From Farm to Fashion

Background

I am not a farmers daughter and never grew up on a farm, but I knew from a young age that farming was something I was very interested in, along with my other passion of art/design. Who would have thought the two could ever go together!

Living in the countryside, it soon became clear that farming came naturally to me, I soon became friends with local farmers’ daughters/sons and wouldn't miss any opportunity to help out on their farms.

Robson & May

In 2017 I attended a leather workshop, which was where I developed my skills to work with leather, along with a helping hand from youtube. My business started with me making belts and equine equipment for friends and family. I then started to explore the world of leather, which brought me to the idea of bringing my love of cows, leather and fashion together. I didn't hang about I started to source my hides and draw up my designs. My tote bags were my first creation, these are still one of my most popular designs, alongside my cowhide bowties, which have been a great success with the young farmers. I am hoping to broaden my audience by approaching the various Cattle Societies with my bowties.

Cowhides

The cowhides are the foundation of my collection, as this is the material that makes my products look and feel unique. Every product I make is different due to the variation in the pattern on the cow hide. I source my cowhide within the UK, from a local abattoirs and tanneries, due to the higher quality of hides plus the variety of breeds available. Cowhides are a by-product of the meat industry, we do not slaughter cows just for their hides. One of my challenges I face is to create a understanding of how my products are sourced and the process they have been through to achieve an unique look.

Daily Life

Juggling my day job of working for Welshpool Livestock Sales, which gives me the opportunity to enhance my knowledge of livestock and sales, which is something I throughly enjoy and hope to continue. My workshop is based down on my partners dairy farm in Shropshire. I enjoy helping out on the farm with milking, calf feeding and lambing. Its is a great environment for me to create my products, as this is where it all started.

Lets see where the future will take me.