Talia Jacob (2nd year English student) is the Social Media and Marketing Executive of the QMUL Fashion Society.
We caught up with her to talk about her collection for LUMFS (London Universities’ Modest Fashion Show), which was then featured in the UJS (Union of Jewish Students’) Incubator Exhibition, and the QMUL Visual Arts Collective at the Hundred Years Gallery in Hoxton.
Pic credits: The photographer Gabe Moore and the model in the picture below is Aselya Nurlan.
Tell us about your work in fashion. What do you make and how did you start in the industry?
I did an Art Foundation Diploma in Fashion Design a few years ago. It didn’t involve much construction work though. It pretty much just reminded me that you can achieve any creative goal that you set your mind to. I mostly just knit now, although I do know how to use a sewing machine. A couple of years ago, I asked my mum to teach me the basics of knitting. Many YouTube videos later, I was making wearable gifts for all of my cousins. One of which was featured in the QMUL Visual Arts Collective and LUMFS (London Universities’ Modest Fashion Show). I also recently bought a knitting machine to help speed up the process. Once I’ve learnt how to use it, I’ll be able to make knitted garments much more quickly.
Who or what inspires you to work in fashion?
Although they’re two totally separate industries, costuming in film massively inspired me to get into Fashion. Watching films is a really accessible way to get a close look at some beautifully designed clothes in a short period of time. There are a lot of offbeat films that I’m consistently inspired by to this day (no matter how many times I watch them!). A couple of examples would be “Dangerous Beauty” (1998) and The Thing Called Love (1993).
What do you get up to for the Queen Mary Fashion Society?
I’m the Social Media & Marketing Manager for QMUL Fashion Society. So I’m the person in charge of all of our social media accounts, and our online marketing strategy. I’m also responsible for all of our physical (non-electronic) promotion. Those posters that you’ve been seeing around around campus, for the fashion show “Fashioned by Nature”,  were designed by me.
Our committee is mostly collaborative though, and I’ve had the opportunity to do a bit of everything. I ran a knitting workshop, and brought in a speaker for next week (Hannah Rafter, Founder and Editor of The Intern 24/7). She’s going to be amazing!
