From the UK: Luella Bartley Is Designer of the Year!

Last night in London, Luella Bartley won the British Fashion Awards' Designer of the Year for 2008. All of us here at Tonic want to congratulate Luella on this stunning achievement. I thought it would be great to profile her, as she has come from nowhere to everywhere over the past few years and looks like she will continue to design hip and cutting-edge clothes with a musical and British twist.

Bartley is 34 years old and rose through the fashion ranks quickly after leaving her job as a fashion journalist with Vogue and Dazed & Confused. It was her time spent as a journalist that gave her the idea of becoming a designer herself.

Her visionary career began during a late-night driving session with her friends while she was still a fashion journalist. Being disillusioned with the fashion scene, her friends that night convinced her to establish her own fashion label and the rest is history. Her first show at London Fashion Week was that year's biggest event and celebs including Kate Moss and The Clash sat in front row seats. The mix of music, pop and style was fresh and exciting, and soon Bartley was on her way to becoming a household name not only here in the U.K. but also in New York.

For five years, Luella has shown her collection in New York during Fashion Week with Gisele Bundchen opening her debut show carrying a handbag aptly called the "Gisele." While growing her brand in New York, she also designed a line of Luella bags for Mulberry which became one of Mulberry’s biggest sellers in years. With the success of the bag, Luella's brand was sold to Club 21, owners of Mulberry and many other labels, and her business has grown to £9 million.

Last year, she returned to London to show, both in celebration of her flagship store opening just off Bond Street and to take advantage of the growth of U.K. fashion. Bartley is a member of the new younger set of English designers that include Alice Temperley, Matthew Williamson, Stella McCartney and Julien Macdonald — all individuals who have made British Fashion hip again around the world.

Bartley describes her clothes as "mashed-up Sunday best," and both her ready-to-wear clothing and accessories are in high demand both in the U.K. and the U.S. Her quirky English style and love for music have shaped her collections over the past few years — giving them an edge, but also taking into consideration the need for simple cuts and non-fuss which allows her and much of the public to wear her stylish clothes by "just throwing them on."

This year, Luella designed our second collection of Tonic T-shirts with four unique prints (that are now available as bags as well), as she was intrigued by the idea of how Tonic does good and gives back. Upon the launch of her Tonic T-shirts last year, she said, "I was so pleased to be part of this collaboration with Tonic. I love how the proceeds from the T-shirts goes to all sorts of different causes from helping kids in Colombia with dental care to protecting coral reef in the Pacific. It's a cool and original way to give back and I think the design reflects that."

Bartley now lives in Cornwall with her three children and long-term partner, and we at Tonic applaud and celebrate her win yesterday as British Designer of the Year.