'You will love and admire us and want to be our friends. We will inspire you because we are the future. You will learn from us. Come, take our hand. We are going to show you our world'

This is how the graduating students of the Royal College of Art invite you to their degree show.

Unusually, Natasha Lee studied City & Guilds before completing a degree in textile design at Chelsea College of Art and beginning her Masters at The Royal College of Art. This gave her a high degree of technical expertise and an insatiable appetite for research. She collects information when travelling and from books, magazines, museums and antique fairs. Her research provides the mood for a collection. A painstaking approach to sourcing material is time consuming but has its rewards. Often invisible to the casual observer, innovative work doesn't just happen. It is the result of lots of trial and error until finally a successful solution emerges from the mix. She uses this information to reinterpret traditional techniques and give them a contemporary twist.

The Peranakan people of Singapore inspire her current work. Between the 1800s and the 1940s, their lifestyle evolved from a fusion of Chinese, Malaysian, Indonesian and European culture, creating an eclectic, individual look. The style evolved as a result of the mélange of cultures that surrounded them, and the impact travel had on the country. Natasha aims to reflect this by developing a style that absorbs a mixture of influences and builds up layers of contrasting imagery.

Her current preoccupation is with the use of metal in embroidery. She embosses thin metal foil and leather with an etching plate and then applies the foil directly onto fabric. In addition Natasha has explored the Irish sewing machine and studied the traditional technique of Victorian paper filigree.

She has created a collection that is luxurious, yet retains a young and quirky edge. From this melting pot of ideas, techniques and influences come exquisite new fashion fabrics. Although directed towards a young couture collection, she tries to complement her highly decorative embellished pieces with simple alternatives that could be put to the mass market.

I certainly admire Natasha's dedication and am inspired by her continual searching for new ideas. She and her peers are the future of textiles and I thank her for allowing us a glimpse inside her world.

The culmination of Natasha's exhaustive research can be seen in garments on display in the final year show for Textiles at the Royal College of Art
27 June - 6 July (closed 4 July)
10am-6pm daily
Late night opening 27 June and 3 July until 10pm
T 020 7590 4498.

Above: designs by Natasha Lee
Below: pages from Natasha's sketchbook
Click any image to enlarge.