All About Manchester

Fashion Forward

From talented young designers to fabulous new boutiques, Manchester has never been more in fashion. We take a look at some of the people and places that make it so glam up North.

Nabil El Nayal

It has been a fantastic year for designer Nabil El Nayal, who graduated from Manchester School of Art this summer. The soft-spoken 22-year-old won the Royal Society of Art Student Award in April, before wowing the judges at this year's British Graduate Fashion Week in June and scooping the coveted Womenswear Award.

Born in Syria to a Syrian father and English mother, El Nayal started knitting at four, when his father would have preferred him to concentrate on maths. He explains: "My mum knew I was made for this line of work but my father for a long time was against it. He wanted me to be a lawyer or a doctor, because that's what boys are supposed to do in Syria. So my mum moved the family back to England, to her hometown of Sheffield, to help me follow my dream."

Mothers know best, of course, and the whole family was proud when the young El Nayal made headlines nationwide with his success at British Graduate Fashion Week, which celebrates the country's up-and-coming fashion talent.

His winning collection was inspired by the Black Death in the Elizabethan era. A macabre subject but you can't knock the result - his sheer cottons, protruding collars, billowing sleeves, pleaded voluminous skirts and monochromatic colour palette brought yesteryear elegance back to life in spectacular fashion.

Supermodel Claudia Schiffer, who was one of the judges, said: "We thought this was a wonderful, dramatic collection with a well thought-out theme."

And the media nodded in agreement. "Beautiful and bold, it was a truly stunning collection," said Vogue, while Sheffield newspaper The Star announced that El Nayal is "tipped as the next face of British womenswear".

The young designer, who starts his MA at the Royal College of Art in London this month after a work experience placement at Burberry, put his heart and soul into his collection. He admits it took him 11 weeks to finish one hand-sewn garment, but he wouldn't have it any other way. "I don't believe in fast fashion. My work is sentimentally important to me and every stitch means something. I want to create garments that will still be beautiful in 20 years."

Yet he was still shocked by his triumph at British Graduate Fashion Week. "To get to the gala show was a real achievement but I couldn't believe it when I was selected as the winner of the womenswear category. As soon as Claudia Schiffer announced my name I stumbled out of my chair; I almost fell to the ground."

El Nayal hopes to one day work for a high-end fashion house like Burberry or Viktor & Rolf, and ultimately launch his own label.

Our verdict: Spectacularly dramatic but utterly wearable, Nabil El Nayal's clothes are gorgeous and timeless, with a heartbreaking innocence to them.

Hasan Hejazi

Another budding fashion designer, 22-year-old Hasan Hejazi attributes his career choice to a childhood fixation with his fashion icon Madonna and her head-turning outfits. "I was obsessed with keeping track of what she was wearing," he says.

He knew then that he wanted to dress stylish women but admitting it to his friends and family was not easy. "Living with a strict Muslim Jordanian father and growing up in the TV programme setting of 'Shameless' meets 'The Royle Family' in Wythenshawe, I felt I had to hide this interest. It's not the done thing to even study beyond college in Wythenshawe, especially not fashion."

Instead, Hejazi studied art and kept his secret passion alive by sneaking fashion elements into all his projects, slowly building up a good portfolio. His tutors took notice and advised him to pursue fashion as a career, and that was all the push he needed to come clean to his family.

With the blessing of his proud English mum, Hejazi graduated from a degree in Fashion Design at Manchester Metropolitan University last year, after creating a fabulous womenswear collection that Madonna would look divine in. "It's based around fetishism but with a very subtle, soft edge to it," he explains.

The young designer used a bold palette of blues, vivid reds and blacks, combined with texture contrasts of Mongolian sheepskin and hard patent leather to create sexy, extravagant pieces that raised eyebrows at last year's British Graduate Fashion Week. His work has since appeared in a number of publications, including the Daily Telegraph, OK! and Manchester Evening News.

After his graduation, Hejazi decided to take a year out of studying and he is currently working as an assistant fashion stylist on magazine photoshoots. This month, he is moving to London to start his MA Fashion course at the London College of Fashion, which he hopes will help him realise his dream of launching a successful womenswear label. "Whether this takes two or 20 years, I'll get there eventually," he promises.

A young designer with talent, ambition and bucketfuls of entrepreneurial spirit, Hasan Hejazi is a name worth remembering.

www.hasanhejazi.co.uk

Rags to Bitches

When vintage clothing boutique Rags to Bitches opened in the city's fashionable Northern Quarter in 2005, there was a collective 'Pheeew! About time!' from discerning shoppers who were fed up with the cheap and cheerful uniformity churned out by the high street.

The brainchild of journalist and radio presenter Flic Everett and photographer Simon Buckley, the charming Tib Street boutique was soon established as the premier shopping destination for vintage and customised clothes. Canadian crooner Celine Dion is reportedly one of its many celebrity fans, but thankfully you do not need her bank balance to shop here.

Unique and affordable, the boutique's clothes look like they've been hand-picked and restored with love, so don't expect musty smells and crammed rails, but beautiful garments that are beautifully displayed in a stunning visual feast.

Rags to Bitches also offers a bespoke dressmaking service, creating made-to-measure vintage-style clothes.

But it's not just the pretty clothes and accessories that make this classy vintage joint a success story; from fashion talks to disco parties and dressmaking courses, there is always something exciting happening here.

A true Mancunian gem of a shop, Rags to Bitches has recently been voted by the Daily Telegraph as one of Britain's best boutiques, and last month it scooped the Fashion award at the hotly contested Best of Manchester 2008.

www.rags-to-bitches.co.uk

Junk Shop

Some people say 'junk' and mean things like the mini-stepper gathering dust in the storage room or the old camp bed rusting away in the shed. Others say 'junk' and mean gorgeous vintage-inspired dresses. Luckily, Junk Shop's definition of 'junk' has nothing to do with mini-steppers or camp beds.

The team behind the shop, Dan Clark and Charlotte Keyworth, make and sell clothes with an eco conscience in a backlash against disposable fashion.

The first Junk Shop opened in West Didsbury in 2006. Last September, Clark and Keyworth opened a boutique on Dale Street in the Northern Quarter, bringing their unique brand of green chic to the heart of the city.

The city centre shop was furnished entirely using recycled or reclaimed materials, so you get wacky features like a remoulded fairy liquid bottle counter and walk-in wardrobe changing rooms.

Junk's eco ethos extends to the clothes. The in-house design team, led by Keyworth, has recently launched a recycled label called Jumble that transforms cast-offs into stylish vintage pieces with a contemporary twist. Unwanted items such as damaged clothes, stained table cloths and torn curtains are taken to Islington Mill in Salford, where they are reinvented as one-off dresses, skirts and tops.

Supermodel Eva Herzigova has recently been snapped wearing one of Keyworth's fab eco frocks, and Jumble is now the biggest selling line at Oxfam designer boutiques. There is also talk of selling the label at Topshop London and other high street shops soon.

Can't find anything that fits? Don't worry, Junk also offers a customising service for thrifty fashionistas who want exclusive pieces that don't look borrowed from a taller, thinner cousin.

www.junkshopuk.com

Visit Urbis this month to check out work by Nabil El Nayal, Hasan Hejazi, Rags to Bitches and Junk Shop as part of the Best of Manchester exhibition.

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