A discussion with : Jacob Peatfield
Can you please introduce yourself?
I’m Jacob, 24 from the Manchester area of the U.K. and I guess I am known on Instagram for the Jackets and other products that I make by hand.
What are your inspirations?
The top things that I would say inspire my work would be:
Making something functional that can actually be worn/used over a concept.
Creating a bespoke item that is special because of its individuality.
Nature and the outdoors.
What was the path that led you to become a creator? What were your motivations?
I didn’t really expect to be a creator and it is still strange to me to be called that as I didn’t study fashion, design or any sort of creative subject academically, I actually studied languages at university. To be honest I am just curious about how things are made and work in general and to begin with fashion was a very accessible outlet to be creative without investing a lot of money as a 17/18 year old (compared to something like joinery or metalworking etc.).
What project/collaboration/collection would you like to have done?
Eventually I would like to produce a collection inspired by the regions in Northern Italy where I used to live. The lifestyle and the nature in that part of the world are big inspirations for me and it's great to see brands like Diemme are starting to translate that into fashion.
In terms of collaborations it would be a dream to work with some of my favourite brands, i’m really into lifestyle aspect of brands like Aime Leon Dore and Drake’s but at the same time enjoy the technical aspect of the other end of the scale where you see brands like And Wander and Salomon for example. Mixing these technical and lifestyle aspects together is something that I can see myself doing in the future.
What materials and processes do you use for your designs and creation?
When I first started out I worked a lot with leather making bags and accessories. Because of that I have a super heavy duty sewing machine that has a walking foot, servo motor and all of that. Otherwise, I also have a singer “heavy duty” tabletop which I believe is quite a common machine with the Instagram creative crowd.
In terms of materials I don’t really work with leather any more. Those who follow my page will know I work with a lot of low pile fleece and sherpa materials but I am also experimenting with more fabrics in the background like nylon ripstop for example. The aim is to mix these types of fabrics in the future to create some more technical sherpa jackets. There is a great page on instagram which is a bit of a hidden gem called @material.archive which is a great one for learning more about performance and technical fabrics.
What are the essential eco-responsible criteria to find in a brand according to you?
Personally I think that fast fashion is a challenge at the moment but by choosing brands that you know use quality materials and pay the people who make their products fairly you can start to challenge the idea that fashion is disposable. I think when brands are clear about their supply chain it's very easy to understand their eco-responsibility (which is why I guess many brands avoid this). Hopefully full clarity on where products come from will become more common practice in the future as consumers become more aware about greenwashing and the negative effects that fast fashion leaves on the environment.
How do you see the textile industry in 10 years?
In my opinion the textile industry will be less about big wholesale orders and more about more custom, bespoke options that help brands to stand out in a very saturated market. For me this gives me extra drive with my work to eventually be in a position to offer a service similar to this in the future.
Any future project that you want to talk about?
I’m working on a handful of pieces in the background with the aim of selling my jackets for the first time. The plan is to work on a small campaign alongside these and drop in January. Otherwise i’m looking forward to seeing what types of partnerships I will be able to create in 2021 hopefully with other brands and/or creators.
