Five of Scotland’s most innovative designers

Scotland is integral in the production of groundbreaking fashion designers, from the catwalk to the high street, the effects of Scottish design can be felt everywhere.

Cats Brother. Picture: Dominic Martin

Recent years have seen the emergence of some extremely innovative individuals putting their own stamp on the fashion industry. We take a look a few who debuted their recent collections at Scotland Re:Designed’s annual catwalk showcase in collaboration with Creative Scotland.

KELLYDAWN RIOT

Glasgow School of Art graduate Kelly McGrath is the forward thinking designer behind KellyDawn Riot. The brand creates sustainable collections through the use of recycled fabrics. Her most recent ethical menswear collection consisted of artisanal engineered prints produced in Scotland and was supported by the Love Your Clothes campaign and Zero Waste Scotland.

Kelly draws inspiration from naturalist illustrators and Scotland’s museums and galleries, aiming to create pieces of wearable art. Garments are made using remnants from local Scottish mills or natural fabrics such as cottons and linens making them durable, while the eco friendly printing techniques and attention to detail ensures every piece is one to be treasured.

KellyDawn Riot. Picture: Dominic Martin

CATS BROTHERS

Cats Brothers was founded in 2012 by Anna Wilkinson and Lindsay McKean after they met while working together in a textile design studio in London. Brought together by their sense of humour and love of hip-hop, it wasn’t long before their first collection, Crazy Homies, was born. The collection was championed by Vogue UK and stocked exclusively in Browns Focus, where it still remains. Their equally fashion forward but younger diffusion line went on to sell out in Topshop.

ELIZABETH MARTIN TWEED

Elizabeth Martin infuses the traditional Hebridean fabric of Harris tweed into her designs to create contemporary pieces still mindful of Scotland’s heritage. Her recent Lace & Tweed collection samples lace by MYB Textiles produced on their over one hundred year old looms. The fabrics are tailored to create simplistic and elegant garments that showcase the best of Scotland’s textile industry.

Elizabeth Martin Tweed's Lace & Tweed collection. Picture: Dominic Martin

ISOLATED HEROES

Isolated Heroes produce luxury collections which are hand made in their Scottish studio. The brand defy the limits imposed on them by focusing on creating luxury collections which are accessible to a younger audience and aren’t defined by age, gender, size or season.

Founded by Samantha McEwan in 2012 shortly after graduating from Heriot Watt University, Isolated Heroes aims to empower wearers. Their website states that the brand wants to transform them “into a surrealist, avant-garde tribe of future primitives. With collections full of highly embellished fabrics, hand embroidered oversized items, sassy sequins and luxury faux furs”. The brand are also making waves online as their following grows to over 68K. Their fans are regularly updated with a unique digital design experience with live blogs and documented behind the scenes footage.

SILKEN FAVOURS

Isolated Heroes at Scot Re:Designed showcase. Picture: Dominic Martin

Launched in 2011, Silken Favours creates hand drawn illustrative prints that take the cutesy and kitsch and warps them to compose contemporary pieces of artwork that can be worn and treasured forever. Their products range from scarves and cushions to ready to wear innovative pieces. Silken Favours was initially picked up by Liberty London before going on to work with various other retailers including Debenhams, for whom she created a diffusion homeware range.

Silken Favours has already made two scarves for the Queen and Lady Gaga’s pet dog Asia.