Fashion Design BA(Hons) graduate Emily Harrison runs her own business, Shim Sham Designs, in Croyde, Devon, where she hand-makes vintage-inspired bridal headpieces.
24 Mar 2014
University of Brighton Faculty of Arts Fashion Design BA(Hons) graduate Emily Harrison runs her own business, Shim Sham, in Croyde Devon, where she hand-makes vintage-inspired bridal headpieces.
Inspired by the flowers in an English garden, her business offers a bespoke service, tailoring pieces to suit individual tastes to complement wedding dresses and outfits.
While still a student, (then Emily Petrides) was able to gain work experience with established designers, including John Rocha. “It was a brilliant experience working in a design studio where there is such an emphasis on textiles and hand embellishment. I think this really opened my mind to how much you can do with textiles”.
After graduating in 2006, Emily worked as a knitwear designer in London, designing for brands which included ASOS, Debenhams and House of Fraser. She said: “Shim Sham is a result of all the skills I’ve learned and all the things that inspire me. Studying at the University of Brighton was a great experience for me, I was really pushed to explore my creativity and found it very inspiring being in such an exciting, buzzy, place.”
“The placement year is a big strength of the course as I think real experience of the industry is invaluable; it allowed us all to come back for our final year knowing how important it was to achieve that fine balance of creativity and commerciality in our work. I also found the Business Studies element extremely useful - I graduated feeling like I'd been given direction on how to put myself forward in a professional way, this is something I'm still drawing upon now as I try to grow my own business."
Image: An example of Emily Harrison's work.
