Megastar rocking a new look thanks to DMU’s Tilly
SUSPENDER belts designed by a former De Montfort University student were part of Billie Eilish’s iconic Vogue photoshoot published over the summer.
DMU graduate Tilly Tomkins, 34, said she had no idea she was designing the outfit for the chart-topping singersongwriter when she was first approached by a fashion assistant at Vogue.
The Contour Fashion graduate was contacted via the Instagram page of her “tasteful erotic” lingerie brand, Nearer the Moon.
Tilly, pictured below, who now lives in Oxfordshire, said: “I had just two business days to design, make and deliver my suspender belts in a range of colours, which was even more challenging during lockdown.
“I was given a broad brief and a croquis with a person’s measurements, from their head circumference to their shoe size, but had no idea who it was for.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to feature in Vogue as they rarely use small independent brands, so it was never an option to say ‘no’ despite the challenges.”
In the headline-making photoshoot, Eilish’s outfits featured Tilly’s black and dusky pink suspender belts in satin alongside pieces by big design houses such as Valentino and Agent Provocateur.
The shoot introduced a new look for the singer, who has just been announced as one of the headline acts for Glastonbury 2022, and quickly went viral.
This had a big impact on Nearer the Moon, giving Tilly a 300 per cent increase in sales and enabling her to hire her first freelance assistant.
Tilly said: “My knees buckled and I cried with happiness when I realised why, and that Billie Eilish was the one wearing my designs.
“I’m a big fan of her music anyway, but to be one of the brands chosen for a shoot that was all about changing the way she wanted to be perceived by the world means so much to me. That’s exactly what Nearer the Moon is all about.”
Her use of slow fashion hashtags are what got Tilly’s brand noticed by Vogue, as she strives to make her brand sustainable as possible, sewing each individual design to order and creating collections from fabrics often destined for landfills.
Tilly started her degree at DMU in 2005 and, after graduating into the 2008 economic recession, spent 18 months working as a pub manager, before moving on to manage an exclusive London boutique.
From there, she became a retail manager for a high-end, high street lingerie brand, and then ended up starting her own label.
“Although I always knew fast fashion wasn’t for me, those experiences were good ways of learning about the luxury lingerie market from a different perspective and building relationships with brands that I’m still in touch with now,” she said.
“I wouldn’t be where I am today without studying Contour Fashion at DMU though. I absolutely loved my degree. The course has amazing industry connections and was invaluable.”