SPOTLIGHT FEATURE: 3 WOMEN
Spotlight interview for vintage brand 3 Women, we learn how to
successfully combine history, individuality and personality as well as
the importance of brand transparency.
3 Women’s @cityshoptokyo collection
A customer walks into the shop, drawn in by the raw materials and unique designs. As they work with Natalie and Crystal - picking a fabric from a selection of vintage textiles, getting measured and then watching as it goes to seamstresses who’s hands turn it into a garment that will last a lifetime - they realise they have become a designer themselves. An elite consumer experience is born!
“ Sourcing vintage textiles and creating one-of-a-kind pieces was a natural progression for us”
Crystal Lee Early and Natalie Mumford met selling clothes at a vintage flea market while sharing a booth. They now run the vintage brand ‘3 Women’ where tradition runs deep. A brand that started by selling uni-sex sourced vintage now has it’s own label. Using recycled 1950’s rice sacks from Crystals family, they work with local seamstresses to create one-of-a-kind pieces.
Vintage rice sacks used repurposed to make 3 Women designs - image sourced from 3 Women Instagram @3womenco
The unique vintage textiles used means the garments speak for themselves. Wearing a piece history brings forward a whole new meaning to expression through fashion. It also feels good knowing you’re wearing something that has been ethically made by a brand that values community. Producing a garment line independently whilst maintaining these core values has been difficult but with more printed projects on the way their 3 Women brand is growing fast.
“Personally knowing every single person that’s parts of creating these pieces and where the textiles came from is very important to us”
Ethics are top priority for 3 women, personally knowing everyone involved in the production of their garments creates an enormous amount of trust and respect from customers. The conscious consumer needs to know ‘what has been my garments journey?’ The 3 Women brand gives them that confidence. Crystal and Natalie also believe that knowing the process adds to the story behind their pieces. They know every hand that has cut, sewn and embroidered their garments and they are passionate about creating history in the present.
Custom rice sack pants made from 1970s rice bags, 1980s flour sack and an antique linen table runner with silk embroidered flowers.
Breathing new life into vintage textiles brings a great sense of satisfaction to the two founders of 3 Women. For Crystal and Natalie the fabrics are works of art that have a history and a story to tell about the journey they went through when they were first printed and embroidered. The inspiration to use them to crate new works of art comes easily as, to put it simply, they are passionate about carrying on that story.