Bright Young Things

As we drift through the summer festival season considering your next festival outfits let's get inspired and take a look at the fabulous festival must haves that are currently available at That Thing on Bristol's creative quarter Stokes Croft. 

That Thing are very close to No Debutante's heart, they support Bristol creatives and are great gals. Recently That Thing have been shortlisted for The Drapers Records Independent Awards 2017 and have been nominated for not one but two awards in the Lifestyle independent of the year and The Young fashion independent of the year categories! Which is just amazing that a Bristol collaborative has been noticed and taken seriously in the fashion industry, the results are to be announced in September at the Drapers Independents awards ceremony. To the lovely That Thing gals, No Debutante wishes you all the luck in the world. I really think you can do this, IT IS AMAZING!

Watch this space for more info on the Drapers awards but for now take a look at the festival fun at That Things festival fashion launch party and drool over all the festival wonderfulness! The colours and displays will make your eyes POP!

There are so many local designers showcasing their work at That Thing who are pioneers in supporting the Bristol indies including Neat Frontage, Zedheads Headwear, Dulcies Feathers, Kokomo, Emotional Waterfall and newcomers to the Bristol fashion scene Insane in the rain who produce amazing sustainable raincoats from recycled bottles and plastics, that come in the most fun and contemporary cool prints ever, WANT!!! Watch this space for more on these guys! 

All photography by No Debutante 

If you are having a fashion event or a have a new collection you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr,  Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name.

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas.    
ND xx

Great British Summertime

It's the Great British Summertime and the No Debutante wardrobe has it's staples including crop tops,  Kimonos, Culottes , shirts, slip dresses, shorts and joggers, with a few denim pieces here and there. The clashing prints and colour will always be there worn with some mad socks and a pair of trainers, so you recognize me! The headscarf has worked it's way back into the wardrobe lately and the earrings can only get bigger. 

   I Love Kimonos

  Cute Culottes

 Mermaid Moments

Printed Shirts 

 Bright colours and clashing prints

Denim Daze

Headscarves 

All photography and styling by No Debutante 

If you are having a fashion event or a have a new collection you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr,  Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name.

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas.    
ND xx

Co-LAB returns to Bristol

Co-LAB Bristol are back on the map on the infamous Gloucester Road in Bristol. Co-LAB moved into their new home at the end of May and have been going from strength to strength since. Co-LAB, who were sadly moved out of their last space due to high rents (read more on that here) at the beginning of the year, have picked themselves up and started again. With new creatives, artists and designers getting involved and showing at their new little store, things are definitely looking up for Co-LAB. 

No Debutante spoke to owner Simone Kidner, at the launch of the new shop, about the support Co-LAB is getting from the general public and how Co-LAB are still supporting local artists and creatives in Bristol. The new shop also features work by some of No Debutante's Bristol faves including amazing earrings by Tezla Designs and cute illustrations and fanzines by The Sad Ghost Club. 

If you come to Bristol, you will probably visit Gloucester Road, it’s a independent fueled road (apparently the longest road in Europe to home so many independents) and luckily on No Debutante’s side of town! You could spend all day wondering up the Gloucester Road, popping into all the shops, eateries and bars and of course people watching, there is always something going on. Come and check it out! 

Here’s a little video interview with the Co-LAB founder Simone Kidner, check it out to hear what Simone has to say. Plus check out and subscribe to more vlogs and interviews on No Debutante’s youtube channel!

All photography and films by No Debutante 

If you are having a fashion event or a have a new collection you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr,  Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name.

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas.    
ND xx

Six Years as No Debutante, the story so far......

Six years ago I was pregnant with my third child, I had been out of the fashion loop for some time and was yearning to get back into doing something related to fashion, I had previously been a fashion designer for girls wear high street brands, followed by starting up my own fashion label Phlem in 2002 which I loved!

Phlem had lots going on including a market stall, a website and a unit in a fashion shop in Bristol. Sadly, a lack of funds and help for start ups at the time meant that my business had to come to an end in 2005 after the birth of my eldest son and another baby on the way. It had to end so I could look after my children as we couldn't afford the childcare costs at the time and literally one day, I just stopped designing.

By 2008, after a very bored and uninspired stint as a stay at home mum, (I love my kids but honestly that life drove me nuts) I had landed myself a job at Venue Magazine (which would lead me to where I am now, but I had no idea at the time!) I loved the magazine and it seemed a worthwhile job to do and put my kids in childcare for, I never understood the mentality of working long hours, barely seeing your kids, paying for childcare to work a job you hate?? This job was fun, it was inspiring and it just about paid for the nursery costs!

I loved it at Venue, I met so many interesting and inspiring people, we were all creatives one way or another and despite my job at Venue only being in admin, it sparked something in me to bring fashion back into my life!

My husband Phil had been going on at me for ages to write a blog, but I had no idea about them and dismissed the idea, then I found Susie Bubble and Tavi Gevinsons blogs....I was hooked and thought, 'yep I can do that'. So I did. Friends had also commented on the outfits I wore around the same time and so naturally the blog started as a 'what I wore' type of blog but there was a catch, I was 20 weeks pregnant with child number three (alright, I know, three kids!!). Since I had no choice in the matter, my blog started as a pregnancy fashion blog, I really do not cope well with my body expanding, I didn't bloom, I moaned but I accepted the challenge!

The No Debutante blog has evolved over the years from a high street fashion loving blog, to a what I wore blog, to a short stint as a life style and beauty blogger (it wasn't for me), even a brand ambassador blogger, all in my attempts to make it as a blogger! I came to the realisation that I didn't want to fit in, I didn't care if I had hundreds of followers, this was my fashion diary, my platform and if anyone else was listening then great!

I began moving away from the high street and writing more about the non conventional designers like Meadham Kirchhoff and Ashish, and new brands like The White Pepper and Lazy Oaf who were the leaders in oversized fashion at the time which I was obsessing over! I then started promoting sustainable fashion after attending a fashion salvage event which lead on to Bristol fashion.

With my personal style posts becoming less frequent as I wanted less me and a bigger variety of content, I slowly noticed that my hometown Bristol was briming full of fashion creatives who needed to be recognised by people outside of Bristol. We needed to be taken seriously! With my heart going out to them as someone who also once was a Bristol designer struggling to get some press, I knew I could help out, even if it was just a little bit!

I now meet new creative Bristolians every week, honestly, it's nuts, I will never run out of content at this rate. I have met so many amazing, talented and inspirational people in Bristol and I am so proud of myself for going out there (nearly always on my own) and introducing myself as a self-confessed, Bristol fashion ambassador! I am enjoying every minute and I'm so happy that my six years of hard work as a fashion blogger has turned into something good!

The final bit of icing on the cake was Bristol 24/7 Magazine (many of my ex-colleagues from Venue Magazine work there now after Venue was sadly shut down - kicking and screaming - back in 2012, luckily for me some of them had read my blog!) got in touch, which brings me to where I am now, a Fashion Editor for Bristol 24/7 and still an avid fashion blogger (never forget where you came from) not bad for a fashionista mum, with a mashed up fashion sense and no qualifications in journalism, eh?

Thank you to everyone who has read and followed my blog over the years, I hope you enjoyed the No Debutante story...so far.....I really couldn't have done it without you! Mwaaaaah xxxx

Boom! No Debutante launches on youtube!

No Debutante is really excited to launch the fashionistas favourites youtube channel, under my name Emma Gorton-Ellicott. Expect fashion interviews, fashion news, fashion happenings, Bristol events and the usual No Debutante fashion fun. I shall continue  reppin' Bristol fashion, in a one woman fashion crusade, supporting local creatives and keeping Bristol on that fashion map! Go Bristol Fashion!

No Debutante is very new to this filming and editing lark, so this will be a gradual process, taking one video at a time, think more DIY fun than any attempt to make this look professional! To me the youtube channel is like a diary, showing you glimpses of No Debutante's world of fashion!

Please follow, share, comment and like the posts to help this fashionista share the Bristol fashion love and carry on doing what I love to do!!! If you are not from Bristol, I hope these short films inspire you and give you a sneak peek into Bristol life and my world!

Thank you for all your support you lovely lot!

No Debutante on youtube

All interviews and films by No Debutante 

If you are having a fashion event or a have a new collection you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr,  Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name.

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas.    
ND xx

The Fashion Front Bzzaar

Bristol is a melting pot of creativity, with designers and creatives inspiring each other to get Bristol on that creative map, it is the home of Banksy after all. 

One such Bristol creative collaboration of late is The Fashion Front Bzzaar. As its name suggests this collaboration was brought to our attention by the inspiring Fran Rennison, the creative brains behind The Fashion Front  (No Debutante's fave Bristol fashion show) and Beth Izzard from Bzzaar, who is on a one woman mission to bring back the jumble sale and creates sociable events, showcasing Bristol's greatness by uniting local artists, designers, illustrators, DJs and clothes hoarders and keeping that Bristol collaborative charm alive. 

The Fashion Front Bzzaar was a pop-up, weekend fashion event following The Fashion Front 2017 show, which took place at SPACE, a creative hub on Old Market in Bristol. 
Many of the fabulous garments by Bristol's fashion designers that appeared in the fashion show were available to buy plus extra gems and treasures.

Both the pop-up event and fashion show were raising money to support young people with mental conditions in the Bristol area, alongside OTR Bristol, Fashion Front Fran inspired these kids to create some brilliant garms that also appeared at the fashion events! 

No Debutante went along to The Fashion Front Bzzaar collaboration, to view the fabulous garms from The Fashion Front show and hopefully pick up an item or two for the ever expanding No Debutante wardrobe (honestly, it needs its own room!). 
The fave outfit from The Fashion Front Bzzaar was a bespoke crop top and shorts co-ord in a wax print inspired fabrics which were literally made for me and was even one of the garms created by the OTR Bristol designers! It's now a staple part of the No Debutante wardrobe. Let's hear it for Bristol's aspiring young designers! 

The Tail End X OTR mini collection

Neat Frontage collection

Great print mash-up creations from Dollar Bill

 The Fashion Front's Fran Rennison with her latest collection for Tail End. 

Beth Izzard, jumble sale obsessive from Bzzaar wearing Kokomo top. 

This year's festival must have from Capes Capes Capes

No Debutante wearing the Tail End X OTR Bristol co-ord at Love Saves The Day festival. 

All Photography and words by No Debutante 

If you are having a fashion event or a have a new collection you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr,  Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name.

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas.    
ND xx