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Romantique Couture
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Email: angy@
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Angy's Blog February 2011

The trials and tribulations of a fashion designer in the Lake District



ARCHIVE: my previous entries:

JANUARY 2011 Save Our Forests - Big Fat Gypsy Wedding - Sexism in Football - Going Bespoke: Pros & Cons
DECEMBER 2010 Snowbound - Message to Mike Ashley - Charity Event Pics - Red Dress Black Dress - Accessories
NOVEMBER 2010 Fault Magazine - Designer Wedding Dresses - Brathay Trust - Honister - Teenage Cancer Event - Burning Dress
OCTOBER 2010 BUTiQ - Atomic - Walk on the Wild Side - Sweet Charity: Toma Fund - AM Models Event - Rails to the Isles
SEPTEMBER 2010
London Fashion Week - Fashion for a Cause - Fashion Mavericks - Talenthouse - Ladies Fanwear - Zoe Gadd
AUGUST 2010 House of Fraser - BUTiQ: ready-to-wear with a difference - Ladies, Gents, Fashion Designers ..., Worst Nightmare
JUNE - JULY 2010
Fashion Mavericks - Pyromania - Catwalk Curves - Victorian Wedding Dress - Quest for an Orchid
MAY - JUNE 2010 London Calling - Little Black Dress - Dress Sizes - Holiday Hangover - Pam Carter - Skye - Mackintosh
APRIL 2010 Spring is here - Howay the Lads! - Kirkby Stephen - April Fools - BUTiQ - Leeds Catwalk pics
FEBRUARY - MARCH 2010 Stadium of Light - Leeds United Wedding Show - Spring - London Fashion Week Catwalk Show
JANUARY 2010 Life is a Roller Coaster / Alexander McQueen - Tyne Tees TV Interview - LFW - New Year 2010

Bottom of Page for more Archive Pages



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EVENTS DIARY 2010-2011:

Watch this space for Pyromania 'Flaming Dress' and RedDress::BlackDress exhibits, and forthcoming fashion or wedding events

..................................................................................

18-22 FEBRUARY, 2011: LONDON FASHION WEEK
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18 MARCH, 2011: Brathay Trust Fashion Workshop (Booked)
20 MARCH, 2011: Save Lakeland's Forests - Picnic & Walk ar Chapel House Forest




See below for the campaign
SAVE LAKELAND'S FORESTS

Click to download the
Whinlatter Poster (PDF)













Are YOU looking for
Something completely DIFFERENT?

Do YOU want to
STAND OUT from the Crowd?

Unique, bespoke fashions and limited edition,
hand-made-to measure collections
by avant-garde designer Angy Morton,
are now available online
at BUTiQ

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FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION




PYROMANIA COLLECTION at BUTiQ by Angy Morton
LATEST PRESS


January-February 2011: Fashizblack Magazine: Contrasts: Warriors & Godesses (photoshoot)
14 November 2010: Fault Magazine: Imperia Staffieri (photoshoot)
6 November, 2010: The Journal - Stars give a smalls bit of help
5 November, 2010: The Keswick Reminder - Burning Dress on Honister
5 November, 2010:
Evening Chronicle - Sports stars in fundraiser for cancer charity
4 November, 2010: BBC TYNE -Video Clip- Fashion designer sets dress on fire to raise money
4 November, 2010: BBC RADIO NEWCASTLE - Drive Time - Pyromania
4 November, 2010: BBC RADIO CUMBRIA - Liz Rhodes Show - Teenage Cancer
2 November, 2010: Westmorland Gazette 'South Lakeland designer blazes a trail in fashion world')
1 November, 2010:
ITV BORDER - LOOKAROUND - Blazing Dress; Marti Errington-Dodds
1 November, 2010:
BBC RADIO CUMBRIA - Ian Timms Show - Blazing Dress
21 September, 2010: Westmorland Gazette 'Fashion designer to unveil new collection'
20 September, 2010: Blow 'LFW Day 2 - Romantique Couture'
20 September, 2010: Fashion Mavericks 'Day Two in Pictures'
16 September, 2010: West Ham United Official Website 'Claret and blue couture'


PRESS RELEASE - 29 October, 2010
BLAZING A TRAIL ON THE CATWALK FOR TEENAGE CANCER
Fashion Designer Angy Morton will be setting fire to a couture dress on Monday, ahead of the public launch of her Pyromania collection to raise funds for the Teenage Cancer Unit at Newcastle’s RVI.
See PRESS PAGE for full details



26 February 2011: KATE MIDDLETON EAT YOUR HEART OUT - AN ALTERNATIVE ROYAL WEDDING DRESS

With last week’s London Fashion Week in full force the obvious question on everybody’s lips was 'WHO will design Kate’s Middleton's wedding dress?' Well it looks like Dame Viviene Westwood will NOT.
I couldn’t help giggling…DVW was asked at the Royal Courts of Justice, the show venue, if she will be designing the wedding dress - her reply was hilarious)) "

''I would have loved to have dressed Kate Middleton but I have to wait until she kind of catches up a bit somewhere with style.'' She laughed then added: ''Sorry. I'm not going to say any more, that's it.
''When people ask me where she's going to get the dress from - she's definitely not going to get it from me, or I would have heard.''

Check out this article in the Daily Telegraph: Kate Middleton needs to catch up with style.

Speculation and rumours are rife as no details of the wedding dress designer has emerged. One thing is for sure, Daniella Issa Helayel of Issa London is Kate’s favourite so don’t be surprised if her label will be on Kate’s wedding dress. Others in the frame include:

1. Daniella Issa Helayel of Issa London
2. Phillipa Lepley Bridal Dresses Designer
3. Bruce Oldfield – Couture Bridal Gowns
4. Elizabeth Emanuel – Princess Diana's Wedding dress designer
5. Matthew Williamson
6. Vera Wang

Hopefully not
7. Victoria Beckham
8. Kate Moss

To be honest I really hope Kate/Catherine - she prefers to be called Catherine after the wedding - will pick a completely unknown British designer …all those above are already established and successful as designers therefore no need for the extra PR. They are themselves high profile celebrities with no need for more profit; where as a new, young designer needs all the help he/she can get. So much creativity lurks around this small island surely she’s out to get something unique, romantic and feminine. Or perhaps not??

Anyway, watch this space, as yours truly is working on a design in her head as the perfect remedy to it all ... the 'Alternative Royal Wedding Dress' ... utterly wacky, completely different, and a celebration of style and creativity ... or what is left of it! ... as I said, watch this space!



21 February 2011: "GIGGLE ALLEY"

With the forest campaign flying around my head a new design was bugging me for days. So here it is. Actually its the the second …maybe I should make a collection inspired by forests (ha what a brill idea) . The first one was made few years ago, inspired by another forest - the wooded valley of Tilberthwaite. It was a bridal dress , and because it still fitted me, and seemed so appropriate, I couldn't resist redesigning it to wear for the Grizedale rally a few weeks ago.






My experience of forests provides a massive and unlimited inspiration - they release my creativity. I find the connection with mother earth very strong. I’m not on anything, only caffeine if you wonder, it’s just that I always find walking or even looking outside the window at the woods over the lake, a strong connection with nature. I’m sure other creative minds will tell you exactly the same, writers, painters, photographers and oh yes fashion designers. Empties your head completely, makes you feel alive and makes you also realise how satisfying the small things in life are - like fresh air for example. and guess what: they are free…for the moment anyway. But it looks like we still have to fight very hard for this patch of ‘freedom’ otherwise a few fat cats out there will grab all there is to grab…yes including our forests.


So from a 1990’s wedding dress which I chose to recycle, I came up with a completely new dress. One problem I have is that you don’t find white wedding dresses in my collections…it is not that I don’t like white, it’s because I like to play with colours and white is …well white )) So because, it was National Wedding Week and the Whinlatter rally I decided to create something bridal, but not without adding a real splash of colour first!. So here it is ... 'Giggle Alley' ... but don't expect it to stay like this for long, I still have a few ideas for tweaking it a little! Hope you like my sulphur tuft toadstools too ... well, there is more to a forest than trees, even if you can't see the wood for them!

The location for the photos is brilliant it’s actually a derelict …no no no I’m not going to tell you what and where )). Unfortunately the owner took the roof off and left it to ruin only because he couldn’t get the permission to change it into holiday cottages. Such a waste …



19 February 2011: SAVE LAKELAND'S FORESTS - WHINLATTER

I like rallies…it’s great that people can express their opinion freely without interference. Some out there have no idea how lucky they are to have that right. If anything more people should voice their concerns. Freedom of Speech as it exists here in this country is vey precious, but it is also something that can be lost so easily; democracy is so fragile.


So there we were on a very cold white winter day. I couldn’t believe it when I looked out of the window in the morning SNOW. Brrr, freezing cold.

All I could think of was how I was going to stay warm in the new dress I had created for the demo - 'Giggle Alley' was going to prove an appropriate name in more ways than one! And yes my next question was, will people turn up in this weather? …but my worries disappeared, first as the snow cleared as we headed north then as soon as we arrived at the visitors centre and there were already people milling about.

More then 500 people gathered to show a very strong support for our woodlands. Although there was an air of celebration following the Government's U-turn last week, there was a note a of caution in all of the speeches. The proposals to make it possible to sell off all of England's public-owned forests have now been dropped. However, they can still sell off 15% under current legislation a matter that needs urgent clarification.

15% of the the public-owned woodland in England translates to 30-40% of the Forestry Commission woods here in the Lake District National Park. Check out
www.lakelandbeyond.com and you will see that there are rather a lot of them and where they all are!



Speakers at Whinlatter included climbers Sir Chris Bonington and Leo Houlding, Lord Clark of Windermere, Keith Fitton who is one of the Lake District Osprey Project volunteers.  Good work SAVE LAKELAND’S FORESTS Team!!!
Keep checking
www.savelakelandsforests.org.uk for further updates, information and news articles, and also for picture galleries from the Whinlatter event.


The rally was over by mid-afternoon so, having already come so far, we couldn't resist making the most of the day and pottering around. The clouds had lifted and as we approached Bassenthwaite they broke to provide these stunning views of Skiddaw - the photos were taken from the lakeshore and also on the hillside near another of those Forestry Commission woods that could be under threat - Setmurthy.

Indeed our journey home was rather convoluted to include fish and chips at Crosby's, my favourite fish and chip shop - well, why not? My only pleaure in these days of doom and gloom, and working endlessly to pay bills, is the odd tipple of red wine, and ... when the chance arises, fish and chips ... and I don't get over to Whitehaven often so you can't blame me for taking the chance when it comes!

Anyway, what was interesting about the journey home in the dark was just how many of those green Forestry Commission signs we passed. I've never really noticed them before but now they seem to jump out and scream 'protect me' - Blengdale, Irton Pike,Parkgate, Miterdale, Giggle Alley (hehehehe), Hardknott ... and finally Chapel House and home.


And when you look at the map we passed with in a whisker of many more of them - Wythop, Cogra Moss, Ennerdale, Dent, Lowther Park ... and so on! As soon as that sun comes back out I think it is time to make the most of them ... while I can!



17 February 2011: STOP PRESS - WHINLATTER ON SATURDAY

The news that the Government has just made a U-turn and has called off the sale of the Forestry Commssion woodlands is excellent. However, I am only cautiously optimistic - call me a cynic if you like but nothing has changed with regards to the proposed sale of 15% of the woodland that is presumably still scheduled to go ahead over the next four years, Untll this has been clarified I will not be dropping my guard as 15% over England as a whole could actually represent 30-40% within the Lake District National Park So yes, I will be going along to Whinllater on Saturday and expect you all to be there - no excuses accepted!!! I am busy with a new bridal dress inspired by the forests to wear at the rally ... no clues but it will be ... what should say? Different? But then again you wouldn't expect anything else from me. All I need now is a name for it ... has to be dedicated to a Lakeland wood. How about Isel? Or Messengermire? Or perhaps Giggle Alley?

Campaign information:
www.savelakelandsforests.org.uk
Sign the petition (now ovr 1/2 million!): 38degrees
List of FC forests in the Lake District:
Lakeland Beyond



12 February 2011: WEDDINGS IN CUMBRIA: SPRING FASHION BLOG

Katrina drom Weddings in Cumbria has asked me to contribute a quarterly fashion blog. Weddings in Cumbria is a website that explains everything you need to know for planning your special day in Cumbria. It has tips and ideas for your wedding day; including everything from venues, registry offices and churches, order of service, vows and readings to tips for writing speeches and roles of each member of the bridal party. Even if you don't live here check it out as it is a great site, and Cumbria is a such a beautiful place to tie the knot! - www.weddings-in-cumbria.co.uk




FASHION, VOGUE, STYLE, TRENDS SPRING – SUMMER 2011

Well hello my dear friends and fashionistas.

It's only polite to introduce myself, I'm an avant-garde designer working in Cumbria and for the next few seasons I shall be keeping you updated about the best bits of the wonderful and hectic world of fashion.

So, for starters a brief on 'what we are wearing next season', what's changed and who's new.

Next season promises electric colours, big prints, small prints, flower prints, lace and
fragments from the 60s, 70s and 80s. What's changed is that you have the freedom in choosing the decade suits that you and still be following the current fashion. Thank God for freedom. Freedom is my very best friend when it comes to clothes - my wobbly bits can be hidden properly…. those bits that however much I try to control them, they never seem to go away. And, who's new? Sarah Burton., the new creative director for Alex McQueen.

After a cold, dark and miserable winter a new bright and beautiful season is on the way. And when I say bright I mean bright. There are two major changes on our fashion world this year and that is bright and that flower power is back again. This season the catwalk had no rule or a theme regarding colour and shape. Some designers have exploited to the max the primary colours, an explosion of fresh and bright colours to wake us up after this long and cold 'hibernation'. If you are one of those people who can and get away with a rainbow of colours all at once then you are in for a treat. If you are the opposite, a colour coordinator, then you may have to learn a thing or two about combining colours and forget about rules. Not an easy task, I know…I mean not everybody can get away with a green jacket, pink shirt, red trousers and purple shoes, can they?

A second part of this season is small flower prints. Laura Ashley here it comes!! If you're old enough you will remember the long floaty dresses with flower prints during the 70s. They are back, together with pleats, chiffon and fluid fabrics. Cotton is best for these prints, wonderful to work with and soft to wear. Very girly. And this is the look - a pretty dress with a sleek haircut, and clean, fresh make-up. Sounds very 60s doesn't? But it's actually a bit of 60s and a bit of 80s. It is really up to you, you either go for a pretty dress with bright red lipstick and clean free make-up and voila the 60s look alternatively go for the vamp eyes with no lipstick and a bit of the 80s it is. Oh, and don't forget the pumps. A must. However, if you are used to high heels - not a problem - make the most of it, they make the pins look longer Mind you that much maligned 70s footwear is creeping back up, slowly but surely!

Out of all this you have to remember, wear what you like and how you like it with or without the fashion trends. Personally, I'm always for be yourself and wear whatever suits your personality.
Unfortunately 'personalities' are making a disappearing act. I see far too many people out there wearing whatever a celebrity wears or what the supermarkets and High Streets sell. Why oh why? What has happened to creativity and individuality? I mean doesn't it tell you something when somebody like Kate Moss is shopping in second hand shops? Or 'Retro' shops as they are sometimes called nowadays! And isn't she supposed to design for Top Shop? Is she in there for ideas? Hmmm!

Fashion is there to show us that there are plenty of alternatives, and not to impose on you what you must wear. You don't always have to blindly follow fashion, well you can if you like but try to be unique. Fashion is there to help and guide you if you get stuck at a crucial moment (a date, a wedding or a party) and to awaken our creative minds. And, because we are now at the subject of fashion shows I cannot help thinking about one of the most influential fashion designers. The sadly departed Alexander Lee McQueen. Yes my fav together with Jean Paul Gaultier, John Galliano and Dame Vivien Westwood.
How would the world look if these four had come together to design everything around us from cutlery to door bells?
This will be the first year without his raw creations and yes, I know Sarah Burton, the new creative director at Alex McQueen will do all she can to keep the creativity at the same level, but as we all know, it can never be quite the same. He was the mind and soul of his empire and he cannot be replaced.

B Y (be yourself)
Angy xx

From: Weddings in Cumbria - February 2011



10 February 2011: WEDDING WEEK AT CARTMEL PRIORY

A week ago one of my ‘brides’ as I like to call them, got in touch with me to ask if I will like to help her to exhibit her wedding in Cartmel Priory Church. In case you can’t remember, I made Charlotte a beautiful Victorian side saddle wedding dress last year … and she looked stunning. Yes she arrived at the church sitting side saddle on her horse, just as Victorian ladies used to.

The exhibition marked National Wedding Week and comprised several dresses fron over the ages spread around the magnificent church of Cartmel Priory. Charlotte needed a mannequin or a tailors dummy so I offered her one of mine. For a dress to be shown in a favourable light a tall mannequin is the best…but the church panel had a different idea unfortunately it was standing out too much and the vicar’s wife didn’t like it so I had to call hubby to bring a boring tailor dummy. What can you do? By the end of the day it wasn’t my show I was only there to help Charlotte to exhibit her wedding dress as best as possible.


The Victorian side-saddle wedding dress at Cartmel


The exhibition was based on wedding dresses worn by various brides in Cartmel and was arranged by the vicar’s wife. A few of them caught my eye as usual, and even though they said in big letters DO NOT TOUCH I couldn’t help but feel the fabric and the stitches. What a skill! All done by hand…and how wonderful that these dresses from as far back as 1905 and 1948 are brought out in the daylight out of cupboards and boxes to be appreciated and admired by me) and the younger generation.



As you probably gather I always appreciate the skills and the quality from the past. Any craft which involved hand work fascinates me ... Woodcarving, basketmaking, painting…arts and crafts.



My grandmother was responsible for my dressmaking bug - she used to make things out of nothing. Some of her customers were in difficult financial circumstances and could never buy new fabric but needed a new dress for a job interview. She never ever turned them down. It was a challenge she used to say. If you can create a dress out of scraps, it will be easy peasy to work with brand new cloth ... and she was right.
Anyway, I hope you like my photos of Cartmel, and particular the Victorian dress I created for Charlotte. For more about its creation and the wedding pictures please check out my
June-July 2010 Blog



6 February 2011: FASHIZBLACK PARIS

If a fashion stylist approaches you and asks for one of your dresses for a photoshoot what would you say? Exactly. Oh YES please, After the September LFW and after all that stress Crystal Deroche – a Parisian fashion stylist asked to use one of my dresses for a photoshoot. Her photos of 'Krakatau' from my Pyromania collection appeared in Fault magazine (see November blog). Well here is another one, which has been printed in the French magazine 'Fashizblack'. The theme is Contrasts - 'Fashion is often a matter of choices. Between strong structures and claimed softness, trends and materials play on our ambivalence ... here symbolized by the warrior and goddess figures'. I’m very pleased…I never actually believed that my dress can look quite like that when I designed it!

Check out:
FASHIZBLACK


Above: 'Krakatau' from Pyromania by Angy Morton
Contrasts fashion shoot by Crystal Deroche for Fashizblack

Other 'warrior and goddess' images from the same shoot on the right


2 February 2011: IF IT AIN'T BROKE - DON'T FIX IT!

One Saturday afternoon a friend of ours asked if we will like to get involved in the campaign to save our forests. The moment he explained that the Government intend to ‘lease’ – a mealy-mouthed cover-up for selling - our forests we said yes please. It was more Mike then me, handling part of the media side of things. As you can guess, all hell broke loose since this is something that is so close to the hearts of so many people. All week he was on the phone with media and people who wanted to get involved one way or another, from horse riders to simple walkers, absolutely amazing how much people actually care for our forests. You can also see that on 38degrees website … almost half a million people have now signed in support of the campaign.





---------------

Photographs from the Grizedale Rally by Milton Haworth
Check out more in the galleries on the campaign website:
www.savelakelandsforests.org.uk



Our biggest worry was whether people would turn up, especially as cold weather was forecast and Grizedale is quite remote. The day was indeed very cold, gloomy and at one point there were snowflakes floating about ... you bet we were worried … but they never let us down as you can see from the pictiures. Over 1500 people were there voicing their concerns regarding our forests!! HANDS OFF!! And there were passionate speeches by Lord Clark, Eric Robson and Jack Ellerby, not to mention local MPs Tim Farron and John Woodcock who ripped up the proposed bill for the cameras. Please refer to the Save lakeland's Forests website for a full report and all the latest comments ad press releases.


So did I wear something different and nice? Of course I did …a dress inspired by forests. A dress called ‘Chapel House’ after the Forestry Commission forest behind my house. Well, what else can I do to show my support? The dress is rather bridal, an earlier dress redesigned so that I could wear walking boots and it wouldn't matter if the train got mucky - which it did. The mud and leaves just enhance the design. I'm now working on a completely new dress for the Whinlatter event in two weeks time - and its going to be fab!



Above: 'Chapel House'
Right: more images from the Grizedale Rally



Download our Campaign Poster HERE



So what next? Sign the 38degrees Petition, write to your MP, and come along to WHINLATTER FOREST near Keswick at 1pm on Saturday, 19 February, No excuses - just 30 minutes or so from West Cumbria, Carlisle and Penrith and the M6, and a bit further from the south. Make the most of it and spend the weekend in Keswick if you are coming from further afield. We have nearly 40 forests in Cumbria and if we don't shout about them now we might lose them altogether, or at the very least access to them, forever! So come and add your voice before it is too late. YOUR FOREST NEEDS YOU!

Full details:
www.savelakelandsforests.org.uk






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Forestry Commission: CHAPEL HOUSE

Chapel House is my forest. Well, actually it is your forest too, It is managed by the Forestry Commission so it belongs to all of us. It is a wonderful forest, stretching from the shores of Windermere above the village of Staveley-in-Cartmel, to the slopes of Gummers How, and over Cartmel Fell to embrace Simpson's Ground reservoir. It is on my doorstep so I rely on it for inspiration - the colours in autumn, the frozen trees in winter, the birdsong in summer or the bluebells in spring. The shade and light, the vivid colours of the mosses that hang from the trees and the old dry-stone walls, the animals I see all the time - red and roe deer, squirrels, foxes, badgers, voles, the buzzards that soar overhead and the woodpeckers and owls that interrupt the silence, day and night. Even the sound of the chainsaw, and the smel of woodsmoke and resin. It is all part of the forest. I can escape and lose myself there for a few minutes or for a few hours. It is a paradise that anyone can share. It makes you glad to be alive. It is something to feel passionate about.

Chapel House is predominantly used for commercial timber production with extensive stands of spruce, fir and larch, but it also comprises some beautiful mixed and deciduous woodland, carpeted with bluebells in the springtime. There are also some rather spooky, ancient oak trees near the summit - I always call that part 'Sleepy Hollow'. Some of this has been felled with the intention of allowing natural regeneration and the development of a wilderness and wildlife haven along the lines of Ennerdale. It is what the Forestry Commission call Multi-purpose Forest. The commercial extraction helps to fund the management of natural wilderness, while the well maintained trails are a magnet for walkers, mountain bilkers and horse riders. All of this could be lost if the forest is sold. There would be no guaranteed access for mountain bilers or riders. Tracks will become off bounds and what about the car parks? Nearby Canny Hill was recently sold and access has already been cut off, or made difficult. And, despite assurances that access for walkers will be maintained for future sell-offs, who is to say a commercial operator will really invest in repairing footpaths? The lower paths in Chapel House soon become entangled in brambles and bracken if not cleared, while some of the higher paths cross bogs where the Forestry Commission have kindly provided duckboards and bridges. Who will pay for these in the future, and who will maintain and protect the natural woodland areas? Do you really think a profit-driven private venture will invest in wilderness when they can boost profits by returning to the days of endless conifers? Of course not? Where would the money come from?

This whole plan is absolute madness ... if it ain't broke, they say, don't fix it? So why meddle with something that not only works well, it actually provides a benefit for all of us? They complain about kids spending more and more time in front of the TV or a computer so what do they do? They sit in Westminster formulating hair-brained schemes that will restrict access to wonderful green spaces such as Chapel House? Last week we spoke to a journalist in London who never ventured out of the noose of the M25 ... he claimed forests would give him a 'lurgy' - he couldn't relate to them ... no wonder! These people really need to get a life before its too late.


For more images of this and our other Lakeland Forests check out: Lakeland Beyond




Please show your support for Lakeland's Forests by joining us at Whinlatter Forest on Saturday 19 February, 2011 at 13:00
Click on the banner above for full details about the campaign to Save Lakeland's Forests


STOP PRESS: 17.2.2011 - THE RALLY IS STILL GOING AHEAD DESPITE THE GOVERNMENT U-TURN
The current planned 15% sale still due to go ahead over the next 4 years
This could include 30-40% of Forestry Commission woodland within the Lake District National Park



26 January 2011: SAVE OUR FORESTS

So now our Government intends to sell off the Forestry Commission forests to the private sector. Shock horror…why oh why can’t they leave things alone at times ... we've already lost all our local post offices despite assurances that a service would be protected. My nearest post office is about ten miles away, and even the local shop cannot sell me a postage stamp. So how can I possibly trust these politicians? So what in earth are you going to leave for the next generations? Concrete and more concrete? No understanding of nature?



We feel that we are pushed into a 'box' every day, home, tube or car, office oh yes and the supermarket...'boxes' all around us. Forests are there for the benefit of us all - all creatures great and small - they bring us closer to nature, they provide us with fresh air and reinvigorate us through exercise. We are in danger of losing all of this just for the sake of making a quick buck . Short term. So what will be left for the future? A loss of our understanding of common sense, rationality, nature and other creatures? And what example do we lead for other countries? Why should the other countries save their forest...well you sold yours?... overfished and poisoned seas, creatures of all kind killed for money... I'm ashamed, very ashamed for the so called homo sapiens (Latin for "wise man" or "knowing man"). We are supposed to be the clever ones. Hmmm.


Please, please help us to prevent the sell off of the Forestry Commission forests by joining one of the campaigns in England. Check out our local campaign at www.savelakelandsforests.org.uk, sign the petition, write to your MP, or if you are local, come along and add your voice at Grizedale this Sunday (30 January). It's never too late!





Images of some of our beautiful local woodlands; especially 'wild' Ennerdale. If this one is sold off who will invest in maintaining it as the beautiful wilderness the Forestry Commission have created? As well as the larger forests such as Whinlatter and Grizedale with fantastic visitor facilities there are many more Forestry Commission woods here including Blengdale, one of the last refuges of the red squirrel, Chapel Wood, Lowther Park and so on. All of them well used by familiies and outdoor enthusiasts alike and all a haven for nature.



PS. did you know that the work of the Forestry Commission costs less than a second class stamp per person per year?



As a Fashion Designer working here in the Lakes I find this action both shocking and disturbing. We are all trying to make cutbacks in our life, and to tighten our belts as best as we can, but this is ridiculous. Who is really trying to get their grubby paws on this wood 'land'? Surely there must be a 'fat cat' behind all this pulling the 'right' strings. I wonder what can we sell, they will have thought, or more accurately what is there left to sell? ... Oh! I know the Forest(s).

From the point of view of a business woman, selling off a profitable business doesn't make sense unless you retire, and as an artist I'm very afraid that the creativity in this country would soon disappear if access to the beauty of the countryside was ever more restricted. I regularly wander into our local Forestry Commission wood to seek ideas - the frost and the silence in the winter, the bluebells in the spring, and the rustle of leaves and colours in the autumn. These are irreplaceable, and they are experiences that should be availble to all, and not only through a TV screen! Anyone who knows what was the inspiration behind 'Arts and Crafts' movement put your hand up?







PYROMANIA py-ro-ma-nia: - an irresistable impulse to set fire to things for personal gratification
PYROMANIA py-ro-ma-nia: - the exciting, new collection from Angy Morton


PYROMANIA is my latest concept collection, a mix of limited edition 'hand made' lines, which can be made to measure on order, and designs which will subsequently be manufactured in the United Kingdom as limited edition 'prêt-à-porter' lines. The 'hand-made' range will be available from my new online BUTiQ and exclusive runs of 'prêt-à-porter' designs from select boutiques or online.


See BUTiQ for further details and regular updates


PYROMANIA from Angy

LFW FASHION MAVERICKS: CATWALK CLIPS on YOUTUBE:
ANGY LFW 2010 - Pyromania
LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 1

'Meltwater' and 'Harvest Moon'
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 5

'Florence No.2 and 'Pahoehoe' (Pyromania Collection)'
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 Pyromania
LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 2

'Scirocco' and 'Aurora Borealis'
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 - Pyromania Fuji LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 6

'Fuji' (Pyromania Collection)
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 - Pyromania Ijen
LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 5

'Ijen' (Pyromania Collection)
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 - Pyromania Firestorm LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 6

'Firestorm' (Pyromania Collection)'
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 - Pyromania Flashover
LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 7

'Flashover' (Pyromania Collection)
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW2010 - Pyromania Pacaya LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 8

'Pacaya' (Pyromania Collection)
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 - Pyromania Krakatau
LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 9

'Krakatau' (Pyromania Collection)
by Angy Morton

ANGY LFW 2010 - West Ham United sample jacket LFW Fashion Mavericks
18 September, 2010
You Tube Clip - 10

Sample Jacket created for West Ham United FC
by Angy Morton



STOLEN DREAMS:
Click here to
download my leaflet;
Bespoke Fashion -
with a Difference
PDF (1mb)


My previous Posts:

JANUARY 2011 Save Our Forests - Big Fat Gypsy Wedding - Sexism in Football - Going Bespoke: Pros & Cons
DECEMBER 2010 Snowbound - Message to Mike Ashley - Charity Event Pics - Red Dress Black Dress - Accessories
NOVEMBER 2010 Fault Magazine - Designer Wedding Dresses - Brathay Trust - Honister - Teenage Cancer Event - Burning Dress
OCTOBER 2010 BUTiQ - Atomic - Walk on the Wild Side - Sweet Charity: Toma Fund - AM Models Event - Rails to the Isles
SEPTEMBER 2010 London Fashion Week - Fashion for a Cause - Fashion Mavericks - Talenthouse - Ladies Fanwear - Zoe Gadd
AUGUST 2010 House of Fraser - BUTiQ: ready-to-wear with a difference - Ladies, Gents, Fashion Designers ..., Worst Nightmare
JUNE - JULY 2010 Fashion Mavericks - Pyromania - Catwalk Curves - Victorian Wedding Dress - Quest for an Orchid
MAY - JUNE 2010 London Calling - Little Black Dress - Dress Sizes - Holiday Hangover - Pam Carter - Over the Sea to Skye - Mackintosh
APRIL 2010 Spring is here - Howay the Lads! - Kirkby Stephen - April Fools - BUTiQ - Leeds Catwalk pics
FEBRUARY-MARCH 2010 Stadium of Light - Leeds United Wedding Show - Spring - LLFW Catwalk Show
JANUARY 2010 Life is a Roller Coaster / Alexander McQueen - Tyne Tees TV Interview - LFW - New Year 2010
DECEMBER 2009 White Christmas - Liverpool Debacle - Stolen Dreams Facts - Haverthwaite - Miss Sunderland
NOVEMBER 2009 Lavish & Luxe - The Big Flood - Stolen Dreams - Censored Dreams
SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2009 Stolen Dreams - Gambling Man - Laughing Stock - Justice - Broken Promises
AUGUST 2009 Lavish & Luxe - Weddings - Chaos - Photo Shoot at St. James' Park - Harvest Time
JUNE - JULY 2009 Sir Bobby Robson RIP - Mannekins - Liverpool - Georgian Splendour - Price of Fame - Detox
MAY - JUNE 2009 (Toon in Tatters - Fashion Communism - Ele Horsleys - Kittiwakes - Stolen Dreams - Bluebells
MARCH - APRIL 2009 Made in England - Stolen Dreams - Easter Sunshine - Victoriana - Alan Shearer - Funland
FEBRUARY - MARCH 2009 (Favourite View - Punk Revival - Fast Fashion v. Recycled Fashion
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2009 (In Search of Winter - A Favourite Place - Catwalk Videos - Winter Chill
NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2008 (ROCS - Florence No2. - Winter-Mere
OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 2008 (Cumbria Life - Glitz & Glamour Haggerston Craft Show
OCTOBER 2008 (Woman Event - Catwalk Photos - Radio Cumbria - Brochure Download
SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2008 (Newcastle United Wedding Dress - Wedding Shows
AUGUST - SEPT. 2008 (Fashion Designers - Spectrum Collection - Sara Gadd
JUNE - JULY 2008 (Haute Couture - Vivienne Westwood - Dorset Buttons - Magna Carta
FEBRUARY - MAY 2008 (Lake District Inspirations - Long Blondes - Wedding Show



We are on
Angy's Blog is written by Angela Morton, Fashion Designer & Dressmaker
Photographs copyright of Mike and Angy Morton


Copyright Romantique Couture 2011