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From Sainsbury’s to ASOS, the creative collections by textile students from Â鶹ƵµÀ Leicester (DMU) impressed a range of big brands at New Designers.

Becky Watson at New Designers

Final-year Fashion Textile Design and Textile Design students represented DMU at the annual showcase of the UK’s emerging design talent, by proudly exhibiting their collections on the university’s stand.

’s vivid tropical prints impressed buyers from Sainsbury’s who purchased three of her designs for the supermarket’s clothing range, TU. “It was so overwhelming and I’m really excited to see how they use my prints in their womenswear next year,” said the 21-year-old from Staffordshire.

The Textile Design student also won the , a leading provider of websites in the textile design industry. Her prize is a one-year free subscription to The Pattern Cloud, enabling her to build her own e-commerce website.

A closer look at Becky's bold prints

She said: “DMU’s stand at New Designers was great. We had a tall metal structure that we could drape our designs over, so I was able to display my wallpaper samples on that. I think it also helped that my prints are bold and colourful, so they were attention-grabbing.”

To create her statement collection, Becky took inspiration from plants she saw during visits to numerous botanical gardens. She started with hand drawings which she then turned into patterns using DMU’s range of industry-standard facilities.

“I was able to source a lot of my fabric from our studio at DMU and then I used the dye lab and screen-printing studio to add my designs,” she said. “I also did some digital printing to be more sustainable, and used the digital print workshops to produce my wallpaper samples.

“From the moment I came to an Open Day at DMU, looking around the facilities was what made me think ‘I can really see myself there’. I’ve not been disappointed. Our tutors have also been amazing and I’ve made some of my best friends for life here.”

Erika Hartshorn's display at New Designers

Becky’s collection also landed her in software company AVA’s ‘top 10 designers to watch’ list, and earned her a £50 voucher from The Silk Bureau to put towards printing her own designs on silk.

She said: “It’s been amazing to have so much external validation for my work at New Designers, from industry experts, to other designers and the general public.”

Soon, Becky will be starting a placement at Everley Studio, a commercial fashion and print design studio, alongside selling her own designs online as a freelancer.

Close-up of Erika's tactile textiles

Fashion Textile Design student was approached by talent scouts from online fashion and cosmetic retailer ASOS, who took an interest in her fun and tactile collection.

“They came to our stand and asked to see me, which was really nice. They asked me lots of questions about my collection and if I would consider both selling to them and working in London. They took my card and I look forward to hearing from them,” said the 22-year-old from Leicester.

Incorporating unusual materials in her work, such as childhood memorabilia like toys and friendship bracelets, really made Erika’s collection stand out. One of her eye-catching samples was a digitally printed organza, embellished with flower-shaped sequins that Erika designed and laser cut herself.

Emily Brown's display at New Designers

She said: “I was quite a crafty child and I used to save things like yarns and ribbons in boxes. I took inspiration from my childhood and just really enjoyed using my imagination.

“I feel really lucky because DMU has a lot more facilities than anywhere else I’ve seen. It gave the chance to experiment and the space to decide what to specialise in. I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do any of these things outside of university.”

, another Fashion Textile Design student, was scouted by Italian apparel and accessories brand Mantero 1902, about a potential internship opportunity.

Emily's structural garment modelled against an AI backdrop

With a focus on sustainability and nature, Emily’s collection features natural fibres such as cotton, linen and hemp. Materials such as cane, jute and raffia give structure to her pieces, which she incorporated by learning how to hairpin crochet them to her fabric.

“My work looks quite different to your traditional expectations of textiles. It’s not massively wearable or commercial, I think of it instead more as a statement and an art piece,” said the 23-year-old from Surrey.

“I can definitely see myself going down a slow fashion and activist route. The great thing about my course at DMU is that it opens up so many different paths for you to explore and develop in.”