“I strive to make people feel good, look good and feel confident.  Thinking of the children’s fairy tale ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’, if I could give people the confidence to feel wonderful naked, I would.” says London born, but L.A. based designer Lily Blue. Read her wonderful inspiring thoughts about fashion, her new life in L.A. and where she sees herself in 5 years…

Lily, what does fashion mean to you?
Fashion for me is a self expression of who you are, how you feel and, really can be anything.  For me fashion is a feeling interpreted into clothing, an opportunity to explore different characters within ourselves. Multi-faceted, fashion can express our inner characters externally. Creativity in fashion has more to offer than a uniformity dictated by mainstream design/media.  The pressure to conform to the narrow confines of a uniform can kill expression.  Fashion for me is a freedom of expression. Fashion is a symbol of the times you’re going through, both as an individual and as is distinguished by the era, class, culture and mentality of society. Fashion is theatre because people, consciously or not, are affected by exterior impressions.  Whether you are wearing designer clothes, torn up clothes, or a bin-liner it is all fashion and making a statement.

I loved to read this part in your bio: “When you wear different styles, it is so interesting to see how people judge you, label you and categorise you, based on your attire. I found that so fascinating. I realised is not what you wear but how you wear it” She went out once wearing an outfit made of bin-liners and dish clothes and went to an exclusive members-only club. “I went in there and wore that dress like I owned the place, and the response was amazing. We got our own private table, the owner came over and brought over champagne for our party…
“Clothes are different on every woman which is why I make ‘one of a kind’ clothes for the individual.  Women love to feel good, feel beautiful, feel feminine, feel flowing movement, and feel where the clothes hug and support into the body. It’s good to feel hugged! My dress designs, created for a client’s individual body shape and type, illustrate and fête what distinguishes her unique nature, celebrate who she is, revealing and exemplifying her natural organic perfections.Making clothes is an organic process, a creative drawing process, following lines and planes around a woman’s form adding potential expression, reacting to her curves, like sculpture. I want my clothes to make a woman feel beautiful, , curvy, feminine,  effervescent, effortlessly flowing, revealing their shape, rejoicing in the natural sensuality and purity of their female form. One feels so different depending on what one is wearing.  My joy is to design clothing which makes the woman feel beautiful, with the fabric, colour, cut and draping all tailored upon that individual.

It’s not what you wear, it’s how you wear it and how it makes you feel that matters.  To experiment with how you feel is fun. If you feel great and in the mood to wear a bin-liner and can make wearing a bin-liner look absolutely fabulous, other people will enjoy the look. I strive to make people feel good, look good and feel confident.  Thinking of the children’s fairy tale ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’, if I could give people the confidence to feel wonderful naked, I would.  Life drawing and life sculpting have given me a sense of an infinity of differences of the divine in the human form.  My aim is to seek out and enhance the natural beauty of a form rather than the contrived. As a creative designer and artist making clothes for myself and my individual clients, I am free from narrow parameters of fashion industry favouring shape or look.  I am able to develop new ideas around an individual’s uniquely beautiful form. I’m so lucky not to have bought into trends and mass production.  With new trends, to fit in, people conform to a norm. People who wear my clothes want to transform how they move and feel, want to celebrate the feminine and intensify what they already are. I concentrate on a brand new dress each day evolving constantly with new ideas inspired by responding creatively to my clients forms.  Having such freedom avoids the stagnation of making garments for mass production.  My dresses subtlety twist and turn, sculpting drapery around the uniqueness of an individual client.

Lily Blue herself

Copyright: © Skye von der Osten Photography

You have worked at Vivienne Westwood for some time – what was the best thing you took out of this experience?
Working with Vivienne Westwood broadened my mind and vision daily seeng what is possible and how much work is put into the incredible clothing of that most inspirational fashion designer.  Being in that wonderful environment watching her designs coming into fruition, cutting out her patterns, being part of the whole process of making her clothes, I realised, it’s a purely free flowing creative process.  It gave me the confidence to be exploratory in playing around and not having to conform to the conventionality of how clothes are meant to be. Her incredible, unique and amazing talent for designing beautiful clothes combined with her attitude of breaking out of convention really inspired me not to be afraid to experiment and break the pattern. She gave me courage, not to be afraid to experiment.  There’s so much more in her work to your regular trousers, blouses.  I was inspired that she sculpted clothes which created unexpected surprises, with these unconventional differences they assume a look of ‘no rules’, and yet, her clothes are highly technical and made to the highest standard. What I love about Vivienne’s work is it is an emotional thing.. her expression in a moment of time.   She has gone through so many phases and experimented.   She is an artist and following through.  That tenacity really inspired me.Vivienne Westwood is so busy, there are so many people in the company who she is supported by.  Her capacity to hold everything together, and to be able to push through is inspirational.

Originally you are from London but live in L.A. now- what is the biggest difference of lifestyle and in fashion?
Firstly, weather which has a huge effect on everything to do with attitude, and what people wear. Secondly, there is a lot more fashion in London, far more diverse in styles, and so much inspiration.  They take clothes more seriously, whereas in LA, it is more about easy and comfort.  I feel people want more style here in LA, so there’s more opportunity. The attitude in LA is far more opportunistic, there is a brighter outlook where anything is possible. London feels more pessimistic, especially with the economic climate now. fashion designers success us often conditional of background, on where they studied, and with who.  There’s an old way, old paradigm, even if the old rules are being broken. There is a feeling of  a brick wall of ‘have that covered’, things feel more regimented, combination of cold criteria of what is expected, even in expressions of breaking through.  Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen broke through and yet industry is so closed and full of pretentions.  In London it’s more ‘Who are you?’  People liable to put down ambition with an attitude of things are not possible.  But then again, in London there is far more individuality, far more ‘food for thought’ walking around the streets of London, there is so much theatre, art, diversity of cultures. In LA wonderful sense of freedom of a newer country where there are many options to explore.  So much opportunity, so many artists living in close proximity, excitement of  ‘can do’. LA more about invention, the people respond to talent, attitude,  perseverance instead of who, where you work, who your family are.  LA, more interested in the doing as an individual, there is a sense of possibility for ANYONE, an attitude of open competition.  Everyone you’re around is motivated, wanting to succeed, wanting you to succeed, want you make something of yourself.  The key here is you have to believe in yourself and if you believe in yourself everything falls into place.  LA people are more idealistic, attitude of you create your own reality, so may as well have a positive attitude.  Far more acceptable to have such high expectations, huge goals, huge ambition and easier to stay in that state as people are around to support big aims and big goals. LA up and coming underground artists blossoming.  Is the new art scene.  Galleries are opening up everywhere. Fashion is needed here and people really respond well to up and coming style.  People are longing for new fashion.  LA people have lack of style but are full of positivity.  At ‘Burning Man’ festival there is a whole community of artistic and creative and proactive people. They break out of convention, a movement of free thinkers, the way they see food, take care of body.  Extremely experimental with clothing, a lot of leather and feathers.  Burning Man fashion seem to be morpthing into one, you can see a code, similar styles of designers.

Copyright: ©Kodiak Greenwood

Do you think it´s easier to achieve something over there or is this big American dream story not really valid anymore nowadays?
In England I witnessed artists fight with a whole range of judgements as well as their own internal struggles.  In LA one just has to deal with oneself.  There are so many nurturing people in LA who believe in you.  There’s an energy here – brighter, clearer – one senses vast distances, it’s a big country.  And also one can see ahead, 5 years – 10 years. In Britain, there is a thick dark grey blanket of damp pollution, history, oldness, cold old buildings and traditional old ways. In London there is a wall to be scaled for acceptance and being valued.  England is very established already. London’s a favourite city, beautiful history, style, intellect and absolutely fascinating: Too much sometimes, there’s just so much there, you feel, where’s your place? and things so established that it’s hard to get a foot in, there’s not a welcoming feeling of ‘Oh Wow! What have You got to offer?’ as there is in LA. In USA there is a sense of newness, invitation to do things.  One has to work fast as things are disposable, people have short attention span of ‘what’s new?’ I find there is so much opportunity here overwhelming. LA doesn’t feel very established.. tourist, public transport is shockingly underdeveloped.

So, are you working on a new collection at the moment?
I’m constantly working on new pieces.  At the moment it’s just me creating one-of-a-kind one pieces for clients. I’m constantly working on new ideas and experimenting.  I’m having a fashion show in New York in a few days and another one when I get back to LA. I use earthy, contrasting fabrics with a lot of seams. Previously my work felt and looked totally seamless, and now it’s the opposite, as there are so many seams, that the seams become the design.  Interwoven seams follow the natural curves of the body, revealing movement, drawing subtle lines, expressing the beauty and vulnerability of inner life’s journey.  I think the fashion industry has gone too far hiding who we are, creating a lot of insecurities in women and their bodies, showing what they should look like.  This is not healthy, clothing should be an expression, revealing the inside, revealing the making of who we are.

Copyright: © David Heisler

What or who inspires you to create your fashion?
I could never really find what I wanted to wear.  What I saw in shops I wanted to change a bit. Aged 17, when Salsa dancing, I wanted to find clothes to flow beautifully with dancers bodies. I was inspired to make a skirt when in Egypt a woman walked by, I admired her skirt, which she kindly took off so I could examine how it was made.  I made circle skirts following this design and everyone loved them and wanted me to make them. In my dreams I knew how to make dresses perfectly but on waking didn’t have the tools to make them. I highlighted how I felt through the expression of clothes, and observed responses as my clothes drew attention where ever I was.  Then I wanted my friends to benefit from the heightened feeling of awareness and communication through clothing, wanting women to feel good about themselves and accentuating their feminine form. I’m inspired by the colours of nature, the contrast and subtlety of nature’s colours flowing beautifully together.  Nature, so very different from deliberate man-made products, where rigid structure and symmetry overrides.  There’s nothing more beautiful than nature’s organic process, which I want to emulate with the natural body and clothing becoming one flowing. I want to use my skills as a designer to create new ways of perceiving beauty and fashion in a healthy, happy, respectful way, and also as a means to help raise money and awareness for charities in Africa and globally.

Lily Blue herself

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
In 5 years I see myself dressing for red carpet events and having beautiful chic boutiques globally. I see myself breaking into menswear (exploring menswear as has never been done before). Also, I see myself working to help with famine in Africa and globally helping other people help themselves. I see myself improving my art, thriving and responding to things that inspire me.

Five things you cannot live without?
Wow that is an impossible question as it’s constantly changing as is everything in life. Whatever inspires me in the moment. Laughter is definitely something I can never live without.

What´s the most important thing in life?
LOVE