Exclusive : Olivia Rubin

It’s no suprise that Olivia Rubin has become a favourite of the fashion glossies and style devotess with her beautiful prints and wearable clothes, with their painterly effects and colourways that are undeniably beautiful to any age. Papped shots of stylistas such as Fearne Cotton, Agyness Deyn and M.I.A in her dresses can only catapault the 27 year old,Central St Martins graduate further.... As Open’s Fashion Police it was my job to interupt Oliva’s busy day with some questions....

You’ve had an influx of high profile people wearing your designs. How does this come about? Do they contact you and come and pick from your showroom?
It works differently for each celebrity-it’s a mixture of stylists contacting me or even the celeb themselves. We also try and target people who we think would like what I do and wear the brand well!
 
Who is the architypal Olivia Ruban girl, a muse, or the person you’d most like to see in one of your designs?
I try not to pigeon hole the Olivia Rubin customer-I love to see a variety of different women in my clothes-it’s great to be a versatile designer. Ultimately I design clothes that I want to wear-individual pieces for a modern woman!
 
I spent time at Alexander McQueen, as you did , how did you find the experience?
McQueen was definitely a tough experience! I’m glad I stuck it out and I learnt a lot in that fast paced environment. It may not be the way I work but I learnt a lot of new skills there that have got me to where I am today.
 
Did it surprise you to see how much goes into putting a collection together?
I was never under any illusion, seeing the staggering amount of time and effort that went to each piece at McQueen, and Galliano set me up to make my own graduate collection. Now it’s crazy to think I’m putting together my own collections consisting of approximately 30 pieces per season-it is so satisfying to see it all come together at the end!
 
Have you stayed in touch, do you ever seek advice from the greats you’ve worked with or are they always too busy?
I’ve stayed in touch with people who I worked with at Galliano-it’s good to get creative opinions on the work I am producing, it makes me strive to become the best designer I can be. I could relate to Galliano’s work ethic and took away a lot from the experience there.
 
What was the most valuable thing you took away from your time at these fashion houses?
To stay true to your design style.....
 
I read that you worked on Jade Jaggers Jezebel collection, what was your role?
I worked with Jade briefly on her Jezebel clothing line-designing prints and leisure wear.
 
Do you hope to expand your collection to accesssories in the future?
Yes. I’ve thought about it and hopefully it will materialise in the future but at the moment I am focusing on the clothes and expanding into different areas in the womenswear market.
 
Your current collection was inspired by artists. Can you describe the creative process of designing a new collection?
To cut a long story short!!!...a collection starts with one single idea ranging from anything form a print design, a research image, design or colour combination and just rolls out from that. I integrate the print and garment design so that the prints suit the silhouette and vice versa-creating the perfect balance between print and silhouette is an integral part of the design process for me.
 
What environment do you work best in?
A combination- in the morning I concentrate better in the quiet, but by the pm music can get me going, especially if I’m designing on Photoshop!!
 
Elle magazine’s Natasha Wray styled the looks, what did she bring to the images?
Natasha really understands me as a designer and completely got the look I was trying to achieve-she created exactly what I imagined in my mind.
 
How was your LFW experience this year?
Kind of nonexistent! I showed at PURE this season and held private appointments in my showroom. I’ve got big plans in the pipeline for next LFW though!
 
Have you already started thinking about the next collection, can you give us any hints of what it may look like?
Yes! I’m always straight onto the next. I work at a very fast pace and am always itching to start on a new collection!


We can’t wait either Ms Rubin!!

www.oliviarubinlondon.com