Drawing inspiration from folklore and the natural world, Designed By Alice’s Birch Tree collection speaks to a yearning to stay grounded in this age of “fast-everything”. It nods to what is slow and local, personal and rooted.

The original image that sparked the collection is based on a tree in London Fields that I passed each day en route to my Hackney studio. With some gentle physical and digital manipulation through collage, I've conjured this seemingly ordinary sight into something that hints at our deep interconnected-ness to the natural world and to one another.

As always, I’ve chosen to initially print my art as a limited edition collection of Birch bodysuits and silk hair scrunchies. For surely there’s no closer way to be connected to an idea than literally being wrapped up in it…dancing, moving and existing in it!

Sometimes we need little reminders about what's important for our general well-being. My hope with the Birch Tree wearable art collection is to provide both beautiful and highly functional products that simultaneously serve as reminders to take things slower every now and then. Maybe for you, that looks like moving your body in an exercise class, jumping into the ocean for a wild swim, forest-bathing, making things with your hands, reading new stories or gathering with friends.  Either way, I hope that this collection might inspire and remind us to make space for a little more play. To strengthen connections with the enriching experiences that fuel our lives. To stay grounded like a birch tree - and to give ourselves the room to sprout new shoots.