Where did you start with the collection, was it daunting?
When I first started thinking about the capsule collection, I realised that I wanted it to have a sense of unity to it; I am interested in the idea of a uniform, something that occurs in menswear but less so in womenswear. I like the idea that you can get dressed, and be well dressed, with a simple selection of a handful of garments. But those pieces also have to live outside of that uniform, so for example a shrunken Fisherman’s jumper – inspired by a trip to Ireland where I found them to be hand knitted and come with a tag stating the knitter’s name – becomes a very different look when paired with a pair of suit trousers than when with a pair of jeans. So that was my starting point. Then I thought about shapes and colours. I liked the eclectic-ness of the bright greens and houndstooth check that I had seen Danny Deviate’s character in Matilda (Mr Wormwood) wear.
Your sartorial inspiration ranges from the comic to the sublime, how did you introduce it to the design process?
I think I have a healthy sense of humour but prefer to use it sparsely when thinking about design choices. When I’m getting dressed though, I always try and think about my mood and how it translates into clothes. If I’m in a sillier mood, I might put on something brighter and oversized, like a Molly Goddard knit. If I’m feeling more sombre, I’ll slip into something elegant. It was obvious to me to include a slice of this into the collection; black and cream are timeless classics, but there needs to be some zesty lime green for balance.
How much thought do you put into getting dressed; do you have things you return to again and again?
Like most people, I have things that I wear and then put down, only to rediscover them again in the future. But I do have a number of outfits that are in my head as ‘ready to go’. My current favourites are some vintage Comme trousers and a t-shirt by the artist Joe Sweeney. I obviously have riding clothes that I spend a lot of time in too… so it’s a contrast to be able to put something nice on at the end of the day!
How important to you that things are made to last and not ‘fast’?
I actually buy a lot of second hand or vintage clothes, and a large proportion of my wardrobe has been sourced this way. One of the nice things about Sunspel is that they work with specialist, family owned factories. One example is that to make their knits, they use a factory in Scotland that has the original knitting machines from the early 1920s, and each garment is made using techniques that have passed down through several generations. This commitment to making things slowly, with care and consideration about how it’s made, and where the raw materials come from, is important to me. Not only does the finished garment look and feel better, it will last for much longer too.
Photography by Alasdair McLellan, Styling by Alice Goddard.