Tamara Introduces AW18
Read more
Behind the Scenes Winter 2018
Introducing Winter 2018
Temperatures may be dropping, but so has our new collection filled with pieces to take you through autumn and beyond. Designed in celebration of our 20th birthday, our Founder and Creative Director Tamara Hill-Norton talks us through the inspiration. Warning! You may want it all.
The Inspiration
It’s our 20th birthday this year. In 1998 I opened the doors to our first shop in Notting Hill, so 2018 has been an incredible opportunity to look back and reflect on our history. Sweaty Betty was born in London, so it felt natural that our new collection reflects our home city and its many eccentricities. The design team travelled to all corners of the city to take inspiration. From cocktails on Selfridges rooftop to running from Richmond Park to the Southbank, their favourite winter experiences inspired these layered looks. There are some amazing prints inspired by the city from our reversible leggings with London landmarks on (can you spot Big Ben?) to bulldog print bum-sculpting leggings.
We were particularly inspired by London street style as the season’s change. The edginess here has always been a huge inspiration for me, particularly the street style. As a city we have a real effortless look with an edge, there is something so unique about it. I love London style at this time of year, with all the cool knitwear and layers that you don’t see anywhere else.
Being born in 1998 we couldn’t not look to our original decade for style inspiration. The 90s can be seen in everything from our colour palette, to the shapes and textures, there’s chenille knits, faux fur and an incredible purple velvet puffa jacket. With our birthday in mind, you’ll also see our new SB LDN (short for Sweaty Betty London) logo on lots of pieces, as a way of celebrating our heritage.
The Shoot
We shot these pieces on location in East London outside one of my favourite studios BLOK in Shoreditch. The models Lucy Gascoyne and Candice Blackburn are both British girls and so much fun, we had a great time on set as they are friends outside of modelling so had a really natural rapport. I also love the fact that when she’s not modelling, Lucy trains in High Jump and actually competed this summer.
When I was styling these looks, I looked to the effortless way London girls dress as the weather gets colder, with lots of layers, faux fur and accessories. I want these to be go-to pieces you can throw on over your leggings and style up or down. These are so easy to wear but super technical, we’ve used fabrics like merino and Italian Fleece to really keep you warm.
I hope our new collection inspires you to get active and style up your look from studio to street. It’s been so much fun to design and I can’t wait to see how you style it.
Shop our new collection today and share your winter style with #iamasweatybetty.
