Independent and sustainable creativity is thriving despite the pandemic

Hello! It's been a while since I graced the pages of the No Debutante blog, following a year that has seen everyone grow and adapt to this new world, where things have certainly changed in many ways.

As a journalist who had regularly supported and written about indie business and slow fashion, I found myself wanting to say so much that it became overwhelming. As more writers and (instagram pages!) stepped forward to share the indie biz love, unconsciously, my focus began to shift.

My side hustle turned small business Fruit Salad

My side hustle and fashion brand Fruit Salad had started to grow and take on its own identity, which was amazing (especially in a pandemic) and all my spare time....

- Not that there's much of it - imagine a fast, intense photo montage here, with a superfast techno soundtrack, I hate techno but it captures the mood/chaos perfectly, of me looking after a family and working a day job and all those other side hustles in fashion, bands and radio shows

....was taken up by just wanting to create and make! So, swamped in piles of pre-loved fabrics, I found myself asking... 'Am I not a writer anymore?' 

Seriously, with a lack of writing flow and consistency and mind-blowing covid confusion,  I had started to doubt my ability and (like in everything I ever do) imposter syndrome snuck in and made me think I was no longer a writer - maybe I never had been really...despite being a Fashion editor, copywriter and JOURNALIST! (my eyes are now rolling at my own stupidity).

Yep, It's been a mad ol' time for self-doubt but I've also learnt that if I enjoy a thing and I'm kinda good at it, I can drop in and out of it as and when I like. It doesn't have to be completed NOW, NOW, NOW! It can be considered, I can slow down and actually enjoy it, without adding unnecessary anxiety and stress.

My favourite writing space at the kitchen table!

The term 'writing a blog' has also changed, with many people now pretty much writing articles on a single social media post or creating regular video content and podcasts, blogs and the written word, as it currently exists, look to become redundant!

As a journalist and blogger,  I had felt a tug of resentment against this new style of journalism but only as much as the journalists who actually studied journalism feel about an untrained indie journalist like myself, who started off with a self promoting fashion blog and a random, yet regular, fashion spread in a weddings (yes weddings!) magazine, as I stumbled blindly into journalism. 

Y'know what? It's all good. We all have something to say and we can share it however and whenever we want to. It's so exciting that we now have so many platforms and formats that we can share our ideas, thoughts and stories. It really is a time to communicate, learn and collaborate! 

There has certainly been an explosion of support for both small business and slow fashion during 2020 and into 2021, as more and more writers, instagrammers, online markets and indie businesses themselves have come together, to share the love, (well, the government doesn't give a damn does it?) which is truly amazing! 

I have, of course, felt guilty about not promoting all the other amazing indie brands out there as much as I used to, but as a multi-passionate creative, who thrives on being busy,  I have learnt to slow down in life - as many of us have had to lately -  I have got over myself and realised I can't do everything at once and that's just fine. 

Honestly, if I read myself saying this a few years back, when I started the 'you only live once do everything now' quest (for no real reason), I'd think I'd been hit by a hippy stick (quite possible in Bristol tbh!). 

I still agree that you only live once and if you like a thing, you should do a thing but perhaps try everything in moderation and take a moment to smell the flowers! (Yep, definitely hit with the hippy stick). 

Hello Dodo from the Indies in lockdown series

Looking back at my writing during the pandemic I am really proud to have shared new indie makers and brands whilst spreading the word about slow and sustainable fashion. I really love my Indies in Lockdown series where I got to speak to so many indie businesses about their experiences and learnt so much.

If anything, supporting all these amazing small businesses and interviewing so many inspiring indie makers and creatives over the years has encouraged me to bring forward a passion that has been on the back burner for a long while, giving Fruit Salad the push it deserves!!!.....Of course, I feel like an imposter fashion designer now, despite previously working as a fashion designer in industry for years!

After I had readjusted my mindset,  I got my writing mojo back and popped myself back into the journalist room on a mission to share my knowledge on sustainable and slow fashion.

In lockdown two, I was super excited to be asked to contribute to the first ever edition of The Indie Guide, an independently published magazine created by a collective of indie bloggers, sustainable fashion designers and photographers. The aim of the magazine is to support sustainability, independent creatives and small business. 

Proudly holding my copy of The Indie Guide

My excitement to be writing again went into overdrive which meant I ended up contributing two articles (once I start I cant stop) including 'My Slow Fashion Journey' and 'How to become a slow fashion supporter'. 

These are sustainable subjects that I could continuously write about, probably forever, or until I've managed to convert the whole fashion industry and all its consumers (that's the whole population no biggy) to slow down and bring an end to fast fashion. 

It was so awesome to collaborate with The Indie Guide founders and so many other indie writers and independent makers and fashion businesses to showcase how great the indie fashion/creative industry really is. 

Despite a pandemic, independent creativity is totally thriving!  

Like myself, during lockdown many creatives were given the opportunity to spend more time on their hobbies and side hustles to grow and evolve them into functioning small businesses!

We really don't need the fast fashion corporate chains and trend obsessive fashion houses anymore! How empowering and inspiring is that?

All the prints with independent accessory designer I am R

Remember, we can all support indie businesses every single day, not just by buying from them and writing articles about them but by following, liking, commenting, sharing and getting to know a whole new community of makers (instagram's a good place to start). Do your research and find your new favourite brand/artist/maker! 

I shall sign off  'the first No Debutante blog post of the year' here, full of excitement of what's to come. In an ever-changing world anything can happen and why the hell can't it be positive eh? 

So start writing, start creating, try something new or just do your thing, take your time, there really is room for everyone to get involved, you are not an imposter, you are fabulous, you CAN do this! 

Spread the joy and Big love in 2021 x

Buy a printed copy of The Indie Guide 

Fruit Salad - Starting a slow fashion brand

Fruit Salad officially launched in January this year.

This independent Bristol based streetwear brand oozes cuteness and street style vibes with an aim to support slow fashion.

It's super close to No Debutante's heart and it would be, as it's my fashion brand and I'm super proud of it!

The seeds for the now ripe and blooming Fruit Salad were first sown back in 2017, after I had spent a year as a fashion journalist.

Pastel Perfection with Fruit Salad photography(and main image)by Jolanta Valeniece 

Meeting so many inspiring independent designers from Bristol and beyond,  I really wanted to get back to my designer roots (I had previously worked as a designer for high street brands - I know the irony - and for my own fashion label) and I got the bug to start creating again!

The back story is a whole different blog post but I would like to say, the pressure to keep my new fashion baby as sustainable as possible has nearly broken me on several occasions, battling creativity over sustainability has been hard but I like a challenge!

After attending The Festival of Female Entrepreneurs event here in Bristol last autumn I was encouraged to continue on with my creative business idea, whilst holding myself accountable by being as transparent as possible on my fashion journey.

I felt released and inspired to launch my business and four months later I launched the Fruit Salad website on Big Cartel (who, I can honestly say, are the most helpful online platform that I have ever worked with) which is now linked to an Instagram shop (not quite so helpful on the admin front) and have a capsule fashion range of T-shirts, fleeces and beanies, all produced on very small runs.

Super fresh in Fruit Salad pink beanie and t-shirt

What's in a name?

Fruit Salad is fun, colourful, sassy and super cute. The name came from my husband Phil who said my hair looked like Fruit Salad sweets when the pink colour was washing out of my bleached blonde crop, the name stuck and it's super sweet and playful too!

Candy coloured cuteness at Fruit Salad photography by Jolanta Valeniece

The Graphics

The graphics came from pavement chalk drawings I had created with my daughter, I was looking for print ideas and these weird, sea creatures I had randomly drawn caught my imagination.

The Fruit Salad logo came from a hand drawn idea of how I wanted the Fruit Salad logo to look, with the intention to recreate it digitally using an existing font, instead, I kept things DIY and went with the quick sketch. I really like hand drawn graphic art and fanzines and it fitted with the playful Fruit Salad style that was slowly developing.

The prints were all initially created using stencil printing techniques at home and then neatened up for print production.

Time, as you probably know, is not on my side and since I have met so many independent designers who have help manufacturing their brands AND lucky for me, there are some amazing local tailors, makers and independent printers here in Bristol.

With this in mind, I decided I would be beneficial to get some help to put my ideas into production. I had always felt this was a bit of a cop out, probably comparing myself to others rather than just getting on with it BUT I got over myself and got in touch with some Bristol based indies.

Keeping things as local as possible is a first priority to me.

The last day of summer Fruit Salad photo shoot by Jolanta Valeniece

The T-shirts

First stop was Hidden Temple, a local screen printers who I had originally met at The Fashion Front fashion shows here in Bristol. As well as being super friendly and helpful they also take small print orders. This was a must for me as I only wanted to print up an initial small run of t-shirts to reduce possible waste from over-producing.

The Fruit Salad t-shirts are currently made from super soft organic cottons. Always striving to become more sustainable, we are researching possibilities of using recycled fabrics (ideally produced locally) and alternative sustainable ideas for future runs, which is very exciting!

Another priority for the Fruit Salad prints was to use water based inks (not plastic based) on our t-shirts. Using the water based inks we were able to create a light effect in the graphics (that was true to my original samples), which Hidden Temple screen print individually by hand and it's much better for the environment too!

Super cute and cuddly limited edition Fruit Salad fleeces are now available at our online shop

The Fleeces

The fleeces took a year to launch from initial fashion illustration to final product - now that's slow fashion!

As with my prints, I design my own garms and make my patterns and samples. I collaborated with the super talented team from Jokoto Tailoring to adapt my samples; with their amazing ideas and super sewing skills Jokoto helped create my vision. Working with local businesses has been so rewarding and kinda convenient, as they are just up the road!

The sad thing about the super sweet fleeces is that we didn't get to capture them on our amazing models before the lockdown. It's certainly on the to do list when we are all let out to play again! 

Matching my collection in pastel pinks

Reducing waste

As well as working on very small runs, I also use up as much of the fabric scraps leftover from the larger cut pattern pieces to use on the fleeces cuffs, neck and waistbands.

Using this technique has resulted in there being no more than two fleeces the same, I love to experiment and mixing up different colourways using just one pattern, it's a way to create new style variations without using extra fabric.

Going forward, I hope to use as many upcycled fabrics and/or panels as possible in the next collection and look into incorporating this idea into the beanies design too.

Fresh embroideries by The Live Ink Co - right photo courtesy of The Live Ink Co. 

The beanies and embroideries

The final part of production for the fleeces was to add the Fruit Salad logo embroidery.
The Live Ink Co were recommended to me by Sam Witts from Hidden Temple and are also based in Bristol!

I really wanted to add a beanie to the collection that fitted in with the current Fruit Salad colours of pastel pink & lilacs, purple and sapphire blue. Live Ink Co kitted us out and the amazing embroideries, of both the logo on the fleeces and the Octo graphic on the beanies were so slick.

All of these independent businesses run from small shop outlets in Bristol, its impressive what and who you can find to help just on your doorstep! Support independent, support local!

I am so excited to share my lil' slow fashion baby with you but realise I have along way to go to become more sustainable. The fun will be figuring out how I can do this and learning more from the following sustainable & ethical fashion activists.

The lovely Eloise and Hannah from Jokoto Tailoring with the fleeces they made for Fruit Salad clothing
They made your clothes! 

Fashion Revolution 

In the light of Fashion Revolution Week  (20-26 April), I am sharing #whomademyclothes
in remembrance of the shocking Rana Plaza disaster that killed 1134 fashion workers in Bangladesh in 2013.

Fashion Revolution Week encourages the fashion industry no matter how big or small the business to show transparency in their supply chain with their  #whomademyclothes campaign. Read this digital activism guide to find out how you too can get involved in Fashion Rev week and beyond.


Labour Behind the label

Founders of the #sixitemschallenge Label Behind the label have launched a new campaign this week encouraging all brands to be responsible for every single person from their supply chain, not just their direct employees, focusing on those who are shockingly still working, often in terrible conditions, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Labour Behind the Label need your help to make this change. Please sign their petition and join them in supporting garment workers. The big brands must put their workers before their profits!


Sustainable Fashion week

I have to mention this inspiring event that was supposed to be taking place right now in Bristol before covid-19 put a stop to everything. I was looking forward to attending and speaking at the very first event which will now take place in Bristol this Autumn. Find out more in my Bristol24/7 article Sustainable fashion week slows down fast fashion




Covid-19 may have put a stop to many things but it cannot put a stop to all of us supporting sustainable and slow fashion ethics.

Support independent, support local, support slow fashion, support garment workers. Stay safe and stay sustainable!


Super fresh Fruit Salad threads now available on the Fruit Salad online shop

Print clash winter fash

The colder it gets the more I want to wear bright colours & bold prints, with the big chill upon us, let's look how we can style up prints, colours & layers this long winter, No Debutante style. 

My style is quirky, I throw stuff together to see if it works & mostly it does. I do not take my styling too seriously & I often get inspiration from designers & people who are equally as quirky. It makes for a fun world! 

I have been on the look out for printed trousers lately, it is my current obsession. I had some lucky finds at Monki with the polka-dot & striped trousers (see below for these bold printed gems) & today I have resurrected my leopard print leggings (purchased at H&M about 5 years ago). 

Leopard print has been all over the AW 2018 fashion shows but I seriously overdid leopard print a few years back, I ended up with a tonne of leopard print everythings, which then put me off it, too much of a good thing really can be too much! It's been a few years now & I have decided to let leopard print back in to life....just a little.....

No Debutante loves these Monk polka-dot trousers paired up with the Fruit Salad red batwing crop hoodie

Bringing leopard print back with print clashed styling & lots of layers

Pirate inspo - Monki stripe trousers worn with an oversized Fruit Salad long sleeve tee

Everyones fave - The amazing polka-dot jumpsuit from The White Pepper 

All photography & styling by No Debutante

If you are having a fashion event, a new collection or fun event 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 nodebutanteblog@gmail.com

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

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas

ND xx

DIY Pattern making - Part 1

Have you always liked the idea of making your own clothes but didn't know where to begin? Why go straight for an over complicated garment when deciding to give clothes making a go?? I have pattern cutting & fashion designer skills but I cannot bear ready-made sewing patterns. I find them quite complicated & confusing, eventhough I can knock up my own patterns, so I am not surprised to hear that many people are put off making their own stuff after trying to work out how those alien shapes, dotted lines & grading sizes on traditional sewing patterns work.

If you are going to start a new skill, which you may have previously struggled with before, then DIY pattern making is for you. With DIY you don't have to get it right first time, it is all about trial & error, you learn as you go. Nobody is judging you! 

Start simple, don't try to make a tailored garment with lots of plackets, pockets & darts, we don't need to see any of those things in DIY for beginners. We just need a metre or so of fabric, paper (for pattern making), some fabric shears, a ruler & a tape measure to get started.

Keep it sustainable

We can limit the amount of wasted fabric too, why not consider using an old duvet cover for your sample garment or cutting down pre-loved garments & upcycle them into something new? Buy second hand fabric & end of line cuts, make less waste whilst you experiment, you never know you might actually like the result of your duvet cover sample garm so much that you want to wear it & show the world this marvellous garm you've created.

A pattern created by measuring and adapting a ready made garment from the No Debutante wardrobe 

How to DIY?

If we are not using sewing patterns? What are we using?.........Your own clothes!

What's better than being able to recreate a garment you love & then adapting and reusing the pattern, recreating it again & again in different fabrics? 
Just imagine, you may catch the clothes making bug & start adapting your new favourite pattern to create other amazing garms. I promise, as soon as you understand the construction behind pattern cutting & making up garments you will be hooked!

Perhaps you will get so skilled you will be knocking up your own more complicated garms, who needs those sewing patterns eh?

Fashion illustrations and the finished garment by No Debutante for her fashion label Fruit Salad

Still not sure?

Give my youtube tutorial below a watch so you can get the basic ideas behind DIY pattern making. I will follow this post with step by step blog tutorials too. 
We'll have you designing, making and creating in no time! 

Youtube video below. 

Please Subscribe, follow & like my youtube channel Emma Gorton-Ellicott 

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 nodebutanteblog@gmail.com

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