Marketing agency, Blow PR, best known for unearthing new and exciting design talent, recently held a special junior event. Young people took to the catwalk at the Royal Festival Hall, to showcase their creative handiwork, as part of London Fashion Week.

SE1 United, the Southbank Centre’s youth forum in residence, presented their debut collection, themed: Twenty five years of London Fashion Week.’ Fifteen youngsters spent eight weeks preparing, designing and making dresses. Lauren Martin of Blow PR, said: ‘We wanted to get young people involved, encourage creativity and also teach everyone that individuality is the key.’

The creative process was kick-started with workshops run by designers Gavin Douglas and Naomi Ryder. The group of 14 to 18 year-olds were taken through pattern cutting and stitching in a fashion studio, by London-based Turkish designer Bora Aksu. ‘Seeing their excitement and passion when their ideas started transforming into three dimensional objects was so rewarding,’ Bora said. ‘I truly enjoyed every step of it.’

Samuel Kolawole, aged 17, worked on a multi-layered creation for the catwalk. ‘The project was excellent!’ he declared. ‘One of the perks was meeting a variety of skilled professionals, who showed me techniques such as embroidery, which I can’t wait to use further.’

Being a part of London Fashion Week has enabled the Southbank Centre to put fashion and design into public spaces and give people the opportunity to see new talent up close. ‘It’s so important to give youngsters the opportunity to work with professionals and showcase their work on a large scale,’ declared South Bank programmer Tamsin Ace.

Aspiring designer, Erika Arias-GarcÈs, 15, hopes there will be similar projects in the future: ‘It could help others like me to get an insight into what it’s like to work in the industry. I had an amazing experience, which pushed me even more to pursue a career in fashion.’

Looking to the future, London Fashion Week 2010 plans to host more collections by young designers. Lauren confirmed Blow PR’s intention: ‘We would like to do this once a year ñ branch out, tour the country and take the project abroad.’

Contact: Blow PR,
29–35 Rathbone Street,
London, W1T 1NJ
Website: www​.blow​.co​.uk

Young designer models his own T-shirt
Photo: © Blow PR