Edit Her loves…

The Ten

The Guardian’s Senior Fashion Writer, Lauren Cochrane, is behind The Ten, which is a deep dive into the stories behind the 10 fashion classics. Her first wardrobe entry? The T-shirt:

“I have always wanted to be a white T-shirt woman. Jane Birkin, sun-dappled, on a French street in the 70s,” she says.

She also spotlights the first designer jean and gives an insightful account of the ballet flat – from a personal memoir of wearing it to ballet class, to reciting quotes such as “ballet is woman,” as said by choreographer George Balanchine. That’s before wrapping up with how the ballet flat entered ‘cool’ territory (after becoming the uniform for gamine movie stars) and how to wear it now.

And there’s a lot more where that came from, including, of course, the quintessentially French Breton and the sartorially classic trench – “sinister, aristo, classic”. Not to mention, the stilettos:

“These shoes were made for a life of cupcakes and cosmopolitans, not public transport and a low pain threshold,” Lauren Jokes.

And they are referenced under headings such as ‘knives, needles and flower women’ and ‘making the walk a little more fun’. The LBD, in contrast, resonates with ‘power – and reliability’.

We’re calling The Ten a catalogue of the perennially chic wardrobe heroes that should be in every woman’s well-edited wardrobe. It recalls each wardrobe item’s history, before highlighting how they have been readapted and reimagined for modern day. What’s not to love?

Buy your copy here.

Women@Dior Women Leadership & Sustainability Education Programme

Women@Dior, which enables bright young entrepreneurial-minded women to be guided by the fashion house’s mentors, is continuing its efforts with the latest Women Leadership & Sustainability Education programme. This new year-long online learning initiative sets out to nurture young women, so that they feel confident, ambitious and daring. As reported by LVMH, Marlène Schiappa, the French Minister Delegate for Citizenship, said, “There are too many young girls who rein in their ambition and are too afraid to dream because they have too few role models and they don’t dare tell themselves that they’ll be an astronaut, a CEO or president.”

This programme will be taught by professors from international leading institutions, such as Central Saint Martins, Bocconi University, HEC and Centrale Supélec. Participants of the programme have had the chance to enter into a ‘Dream for Change’ project, which involved setting out to empower young women. Successful participants, determined to fight against stigmas relating to menstruation in India, were invited to present this project at the Women@Dior: Dream for Change global e-conference in March 2021, in partnership with UNSESCO. Speakers at the event included those from the House of Dior and the LVMH group.

“I feel privileged and grateful to be part [of] an impactful and driven group of women who are determined to fight for other women’s rights and dreams. I am so happy my fellow mentee Ananya Rajpoot joined our team to help us with her expertise. We are a sisterhood in the Women@Dior sisterhood now!” said Valentina Mazuera, one of the winning candidates.

Read more here.

Royal School of Needlework Students Design Shoes for Sheme

The Royal School of Needlework, located in Hampton Court Palace, has teamed up with luxury female-founded footwear brand Sheme – the shoe brand creating a strong presence for Chinese fashion in the luxury fashion circuit. Which involves adopting traditional Italian handmade techniques and combining this with heritage Chinese handcrafts.

Founder Linda Liu visited the shoe fair in Bologna to learn how Italian artisans make beautiful shoes and searched for the best design masters and materials for several years. As for what this would teach her: ‘the real art of shoemaking’ and how to design for ‘maximum comfort’.

Three students were selected to have their creative designs, inspired by beautiful imagery from the classic Book of Poetry (popular in China for over 2000 years), readapted and made into shoes.

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to work exclusively with such a prestigious shoe brand as Sheme. Our Degree Students were able to apply their design and hand embroidery skills to create bespoke designs, which align perfectly with Sheme’s design brief,” said Angie Wyman, Degree Course Leader at the Royal School of Needlework.

Millie (pictured), one of the chosen three students, said, “Taking part in this project was such an honour. I spent many hours sketching and creating a sophisticated design that would be flattering, yet at the same time comfortable and wearable. I couldn’t be more pleased with the result.”

Linda Liu, founder of Sheme said: “We are very grateful to the degree students of the Royal School of Needlework for their design work, inspirational ideas and exquisite work. Their combination of quality with in-depth research on the Sheme brand, really moved us. We look forward to working together on future projects.”

The British Council’s Creative Communities Learning Lab

Launched last Wednesday 28 April 2021, The British Council’s Creative Communities Learning Lab is an exciting series of free online courses dedicated to fostering and sustaining the growth and development of creative hubs across Southeast Asia and the UK. In collaboration with Creative Friction Ltd and Makerspace Manila, it combines the insights and experiences of subject matter experts. Courses that launched last week include Digital Community Strategy and Management, and Ways to Monetise Creative Services. A third and final course, Bringing your Training Online, launches in May.

Register for the course here.