After hearing her grandmother’s tales of working in a textile factory, an Accrington fashion designer was inspired to create a sustainable fashion brand.

In 2021, Hailea Crichton founded ‘Deidei’, an anti-fast fashion lifestyle brand which has been worn by singer and actor Kate Nash, actor Aimee Lou Wood and Radio 1 presenter Vick Hope.

Deidei promotes the idea of ‘slow-fashion’ where clothes can be worn season after season rather than for short periods of ‘fast fashion trends’.

Hailea grew up in a mill town and was taught to sew by her grandmother, who told her stories about men abusing their power and the bad working conditions in the mills which affected her grandmother’s health.

Lancashire Telegraph: Hailea (left) and co-founder Gabrielle Pritchard (right)Hailea (left) and co-founder Gabrielle Pritchard (right) (Image: Hailea Crichton)

Wanting to find a better way of doing things in the fashion industry, Hailea was inspired to start the business.

She said: “I saw the need for a clothing brand that I could trust, a brand with empathy and joy, that cares as much about the people making the products as they do about the people wearing them.

“This is where Deidei has come from, a brand that helps people look good, feel good, and be good to the Earth.

“We are a female-led and self-funded team that is looking forward to growing the brand and educating customers on their sustainable journey.”                   

Hailea designs and develops all garments in-house, with designs inspired by the spaces where nature and people meet.

The brand also uses plant-based fabrics like Tencel and Cupro - two of the most environmentally friendly materials.

The fashion industry contributes up to 10 per cent of global carbon emissions so, in an effort to reduce this, the brand’s garments are made in the UK to minimise their carbon footprint, with limited runs produced by a family-run factory in London.

The circular fashion movement is a campaign to design, produce, and provide clothes with the intention to be used for as long as possible before being circulated back into the biosphere.

So, to commit to this movement, Deidei launched ‘Restore’ this year, a project that provides valuable advice for responsible care, repair, and recycling to prevent garments from having an end life.

They also launched a rental service, so that pieces can be worn and used again, many times over.

Deidei has launched a limited collection for Autumn Winter 2022, with garments made exclusively from hand-picked deadstock fabric (fabric left over from factories which would end up in landfill), sourced from UK mills.

This slow-fashion approach can be seen in Deidei’s collection of dresses, tops, and accessories, which feature details that are adaptable to changing bodies such as ties, buttons, and pockets for maximum versatility and longevity.                         

Deidei clothing and accessories are available to buy at the company's website or from rental website On Rotation.