Well, I never really thought of it as a career – I just make things! I studied Fashion Design, womenswear and menswear, but all my classmates knew I\u2019d do accessories. They knew before I did. I met some cool product designers and made an inflatable collection, working with Nick Crosbie. Nick runs a company called Inflate<\/a>, and we made weird accessories as part of my collection. That shaped what I would do in the future. Things just ended up going on people\u2019s heads! We were playing around with what a hat might be. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I won a Kangol hat prize when I was at college; that had a big impact. I worked with an amazing milliner, Marie O\u2019Regan, who was very strict. She\u2019d get to me to make things again and again and again. We designed a hat that ended up being sold in Harrods and I thought, \u2018I\u2019m on to something here\u2026 maybe I should do hats?\u2019 It wasn\u2019t until I had my first kid, a year out of college, when I got a bit twitchy and needed to make something. Lots of my friends had started magazines or were working as stylists. A friend of mine, Grace Cobb, used to do styling for various fashion shows. She got me to make some plastic stuff for Matthew Williamson\u2019s show, and that\u2019s how I met Neil Moodie, who did the hair, and we\u2019ve worked on hats ever since. <\/p>\n\n\n\n After a while I\u2019d accumulated a lot of stuff, and I started selling more and more pieces. The plastic beret had some amazing press, so I started building up this press book. It was like an illusion at the beginning, and then the illusion became real.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I got my brother-in-law to design a logo because back then I thought that if have headed notepaper, it meant you had a company. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You grew up in a very creative household \u2013 can you tell us about that?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My family think in a different way – they\u2019re not normal! My brother (Will McLean) is an architect and a writer, and he\u2019s had a big influence on me; he\u2019s very stylish. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I share a studio with my dad (Bruce McLean<\/a>) – he\u2019s a sculptor and he paints a lot. We\u2019ve shared a studio for five years, and our work is almost merging. I\u2019ve made a hat that looks like his prints, or he\u2019s made a print that looks like one of my hats. It\u2019s not intentional, it just sort of happens. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I think the most interesting part of growing up was when we stayed in Berlin – we had this wonderful freaky year when we moved there; dad got this studio and made loads of paintings, and we were hanging out with all these funny types. There was no babysitter, so my mum would drag us along to private views and we would be in nightclubs \u2013 I\u2019m sure we weren\u2019t meant to be there! <\/p>\n\n\n\n At the same time it was quite traumatic; being dragged away from the security of school and your mates, but it glued us together as a family. We had each other. My younger sister is more graphics, and my big sister studied textile design at Brighton and I used to help her when she was studying: that\u2019s how I know how to print. My mum taught me how to sew, stitch, draw and cook \u2013 most things really! <\/p>\n\n\n\n Numerous famous faces have worn your creations \u2013 who is your favourite, and who would you love to dress? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My favourite at the moment is Erykah Badu<\/a>. She started messaging me on Instagram \u2013 it was most bizarre. My friend called up and said, \u2018you do realise that Erykah Badu is following you?\u2019 I looked closely and thought, \u2018Oh my God!\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n She sent me a message saying, \u2018I can see you\u2019 and it went from there. I really don\u2019t know how, but she\u2019s become a mate. She came to the studio to get a taste of what she likes. I just got back from Amsterdam; I saw her play in Tilburg and took some other hats. She\u2019s actually the first person I\u2019ve met who\u2019s \u2018really famous\u2019 and who I admire. With fashion shoots, I never meet them; stylists borrow things and then you end up seeing Rihanna wearing your hats in Elle Magazine. What\u2019s interesting is everyone says Erykah must be so weird, but she\u2019s not \u2013 she\u2019s really smart, interesting and original. She\u2019s just herself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d really like to get a hat on Solange, and I\u2019d like to get some hats on footballers. My son\u2019s a footballer, and I\u2019d love to do a shoot with famous footballers wearing menswear. I\u2019m working on that\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n What kind of impact did the Beyonce\/The Face cover have?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It had such a huge impact. That was really down to Grace (Cobb), she was one of the editors of the time; Edward Enninful was working there at the time too, and he\u2019s a fan. When Stephen Jones did Hats: An Anthology<\/a> at the V&A years later, he called me up because of that image. I\u2019d never met him before. He said, \u2018I\u2019d really like that hat to be in my show \u2013 I wish I\u2019d made that hat!\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n High praise indeed! <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, that image definitely made that moment, and then being in the V&A and their archive is really major. That hat is loved and loathed by many. Early on, I was looking for an agent to organise what I was doing; somebody suggested I go with Mandi Leonard. All the press came out, she saw the hat and said, \u2018If I see that fucking hat in another fucking editorial I\u2019m going to fucking scream!\u2019 and I thought: \u2018well this is not going to work, is it?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n I sell those hats all over the world and it\u2019s fed my kids. I understand that it can be nauseating because it\u2019s a novelty, but it\u2019s become my trademark. I wonder what she thinks of it now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Can a magazine still have the same impact in 2019?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, I think so. Karlie Kloss wore some hats inside Vogue recently. That has done wonders for sales. It didn\u2019t in the beginning; everybody used to say \u2018oh, you must be selling loads!\u2019 but, nope. It was just building up a presence, building the brand. I now know what that means, but at the time I didn\u2019t realise and it was incredibly frustrating. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But, now, because of Instagram especially, people see things and they want to buy it immediately. You almost don\u2019t need to do traditional trade fairs. You can make some movies and do a small exhibit, but having to stand on all those trade fairs seems very old-fashioned now. I did do that for about eight years \u2013 in Paris \u2013 and you build relationships with buyers and stores, and they remember you. And when you come back \u2013 and they\u2019re all on Instagram now \u2013 they\u2019re like \u2018oh, it\u2019s her again!\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Why did you decide to have a break?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I took a four-year gap recently and I now work in a more artistic, thoughtful way. There were various reasons: it was necessary to reboot, and I feel like I\u2019m starting again, especially with the menswear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What considerations have you had to make when moving into menswear?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I think it\u2019s a massive generalisation but you tend to make more classic shapes for men; they don\u2019t want something too in your face. That really depends on the character; at the moment I\u2019ve been designing hats specifically for individuals: musicians, artists, designers, mates; so they\u2019re different. But if it\u2019s someone who wants an interesting hat, someone older, they will probably go with more muted tones and less decoration. It\u2019s more about the details. Less is more! Saying that, I\u2019ve made a bright yellow hat covered in scribbles\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n You starred in our Readywear<\/a> campaign \u2013 how was that for you? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It was a really nice day! Peter (Searle) took some nice photographs and I really enjoyed the experience. I don\u2019t usually like having my picture taken but Peter made you feel really relaxed and knew lots of tricks about what to do with your head. I\u2019ve even remembered them since \u2013 every time someone picks up a camera I think, \u2018I must do that thing!\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n What are your thoughts about Readywear as a collection?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, they are the sort of things I\u2019d wear to work. I\u2019ve got two ways of dressing: I\u2019m either a girl or a boy. Today I\u2019m wearing big baggy pants, with tapered trouser legs, and a smart shirt; that would fit in with what Field Grey are doing with Readywear<\/a>. The fabrics and styles remind me of Margaret Howell, and Katharine Hamnett in the 1980s \u2013 it\u2019s very my family. It fits in with what we all wear! I think Readywear is really functional: it\u2019s useful, smart and sharp. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What are your go-to items in your wardrobe?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I wear a lot of workwear and I do like wearing an apron or overalls in the studio. When I first met Janice (Field Grey\u2019s founder and creative director), I used to wear an overall when I was teaching. They had lab coats and it meant you didn\u2019t have to think about what to wear, which, in a fashion department, can be a bit of a relief! I don\u2019t buy a lot of things; I tend to wear things until they fall apart. I think I buy clothes more like a guy, I know what I like and I go back and get it again when it\u2019s worn out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What\u2019s happening in fashion education at the moment and what are the challenges that students face?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Big question! The fashion department at the RCA is in a really interesting place right now. Zowie (Broach) has settled into the role; when she first arrived, she flipsided the whole thing. What\u2019s been interesting is she\u2019s brought a scientific aspect: the students are growing their own materials, 3D printing whole looks, and using AI. And then there are students who are still building beautiful, structured, tailored garments in minute detail. There\u2019s a fascinating range at the moment and Zowie is great at putting on shows. <\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.field-grey.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/HOF-600x599.jpg\")
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