Corrie was kind enough to offer us a few minutes of her precious time in the run up to London Fashion Week (14th - 18th of September) to answer a few questions about the Industry and her work!


British Vogue recently released some of your modeling work for Vivienne Westwood and others, how did you transverse from modeling to your obvious talent in design?

I was sewing when I was 11 years old. My Mother said “You're going to learn to sew” and I just didn’t want to, but I eventually ended up starting at some point. But that’s it, our family was largely artistic, always    doing crafts, I suppose it was in the blood.

I was doing both really, I started modeling when I was 18, I didn’t really take it seriously, it’s something I
wanted to do but knew there was a short longevity to it. Models come and go.

I was making clothes for the drag queens but decided to concentrate on the modeling for the time being.
This eventually left with me going back to school to London College of Fashion first and then onto Central
Saint Martins which totally redirected my energy.


What’s the best way to work under an established designer as part of the team? Is there an approach that would help new talent gain experience?
How I work is, first of all I request a CV (curriculum vitae) for examples of their work. If I feel that they are at the right level, we call them and they have to bring a garment they have made themselves. It is very important they are
exceptional at cutting and sewing. The biggest want from us is definitely experience.

You would be surprised but a lot of people lie, so we need to see what they can achieve in the flesh. It is really a case of saying, let me see what you can do.



You're known for the amount of research and meaning you put behind a collection, do you feel fashion is losing this artistic approach in replacement for a more trivial aesthetic based approach?
Most definitely. In this day and age we are living in, creativity has been stripped from what fashion really is.

Some of the greatest designers of the planet set the example for style and then moved on. It’s almost like a
dream, an ideology, an illusion that is dying out.

I’m trying to bring back what style is, people get caught up in sell, sell, sell, it’s so fast, throw away fashion.
Everything has become so money orientated and with that everything is dying.


For any aspiring designers themselves, what’s the one most important piece of advice you can give?
You have to research the business and know what you want. It’s also very important to have strong
business people behind you as well as a strong aesthetic to make an impact in the industry.

I think it’s imperative to have talent and strong design sense, you need to know yourself so you can relay
your ideas to others. Even more important is to have self worth.



And finally, you're showing at London Fashion Week tomorrow, what can we expect from your Spring Summer 13 collection?
This season I collaborated with the Royal Botanical Kew gardens. The inspiration comes from the shape and
colour of flowers and plants. Looking at it in a more scientific and structural way. I was looking at the shape
and inner structure of the plants. The idea that everything starts with a seed and then grows its own
individual way.

An artist I was inspired by Makoto Murayama created a blueprint for a flower and thats where the 3D
element comes in.

The collection is also collaborating with Emma Yeo an incredible headwear designer. She has created these
fabulous, inspirational headpieces using netting with wire to create 3D abstract shapes.

Bio and all images provided by Forward PR