Back at our home from home, Chelsea Harbour, we catch up with the Queen of Fashion. It’s the eve of Africa Fashion Week London – she’s headlining a catwalk of Africa and the African diaspora’s very finest. Before all the glitz and glamour, funk and fantasy, jazz and pizzazz, Mary talks to us about the serious side of her fashion artistry: sustainability. At the most fundamental level, her clothes are made to last. But there are multiple layers (pun) to her green credentials.
“I care passionately about sustainability, the environment, the climate emergency and nature. My eponymous fashion label Mary Martin London (MML) reflects these passions. MML could easily stand for Materials Made for Life! I also greatly care about Africa and again my clothes reflect this interest. While many of my models are either from Africa or the African diaspora, I employ and attract a diverse talent: one of my first catwalk models was Polish while I also have mature female Irish clients.”
“I am from a family of 13 siblings and am the second youngest of six sisters so as a child I got used to wearing ‘hand me downs’. I would give these fifth hand clothes my own spin by adding individual accessories. I have been collecting old fabrics from the 1970s. I recently bought factory leftovers of linen which I will use for my next collection.”
“My Queen of Africa dress is an aesthetic interpretation of the countryside: the colourway of this dress represents brown for earth, green for grass and yellow for the sun. My Cecil the Lion dress came about when I heard the tragic news story from Zimbabwe of a lion maimed and killed by a recreational big game hunter. Layers of tulle around the neck and shoulders represent Cecil’s mane. The back of the dress has got the silkiness and fineness of the lion’s body.”
“I also draw and make my own prints. For my first men’s collection, I designed a print called Slaves in the Trees. I researched the Himba Tribe in Namibia and discovered they use a lot of orange face paint and hair mud. Orange is for the vibrance of earth and black is for the unseen missing elements. Orange represents the sun, the happiness outside. The print also commemorates the suffering inflicted during the slave trade.”
“Many of my dresses have historical inspiration which ties in with the sustainable use of recycled materials and reimagining vintage pieces. Last September I organised a fashion shoot of The Return Collection at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. This collection was in part inspired by Georgian costume and aristocracy. Except in my imagination the black models are now the reigning grand aristocracy! The Grand Staircase and Durbar Court provided the perfect backdrop for these extravagant clothes. The collection reuses sequins from old costumes.”
“I continue to research and look for new methods to reinvent old materials in exciting ways. My passion for sustainability, the environment, the climate emergency, nature and of course Africa drives me to be ever more creative, stretching my imagination and skills. I make clothes to last: they represent the antithesis of the throwaway culture. Mary Martin London is all about making the world a better, more exciting and more caring place for current and future generations.”
21 replies on “Mary Martin London + Sustainability”
Fashion !! More Fashion !! Such beautiful ❤️ fabrics. Who on earth is Pavlo 😭 ?? 💓
Fashion, architecture, art, restaurants, hotels. Tune in!
Amazing artistry from Mary
She is a legend!
Hey gorgeous 😍🥰 do you ever do any work 😂 I guess Lavenders Blue is work …… 💋💋
Margate we work extremely hard seriously! LVB X
Great pictures where’s the one of Mary taken from? She looks great. I like how thoughtful she is with the Versace trainer 😭 Soph xx
Hi Sophie good to see you again at the Edition party. That punch was lethal! Mary is sitting on the terrace of the Chelsea Harbour Hotel which is completely legendary. One of our favourite places when we aren’t at it like crazy in the House of Mary Martin London! LVB X ps yes that Versace trainer …
Lovely 🌹
Thank you x
LVB Fashion Week is it ?? And who is Pavlo ?? I need to know these things 😂 I can’t wait long enough till you’re down seeing Puss n Boots .. that’s a fun photo of Mary Martin. A x
Allison so many questions! Looking forward to our much belated Surrrey rendez vous. All will be revealed then, Parees, Pavlo etc. LVB X
Just read your London Edition piece I was invited too! Great party. Passing ships. Lovely posts I’m enthralled by Mary Martin London. Your detail images pick up on her artistry. I saw on Google she has dressed Heather Small. Massive fan.
Hello Daisy. Good to hear from you and wasn’t the Edition marvellous? Annabel P rocked up in her finest! We’ve always been Vanity Fair fans but since meeting Nate that has gone up a whole new level! Heather rocks. Can’t say anything more! LVB X
I love seeing Mary’s clothes 👏🏿👏🏿 can’t wait for AFWL 2023 NOW 🥰 K 🤎🖤
Greetings I am always very impressed by your posts. I smile as I think do you know everyone in London ?
Dbać o siebie. Ola x
Lovely to hear from you Ola it has been too long. We need a full Bibendum party going again. Lots of love. LVB
The writing. I love your voice!
‘Queen of Fashion ‘ is a most appropriate title for Mary who is a complete genius . Beautiful, funny and immensely talented . Best wishes for Africa Fashion Week 💕
We are with you Janice on that front. Here’s to crazy cars to Mary’s shows and catwalks and everything she does! Genius is the word. AFWL here we come! LVB X
I Really appreciate your support you give my muse Stuart, ❤️ love you all emensley .
Mary Martin London.xxxx