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On Friday the 3^rd of March, Victoria Beckham revealed her most eccentric collection yet at her second ever show at Paris Fashion Week. UKFT used this opportunity to look back on Nottingham Trent University student Ellie Jones’ internship in the Victoria Beckham Knitwear Design team. Ellie, who benefited from the Drapers’ x UKFT Internship Bursary Scheme during her 12-week placement, accompanied the brand Victoria Beckham last year for its first show in Paris.

An Eclectic Autumn-Winter 2023 Collection

Before the Victoria Beckham show even started, its invitation set the mood for the Autumn-Winter 2023 collection. On the invite, Drew Barrymore reinterpreted the character of Edith Bouvier Beale or Little Edie, a fashion icon that she played in the 2009 film Grey Gardens. An homage to Little Edie’s relationship with clothes, the film is based on the 1975 documentary of the same name, which has inspired Victoria Beckham.

Playing on an experimental approach to style and using fashion as a transformative tool, the Victoria Beckham silhouettes combine glamour, modernity and eccentricity. Featured on the runway include patchworks, variations of plissé knits and fabrics, as well as printed and real feathers. Interesting textures and materials seem to further the eclecticism of the collection, as several designs included hair extensions.

Looks from the Victoria Beckham Autumn-Winter 2023 Collection.

Little Edie was not the only source of inspiration for this collection. Victoria Beckham also celebrated the work of Solange Pessoa, a Brazilian contemporary artist creating installations using human hair, through knitwear woven from hair extensions. The Autumn-Winter 2023 collection also impressed via its structural shapes: knitted skirts and long dresses with circular cuts, strong-shouldered blazers, voluminous coats inspired by the military wardrobe and pointed high platform shoes.

Drapers x UKFT Bursary Scheme Intern Ellie Jones’ Experience at Victoria Beckham

As a UKFT member, the brand Victoria Beckham participated in the Drapers’ x UKFT bursary scheme by welcoming student Ellie Jones in its knitwear design team as an intern over the summer. Ellie is a 2^nd Year BA Fashion Knitwear Design student at Nottingham Trent University. She was one of the 10 students to receive a 12-week funded internship as part of the Drapers x UKFT bursary scheme for the academic year 2021/22.

Ellie undertook a placement at Victoria Beckham in London, which was her first experience in the fashion industry:

“My name is Ellie. I am on a year-long internship at Victoria Beckham in London with the knitwear design team, so far it has been an amazing experience. 

The teams have been welcoming, supportive and inclusive which has made my first experience of working in the fashion industry even more special.”

Looks from the Victoria Beckham Spring-Summer 2023 Collection.

Last year, Ellie joined the Victoria Beckham in Paris for the brand’s first Paris Fashion Week show. She said:

“I joined the team in Paris to help with the SS23 collection for Victoria Beckham’s debut show in Paris Fashion Week. I had such a brilliant time, I loved the fast paced, long days and to be part of something so beautiful was a real privilege.”

Most recently, Ellie joined the design team to find inspirations for the new collection:

“I‘ve just been with the design team to Portebello Market to do research for the new collection. It has been great to see how they get their ideas from vintage pieces and how they generate different ideas for the collection in a more physical way.”

This internship at Victoria Beckham was a great opportunity for Ellie to learn a new set of skills. She said:

“I am having the best time, I am so grateful for the opportunity and it is teaching me so many different skills which I can transfer into my final year and career, but I think mostly soaking up the environment of working in a creative industry has been such a great learning experience. Seeing how designs are developed, how many times ideas need to be reworked and what a gradual process It is before they are acceptable as the Final outcome.”

UKFT and The Drapers’ Company have worked alongside to support students across the UK via the Drapers’ x UKFT Bursary Programme. The scheme offers students the opportunity to access good quality internships in the fashion and textile industry. Intended to benefit individuals who might otherwise struggle to afford internships away from home, the bursary provides financial support for a maximum of three months. Click on the link below for more information:

Drapers’ x UKFT Internship Bursary Scheme