UAL work at Alternative Fashion Week

by Nadia Ismail

Former LCC Surface Design student Babs Behan was one of 14 designers at Tuesday’s daily fashion show at London Alternative Fashion Week 2012.

Presenting designs from her Playsuit Parlour boutique, Behan exhibited an eclectic collection featuring Japanese geisha style, sailor suits and chic vintage designs.

Speaking on her inspirations for the playsuit outfits, Behan said: “I love Japanese style, I obviously love Alice in Wonderland, it’s a bit cliché but it’s always classic.”

Shunning mainstream fashion, Behan has instead opted for selling mainly at summer festivals. She also exhibits primarily at shows like the Alternative Fashion Week, which this year runs until April 21.

Behan works with experimental combinations of colour and prints, using organic herb block-prints on recycled natural fabrics. Taking on influences from both her LCC studies and attendance of UK summer festivals, the use of eco-friendly materials is one of the basic commitments of Alternative Arts.

“I come from a festival design background, I sell at festivals all over the UK in the summer, and I go to the Garden Party or Wilderness for example,” she said, “I create outfits that are going to allow people to express themselves and have a lot of fun when they are at a festival or at any other kind of environment like a fancy dress party.”

Behan’s collection featured amongst streamlined gauze and chiffon, and sometimes downright bizarre, fuzzy monster uniforms.

The Alternative Fashion Week, which kicked off in Spitalfields Traders Market on Monday, is a neat alternative to the mainstream London Fashion Week. It featured inspiration from Victorian Gothic and Alice in Wonderland, to what appeared to be escaped characters from Monsters Inc.

Introducing Tuesday’s show, Director Maggie Pinhorn said that the Alternative Fashion Week “prides itself” on its ethical fashion message, highlighting the work of new designers using recycled materials.

Over 80 designers from far and wide are showcasing their work at the event, including those from Poland, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Spain and closer to home in the UK.

Set up on a makeshift catwalk amongst the busy restaurants of Spitalfields Traders Market, the fashion week also has stalls nearby selling accessories and clothing. 

Check out the Alternative Fashion Week website here.