The one lesson I’ve learned from life

MaRIa GRaChVOGEL, 49, launched her own label at the age of 21. She lives in London and is married with one son, aged eight.

FIND YOUR STYLE TO FIND CONFIDENCE

I DECIDED I wanted to be a designer aged eight. I loved fashion, but I started out from a completely different place.

At 12, I hit puberty and didn’t like my body very much. I thought I looked enormous in everything. The crazy thing is, I was probably only about 8 st, but it’s the warped sense of body image almost every young girl goes through.

In textiles lessons at school I quickly saw how cuts and design could transform the way I looked and my self-confidence. I started making my own clothes to look taller, slimmer and feel empowered.

Clever cuts and draping became the foundation of my work in the nineties when I founded my label. I had my first catwalk show at London Fashion Week in 1995, opened my first store in 2001 and for many years I made lines for Designers at Debenhams.

I have been lucky enough to dress some incredible women, including Emma Thompson, scarlett Johansson, Angelina Jolie and Victoria Beckham, who walked my runway in 2000.

My inspiration starts with the woman. What you wear is about a feeling, not a look. We have become a bit of a secret for certain customers — our clothes are like ammunition in their wardrobe.

In some ways, what I do is fashion as wellbeing. When you put on something that feels good, you can relax and just be the person you are. An important part of my journey has been learning to accept who I am. I’m not going to dress in something that doesn’t make me feel good for the sake of a fashion trend.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my experience and from dressing women with different body types, it is that finding your style is finding your inner confidence. It’s about allowing you to be free in your body.

What makes me feel confident is not looking that bit taller, but feeling that bit taller, that little bit more in charge.

When a woman wears my clothes, it’s the woman you see first, not the dress.

MaRIa’S Pearls Of Wisdom Christmas collaboration with aromatherapy associates is available now.