Longshaw Ward
Longshaw Ward is a Womenswear and Accessories label that launched with a SS17 collection during Paris Fashion Week. The brand is founded by husband and wife team Kirsty Ward and David Longshaw, who met in the design studio of Alberta Ferretti, in Italy. They both separately launched their own eponymous labels in 2010: Kirsty Ward is a Womenswear MA graduate of Central Saint Martins (2008). Selected for a wealth of prestigious projects she was part of Selfridges Bright Young Things, selling in store and creating her own Oxford St window. Statement jewellery has always been a strong aspect of the brand, this coupled with a defined signature handwriting in her ready-to-wear line, lead to Kirsty being championed by VOGUE Italia in two exhibitions in Milan, she has been stocked internationally by prestigious stores including Comme Des Garçons Trading museum in Paris and Tokyo where she collaborated on a mens and women’s monochrome jewellery collection. Kirsty and her designs have been featured in magazines such as, VOGUE Japan, VOGUE Italia, ELLE, Grazia, L’Officiel, Nylon. David Longshaw graduated from the Womenswear courses of both St Martins (BA) 2005 and the Royal College of Art (MA) 2007. Longshaw has design experience at Alberta Ferretti, Max Mara and time as Creative Director of a luxury Chinese brand. David’s strong illustrative style has lead to collaborations with Triumph, NailsInc, Michelin starred restaurant Yauatcha, Harrods and the creation of windows for stores including Matchesfashion.com and luxury London Knightsbridge store Feathers. David has written and illustrated 5 published ‘fashionable children’s tales for grown-ups’. He has contributed to a number of magazines including illustrations for vogue.co.uk, a series of comic strips for VOGUE Italia and animations for LOVE magazine. Longshaw Ward is a collaborative label focusing on designing luxury, forward thinking pieces for modern, intelligent women. Covetable contemporary pieces with a strong aesthetic are the main principles of the brand’s DNA. The collections concentrate on beautiful, detailed craftsmanship. With all pieces being made in the UK, using thoughtfully sourced fabrics and materials. The creative partnership has it’s own unique handwriting to that of the duo’s previous labels. The brand still echo's Wards strong jewellery techniques, garment layering and masculine style with Longshaw’s more draped, feminine and hand drawn aesthetic.
For SS17 we went back to school, or rather St Martins (where we both studied) to use the library. Scouring through archive Vogues from the 1930’s and 40’s, we were inspired by peplums, nipped in waists and netted veils. We Combined these with the abstract fluidity of shape and surrealist style of viola arpa by Thomas Vach, (an Amoeba Shaped Violin kept in the Danish Music Museum, Copenhagen), Vincent Darre’s intriguing interiors at l hôtel Montana and Salvador Dali’s Female Nude 1928, as the starting point for the collection.
Print, a key element of our work is beautifully executed with hand drawings of intriguingly coloured / textured sea slugs and observations of exotic flowers from a fun day out at Kew Gardens (All our fabrics are printed in England). We personally pattern cut and draped each piece in our London studio, to fully explore and develop the vision for our new label.
Here are 5 key elements for SS17:
Distorted shapes inspired by the intriguing forms in our research are a key component of the collection. Executed in net, crepe and a
brilliant cotton waffle fabric woven in Italy. From overlaid distorted and abstracted tops, appliquéd panels, to fully jigsaw draped dresses.
We followed on with distorted crepe pieces that we then draped and overlaid on contemporary double faced neoprene and denim
dresses.
For a modern take on the traditional suit we have teamed a sleeveless belted coat with a pair of wide shorts to give a more
contemporary youthful feel.
The playful texture and shine are not only in the sequin pieces with their echoes of the distorted shapes from the collection, but also in
our hand beaded pieces that follow through to the embellished net, back to front hood.
With our denim offering we have overlaid navy net with gold top stitch details, evoking a sense of the traditional jean, carried through the collection in overlays on denim skirts, trousers and a denim trench with distorted wind breaker and belt.
Our more affordable jersey offering takes the sophisticated and yet playful print, seen in our silk pieces and brings it through with the
illustrations of the sea slugs and flowers integrated on to T-shirts and sweatshirts from individual drawings worked in to with beading and
embroidery in a modern way, through to an A-Z of letters created by combining the individual illustrations.