FASHION: DEIRDRE McQUILLANtalks to Amanda Pratt about the inspiration for Avocas
autumn look IT COMES AS no surprise that Amanda Pratt paul
smith handbags sale, creative director of Avoca, admits that Paul Smith is
her greatest hero. Like him, she doesnt go down the traditional route for
anything, preferring to find her inspiration from all sources paul
smith holdall, particularly old fabrics and patterns. Elsa Schiaparelli (who
was a customer of Avoca in the 1930s), another designer famous for her
individuality, is a revered figure. Pratts ability to combine different colours,
textures and patterns in a wayward, artistic way marks out her style as very
much her own whether on a box, a cup or in a fashion garment. Its to do with
knowing when something is too much or knowing when its too little, it has to do
with balance, she says, sitting on the floor in her office, knee-deep in
clothing samples. I always start with fabrics because that is my great love, she
says, admitting that she haunts the VA in London several times a year. I was
always in love with beautiful old clothes that have some resonance. I dont like
throwing things away. I love the history in fabrics. Her creative
responsibilities dont just end with the fashion collections she designs every
year C spring 2013 is already out of the way and winter 2013 in progress C but
includes everything from scarves to homewares, samples of which crowd the
shelves in her office. Ninety per cent of what Avoca produces in these areas is
exported, mainly to northern Europe but also further afield; the company has
just received a 56,000 order for socks, for instance, from Anthropologie in the
US and there is growing interest from Japan. The countries whose fashion really
excites me are the UK and Japan, she says. Her scrapbooks in which she gathers
ideas, images and fabrics for each season are a key to her design approach. I
work on it at night at home, sitting in front of the fire when I have mental
space. And I am completely paranoid about it. If I cant in the book, I cant do
it in reality. The winter collection shown here, would have started on these
pages. I comment on the buttons, always a noticeable feature, the latest made
from old watches. Most people think of a button as something that just does
something up C it is usually the last thing a designer thinks of, whereas I
think of it like a piece of jewellery that adds something happy and unexpected.
Buttons were special to our ancestors and were often a mark of position. I see
them as surprising details. That element of humour and surprise has endeared her
to the Japanese market and Japanese magazines sit on a rack alongside French
Vogue and others. I love the Japanese aesthetic and their lack of fear of being
different, particularly Japanese women. They like naivety rather than sexuality.
We have been exporting there for the past four seasons, which means that at
retail, Japan is selling 1.3 million worth of Avoca product. Now the giant
Itochu Corporation, one of the worlds biggest, which brought Paul Smith,
Vivienne Westwood and Jil Sander amongst others to Japan, wants to open an Avoca
retail shop in the country. Pratt is heading there next month C she is already
taking lessons in Japanese C and if successful, the venture will mark a major
development for the Irish company which has seen a big jump in exports since
September 2009 as well as a 64 per cent increase in online business in the last
six months. Here in Ireland, however, most people associate Avoca with its caf
and shops, the newest of which has just opened in Malahide Castle in north
Dublin. Because of this, we are not really seen as an export business, says
Pratt. I cant think of any others in Ireland doing what I am doing and
exporting. We are not seen in Ireland as being a design-driven house and the
area that I am passionate about is design. There is so much innovation going on
here and to think that another nation like Japan Paul
Smith iPhone 5 Case, whose people are so different, would think that Avoca
would be exciting, would be a dream.
http://www.paulsmithbagsaleshop.co.uk
