The Creative Space: Emily Arch, Senior Contract Designer at ILIV
As we continue our series finding out designers ‘creative space’, we find out from BCFA member, ILIV‘s senior contract designer, Emily Arch…
ILIV was an early pioneer in flame retardant contract fabrics and they have over 30 years’ experience designing and sourcing inherently FR fabrics. Emily Arch is the Senior Contract Designer at ILIV. She has been at the heart of the design process providing fire retardant fabric combinations to customers for over six years.
We asked her;
Can you tell us about a space/environment that has inspired you recently and why?
When I need to switch off and gain some inspiration to boost my creativity, I always seem to gravitate to the Highlands of Scotland. The West Coast in particular boasts beautiful scenery from mountain views to desolate sandy beaches.
A lot of our collections are inspired by colours and textures found in natural habitat gardens from around the UK.
My favourite is Inverewe Garden in the North West of Scotland which overlooks Loch Ewe. Whenever I visit, I feel like it’s my own little paradise, featuring unusual plants, towering trees and natural wildlife. There’s a riot of colour to take in and wherever you wander you breathe in an array of scents too. I find that it helps to unlock the mind and drives creative vision.
Our new Saddle collection offers classic worn leather effects which look stunning against dramatic greens, golds and blues. It almost mirrors the natural environment of the UK’s wild coastline.
Combining luxury plain dyed panamas with striking colourways, the Soul collection is effortlessly chic. The colour palette provides a noteworthy nod to the damson, marine and burnt orange flowers found in Inverse Garden.
