Good morning good morning good morning Chit Chat Tuesday readers!
I hope that it is all sunshine and smiles wherever you are this morning! What a beautiful weekend we had! I hope you didn’t wake up yesterday feeling tender and looking like a lobster!
So it’s all go go at Circus London PR at the moment! Things seem to have gone in to over drive which is VERY exciting!
Today on CCT I am joined by Miss Dandy Star herself! I have been a huge fan of the brand for a long time so I am very excited to have the lady behind this ultra-trendy brand on the show today!
So please join me in putting a warm welcome together for Charlotte…
Charlotte thanks you so much for joining the CCT readers and me today! Can you start off by telling us a little bit about yourself…
Thank you for having me CCT! I am married to the Jeweller Ben Day and we have 2 kids, Dorian 12 and Gracie is 10 yrs. I have lived in between Dalston and Shoreditch for 16 years. Before Dandy Star I worked as a commercial artist for interior designers and architects specifying colour and designs for interiors and buildings.
I absolutely love Shoreditch! I think it’s one of my favourite areas of London! What’s your background?
Originally I trained as a painter having studied Fine Art at the Winchester then the RCA.
How did the opportunity with Dandy Star arise?
After having kids, myself and my friend Rose wanted to do something creative and decided upon printing t-shirts. We wanted to create something ubiquitous and a staple for our kids. We hand dyed and printed everything back then, down in Cornwall. I would come home to London and visit the shops with a fruit box full of Dandy Love t-shirts. The Cross in Notting Hill were the first to order and it gradually took shape! We had no plan! We just wanted people to like what we did.
Dandy Star Love T-shirt
And blimmey how they did! Why the name Dandy Star?
The name was a combination of David Bowie lyrics and the the man himself. It was inspired by my life, when I was as a kid and the stuff that was around in the 70s.
Tell us about the brand and its ethos…
Dandy Star is about making simple clothes that kids love. I am not that interested in kids fashion but I am interested in clothes. The message should be positive, heartfelt and unfettered by adult influence. Colour is really important to me. I love when my kids Dandy t-shirts fade over time, I keep them and swatch them for the next collection.
Dandy Star Panther T-shirt
I am all about the positivity so that sounds good to me! Tell us about your role…
I design everything for Dandy Star and deal with a lot of the production details! It’s full on and I put a lot of work and thought into it.
It must be such a rewarding feeling to see that all of your work is getting such positive results! Where do you draw inspiration from?
My Inspiration comes through my kids and their friends! They are a huge influential force. I look everywhere for inspiration, the area I live in in East London is constantly changing, exciting and creative and of course I love travel and holidays! When I am relaxed I can think!
I love to travel too! As soon as I get back from one adventure I am planning the next! Why childrenswear?
Childrenswear was a good starting point for me! I had small kids and I did not want to do fashion but I have always loved clothes. I design homeware products as well as kids wear which is great as I can vary between the two! I never set out just to do kids wear! Right from the start I wanted to have more dimensions to the brand. I guess in part keeping that attachment with my interest in art.
It’s nice that you can change between the two! Especially if one’s getting a bit too much one day! What exciting projects are you working on at the moment? What can we look forward to with Dandy Star?
There are a few new things I am working on and I always have a huge list of ideas I would like to try! I’d like to have a go at more home ware products and accessories.
Light Star box
The lists can go on forever can’t they?! What are your favourite pieces from the SS14 collection?
I love the SPACE MAN T-shirt which also happens to be the best seller, so I am keeping it in year round for now.
Dandy Star SPACEMAN T-shirt
That’s amazing – Congratulations! It is a fab print so I can see why it’s a winner! Tell us about the AW14 collection…
AW14 has sporty, active themes and some more really lovely knits which I am carrying over into ladies! These seem to sell really well on our web site to which is great! There’s also some coloured panel sweats and new cute baby playsuits.
It’s all happening for Dandy Star! What’s the most exciting project you’ve experienced in your career to date?
Designing a t-shirt collection for Marc Jacobs, Little Marc label was great, I remember visiting Selfridges to view it, that felt pretty good.
That’s amazing!! I bet that was so much fun and as you said – what a feeling seeing it displayed in Selfridges! Where’s your favourite area in London?
I love the City and down by the river the light is always different by the river. If I moved it would be somewhere on the Thames.
The Thames is lovely! As you said, there is nothing like a sunset whilst on an evening walk by the river! Have you got a positive saying you could share with us?
More is more! except when Less is more…
Brilliant!! Every Friday morning my Mum sends me a thought of the day! I think it’s such a nice way to start the day!
Thank you so much for joining me on CCT today Charlotte! It has been great having you and getting to hear about your exciting journey!
Join me next week for lots more chinwagging and hopefully day of glorious sunshine!! Big hugs and smacks Kate xox
For further details on clothing, accessories and homewares visit Dandy Star
The images used belong to Dandy Star.
