By Lorna Hill Kingston College student Kate Winskill has been named as the student winner of the Bentalls Scarf Project.

Students studying for a BA (Hons) Fashion and Textiles saw their designs go on sale at a prestigious launch event in the store’s bespoke accessories department in April.

The scarves, which were available in natural and man-made fibres, were printed in a limited edition of up to six per design, allowing Bentalls discerning customers seeking an individual style to invest in a unique piece.

Kate, whose scarf sold the most, said: “It was wonderful of Bentalls to give us the chance to present our work directly to the customer, and the fact that people wanted to buy our scarves was fantastic and is a real impetus to keep designing.”

The project was the culmination of a joint initiative with students on the brand new Fashion and Textiles course, who designed ’The Bridge’ – a debut collection of scarves to be sold exclusively in Bentalls. To make this project as commercially beneficial to the students this year it was decided that it would be the customer who decided which was their favourite as opposed to a judging panel made up of Bentalls Buyers. The student with the best sell through of their design in effect would be the winner.

The first year students were given an exclusive brief in January this year to design, hand-print and produce a bespoke range of Spring/Summer accessories, based on the concept of ‘The English Country Garden’. Working in teams and individually, the students presented their market research, inspiration, designs and fabric samples to Bentalls fashion experts.

The degree students were briefed by the Bentalls’ marketing and buying experts and were able to design their exclusive range of hand printed scarves made possible by the installation of new state-of-the-art printed textiles equipment at Anstee House. Maia Diver, Head of Fashion at Kingston College, said: “It was fantastic that Vanessa Frances and Michelle Hayter from Bentalls attended the Fashion Show this year and presented the prize. Staff and students have greatly appreciated their support during the scarf design project and we were delighted with their positive feedback about the professionalism of the show. The students were excited about the number of scarves they sold in store and really valued this inspirational opportunity.”

Vanessa Frances, Head of Marketing at Bentalls, added: “We were thrilled that this project was so successful in terms of how well the designs were received by our customers and how much the students got from the project. The Fashion Show was very professional and showcased the obvious talent of these budding designers. We look forward to working together next year.”