A/W 2011 : The Rising Stars

With style setting fans like Julia Restoin Roitfeld, Leigh Lezark and Olivia Palermo, it’s no wonder that youngster Frank Tell is making waves in New York. He, in fact, is part of a gang of new designers that all work with each other – he actually shares a studio with the Julia R-R, as well as ELLE favourite Pamela Love who designs pieces to accompany his collections, and Raphael Young created the footwear for his last collection.

Frank got his first taste of fashion thanks to his grandmother, who used to hold sewing classes in her shop when he was growing up. Her’s built on those early skills to become an NY favourite, and you only have to check out his spring collection to see why. He does a good line in sophisticated and cool party dresses, and sleek graphic separates, but he’s really winning rave reviews for his modern take on knitwear. We love.

Thomas Tait had the London fashion crowd chattering last year when he seemingly came out of nowhere to win the Dorchester Collection Fashion Prize – and £25,000 to kick start his label no less. He wowed the expert panel of judges, including Manolo Blahnik and Giles Deacon with his beautifully made, minimalist tailoring, all perfect curves, invisible seams and sculptural shapes, and style setters were talking for days about his couture-style sewing skills. Pretty impressive for a 23 year old.
It’s not the only accolade that the youngster has received in his short career. Thomas hails from Canada and travelled to London to study at Central Saint Martins and, aged 20, he was the youngest person ever to have been admitted to the college’s MA course. This season he’s received NEWGEN sponsorship to show at the London Fashion Week and will be closely watched – we predict that he’s set to go stellar.

If you’ve paid a visit to Selfridges in the last couple of weeks then you may have come across the latest creations by Kirtsy Ward – she’s one of a handful of young designers handpicked by the London department to showcase their wares in store. It’s no the only accolade that Kirsty has received this year. She’s also earned herself one of the much-coveted places in Vauxhall Fashion Scout’s ‘Ones To Watch’ show this season. And no wonder.
The Central Saints Martins graduate was plucked from her final show by Alberta Ferretti where she worked for 18 months. Experience under her belt, she set up her own label and launched her debut collection last spring,. Since then she’s gone from strength to strength thanks to her ultra-sexy and just-edgy-enough pieces – the embellished and sheer pencil dresses from her spring collection are a firm ELLE favourite. And she’s not just a whizz at womenswear either – she also has a talent for making jewellery that we’re itching to snap up.

David Longshaw is making a name for himself thanks to his feminine-meets-sporty offerings. He studied at both Central Saint Martins and the Royal Academy of Arts, and not only did his graduate MA collection earn him nominations for a clutch of awards, it also landed him a job at Alberta Ferretti before it had even hit the catwalk. He made the move to Italy and, post Ferretti, he worked for Max Mara, before deciding that the time was ripe to move back to London and go it alone.
We at ELLE have a soft spot for David Longshaw – he was one of the first winners of our Talent Launchpad initiative with the BFC back in September. He caught the eye of the judging panel - which included ELLE editor Lorraine Candy - with hismodern, textural, patchworked pieces. Nad he has another string to his bow - not only is he a brilliant designer, he’s also a talented illustrator and his pieces are covered in colourful prints of his intricate drawings (visit www.whatmaudeworenext.typepad.com to see some of his sketchings).