have a fabric girl who focusses on all the ready to wear clothing and their different fabrics. I go to fabric fairs to source alternatives and I actually find the challenge very exciting to find suitable materials.
AS: Any new stores opening soon?
SM: A new store with kids clothes and lingerie will open at Brompton Cross in London. We're getting a standalone Adidas store.
AS: And elsewhere in the world?
SM: In Barcelona, New York, and Miami
AS: So you have four young children, how do you do it all?
SM: I fill my days with my kids, my home, my husband and of course my work. All at the same time. It's all about finding a balance. I have a rule, when I go to Europe I only go for a day, when I fly further three or four days max and then I get cranky and I need to go home to my family.
AS: Short term ambitions? House in Italy, holiday with the children, stuff like that?
SM: Yes definitely. And to try and live in the moment, to enjoy the now.
Audience: What motivates you?
SM: My job. Doing stuff like this, meeting my customers it all reminds me what I'm doing. It motivates me too to not use any leather or fur because it really does make that difference. I have a responsibility to the team which motivates me, having all those great people around me.
Audience: If you weren't a designer, what would you be doing now?
SM: I would maybe be a landscape gardener. You're laughing now, but it is not that different actually. You work with colours and textures and shapes too.
Audience: All your work is so well tailored, will you go into doing a mens-range?
SM: I would love to! For now I want all the different aspects of Stella McCartney to be in a comfortable range before moving onto the next division. But I'd love to!
Audience: Why did you go into sportswear? And why the Adidas collaboration?
SM: I wanted sneakers for my first show, so I went to Adidas. Then a while later they called me and asked if I would do something with Originals, but I felt Originals had to be left as they were and I was more interested in sports performance. So here I am now! And it works for me as I've always believed there is no need to sacrifice style for sport.
Audience: Does dressing celebrities give you a buzz?
SM: It doesn't drive me, the celebrity dressing, but I do get very excited by people wearing stuff on the streets. I'd love to dress Jodie Foster one day, and Meryll Streep.
Audience: Tell us about L.I.L.Y?
SM: I love making fragrances, and I wanted to make a new one. Lily of the Valley is a flower I love. It's unfashionable, it's a seasonal flower that only blooms for about three days, then it's smell is fleeting and I've combatted it with truffle and moss. I like creating opposites. This fragrance took about three years to make, even the bottle took time because I wanted to create something that looks nice on your shelves.
Audience: Will we see the Olympic aspect in your AW12 collection?
SM: This year is a very busy one, I've been working on the Olympics for two years now so if that was to be see in AW12 then I would be about two years late. It's hard for me to say, you'll see.
Audience: What is your favourite designer?
SM: I don't really have time to figure out which designer I like. I admire all London fashion designers, I can relate to them and London is a very fashion driven city.
Audience: Any tips for starting designers?
Stella McCartney: Be true to yourself, and people will respond to that. Whether good or bad, but they will respond.
- Thank you Selfridges and Vogue UK for making this event possible. I enjoyed the intimate gathering of passionate people, and loved seeing Stella McCartney as her true self. The orange-ginger drink was to die for.
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