Festival season 2019 is upon us, and if you’re anything like me, you have spent hours browsing online to find the perfect outfits. Festival fashion needs to be practical but outrageous, sparkly yet comfy, well made and environmentally friendly. Well, that last one at least I hope crosses your mind!
With the number of festival fashion brands growing larger every year, it can be difficult to know which ones have a sustainable production process. Buying from independent UK designers massively reduces air miles (the most damaging part!) and makes me feel good supporting local economy. Lots of makers also use recycled/upcycled materials, and do their best to reduce waste.
I wanted to help you all out by compiling a list of UK-made independent festival fashion designers that I love, and who are ethically minded. So have a look below and make sure you check them out! Happy shopping!
The best UK designed and made independent festival fashion brands:
Claudia Pink
Claudia Pink designs gorgeous jewellery-slash-clothes inspired by ancient civilisations and ethnic traditions. They’re made here in the UK from mirrored resin and semi-precious stones. These pieces can be worn over clothes or swimwear, or go bare! Lovingly handmade and each a complete showstopper.
Burnt Soul Clothing
It turns out, catsuits actually make everyone look and feel amazing! I now own 4 Burnt Soul pieces myself, and they make me feel more confident and awesome than I could have imagined! They’re designed and made in Bristol by a team of fabulous boss queens! Being sustainable has been part of their core principles since day 1. They release new designs in limited runs so they can react to what their customer likes which reduces waste, and their printed materials are made here in the UK too from recycled fishing nets and plastic bottles. They even send their offcuts to other British festival brands to repurpose!
L.O.M Fashion
L.O.M Fashion is the creation of lovely Louise O’Mahony and features bright prints, tassels, pompoms and sequins! Based down in Brighton, Louise designs all of her collections to be bold and unique. Her latest collection, Körpermitose, has prints made from oil paintings she did last year and it all looks so bright and luxurious.
Loonigans
Loonigans set the trend when they launched in 2016 with their flip sequin designs, and each year they bring more unique garms to the festival scene. Founder and head designer Olivia makes all her pieces in London, and also has many processes in place to minimise waste and recycle where possible. Read more about her green initiatives here!
Bottle Blonde Studio
Girl boss Chloe and her team of sassy interns make these divine tinsel jackets, clothes and accessories in Coventry. They’ve become internet famous due to their completely over the top but amazing pieces! The jackets are the perfect thing to throw on over any outfit and instantly stand out from the crowd. They’re absolute perfection over a Burnt Soul catsuit!
Dakota Rae Dust
Moving on to accessories, Bec makes gorgeous stand out jewellery in Bristol, UK from vintage materials she finds in charity shops! Her designs are instantly recognisable with their bright colours, layered style and tassels. The plectrum earrings are a particular best seller. I want a pair in every colour!
Headspace Headdresses
For the most unique, comfy and eccentric headwear I have to shout out the wonderful Loty who runs Headspace Headdresses. I’ve been wearing her designs to festivals for years now and am always amazed at her creativity! You can wear them all day and they stay in place and don’t start to hurt after wearing them for hours. Loty makes them all from her London home from ethically sourced materials, including lots of scraps from the designers mentioned here! This is perfect because I now have a great headdress that exactly matches my Burnt Soul catsuit!