With everyone jumping on the "I'm a t-shirt designer" bandwagon recently, it's hard to actually find something special among the current mass-produced, mass-worn mediocre pieces:
The fantastic Kesh has moved to America; Cassette Playa is becoming just slightly too JC/DC, and Katherine Hamnett is a legend too often imitated.
Which is why Lillies of the Alley is so appealing. The brainchild of Nathalie McDonnell was conceived almost four years ago and has been slowly growing ever since.
It all started with friends and passers-by complimenting her customised t-shirts; Nat simply wanted to make designs that no-one else wore, and pieces she couldn't find on the high-street, bringing an element of her families Rock N' Roll, music industry background and, in short, putting it on her chest!
Original and oh so cool, the pieces are one-off exclusives- rendered by hand, they have a much more personal feel. The Ts caught the eye of a Topshop buyer, giving Nathalie the chance to showcase five of her design pieces under the Lollipop boutique name. Working with Topshop/Arcadia gave Nathalie a platform for expanding her designs from t-shirts to a brand status- watch out for the hoodies, jumpers and even baby-grows!
Nat says: "I knew this could be something really special when Debbie Harry (of Blondie, possibly the coolest woman on the planet) wore a t-shirt I had made her, pretty much throughout her tour. Seeing my idol in one of my own designs was definitely a small taste of success.."
We expect a lot more...
