Barbour X British Vogue Competition: Meet the Finalists

To celebrate our Re-Waxing Centenary and 100 years of sustainability, in partnership with British Vogue, we launched a competition for Barbour fans to send in their design ideas to re-work a vintage Beaufort jacket.

Each entrant was asked to put their own spin on this iconic waxed jacket, and over 500 entries were whittled down to just five. A huge thank you to everyone who entered, it was very difficult to select only five finalists. The final five designs were brought to life using vintage Beaufort styles from the Re-loved collection.

Read on to find out more about our five finalists and to hear more about the inspiration behind their designs.

Victoria Perry: Winner

Tell us about your design?​

This is exactly the Barbour jacket I would love to wear (the team did such an amazing job sewing it up!). A bit dramatic and whimsical, but still doing what a Barbour was designed to do. Oh, and my design is called “I’m just so frilled for you”.

What was the inspiration behind your jacket?

Playtime, adventure and storytelling. I wanted something playful and a little silly, that would feel like dressing up. The convertible aspect gives two jackets in one, so it’s ready for even more adventures! As Barbour jackets age they show their individual story, I wanted the patchwork lining to show the history and story of the brand on the inside too.

Why did you enter the Barbour x Vogue competition?

I thought it would be fun to put my stamp on something that is such an iconic design as well as giving a new life to something pre-loved. Plus, Vogue, I’ve read it forever, it’s what dreams are made of!

What is it about Barbour that appeals to you?

I love that the brand has such a heritage and makes items that truly have longevity, that should be celebrated! They take so many steps to ensure the sustainability of their product which I really admire. Also, the team we met at the factory who have been working there forever, it was such a community.

What did you think of re-waxing when you had a go in the Barbour factory?

Sticky! & It was so satisfying to see a garment come back to life ready for more years of adventures.

Tell us a little bit about yourself?

I turned 40 this year and it’s amazing how liberating that has been. I’m currently a yoga teacher and PA but used to work as a milliner in New York.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I love making things. I knit (I made 5 cardigans during lockdown) I sew my own clothes (mostly using deadstock fabric) and I cook, bake and make jams.

Jenny McHardy

Tell us about your design?​

The Barbour Urban Bomber Jacket is an adaptable three in one jacket. You can wear the jacket or the harness with the utility pockets on their own, or wear them both together.

I wanted to totally change the silhouette, so I reverse engineered the design, from country to urban and long to short etc. I feel this gives the jacket a strong resilient feel protecting the wearer, physically and emotionally. As a knitter, it had to incorporate a knitted element, so I knitted part of the sleeves using knitting techniques and colours that give a tough, armoured look.​

What was the inspiration behind your jacket?​

Sustainability is very important in my work, I try to use/reuse everything. In creating the bomber jacket the pockets were lost, so I reattached more pockets in a combination of materials and colours to a harness worn on top of the jacket, the most important pocket is the bottom one which folds out and contains a sewing/mending kit, the wearer can mend and add sewn details, it becomes a story of times and places, an heirloom, the jacket is ever-evolving.

Why did you enter the Barbour x Vogue competition?​

To challenge myself. It’s a big deal Barbour and British Vogue together, I tried not to become too overwhelmed, so I gave it a go, the design came to me in small pieces over a couple of weeks, it was not until 11am on the final Sunday that my brain finally downloaded every detail of the jacket and I set to work. My ultimate inspiration being the deadline.

What is it about Barbour that appeals to you?​

The heritage of the brand - still using traditional methods but keeping things exciting and contemporary through collaborations with other companies and designers. Visiting the factory and seeing every process, the care and attention to detail that is given to every jacket was amazing.

What did you think of re-waxing when you had a go in the Barbour factory?​

It was a bit daunting at first, fun and scary at the same time, working on someone’s precious Barbour jacket.​

Tell us a little bit about yourself?​

I am a Knitwear Designer, I design and make home and fashion accessories. I come from Aberdeenshire originally but I now stay in a small village in Fife, I have an 11-year-old daughter, two cats and a dog​.

What do you like to do in your spare time?​

I love hand knitting and I love being outside in nature. I am lucky where we live that I can just step out my front door with my cockapoo Wren and be in the countryside in less than 5 minutes. I love gardening, I have been gardening for as long as I have been knitting, I like growing unusual plants and vegetables, there is something very calming about gardening and magical when everything grows and flowers.

Isabel Sand Nwosu​

Tell us about your design?​​

Using dried flowers from my grandmother’s village in Norway to decorate the jacket, I imagined the piece to be the stalk and the flowers to grow organically on it. My jacket has real dried flowers on the collar using Olga Prinku’s method of embroidering. The rest of the jacket is embroidered by Hand & Lock but it follows the pattern and colours of my dried flowers design.

What was the inspiration behind your jacket?​​

I was inspired by flowers from my grandmother’s village Koppang in Norway. I wanted to find a way to preserve real flowers to decorate the jacket.​

What is it about Barbour that appeals to you?

It reminds me of home, that you can use the jacket in all types of weather. It’s a saying in Norway; “There no such thing as bad weather only bad clothing.”​

Tell us a little bit about yourself?​​

I’m from Norway/Nigeria, and I moved to London to pursue my dream of becoming a fashion designer.​

How important is sustainability to you and what changes have you made in your day-to-day life to become more sustainable?​

It is so important, and I have always tried to shop for sustainable fashion since I was a youth. I always love a good charity shop and always use reusable bags for my weekly shop.

What do you like to do in your spare time?​​

I enjoy travelling and experiencing different cultures. Going to Museums for inspiration and visiting my family. My family is very important to me.

Rachel Challoner

Tell us about your design?

My design uses Fair Isle knitting in the ‘traditional’ colours to line the jacket and storm cuffs, all knitted here on Fair Isle by me, using 100% Shetland wool from Jamieson’s of Shetland, the last spinning mill in Shetland. The back of the jacket features an embroidered outline of Fair Isle, with coordinates.

What was the inspiration behind your jacket?

Heritage - Barbour is a heritage, family-run brand, as is Jamieson’s of Shetland, and Fair Isle knitting is such a big part of the heritage (and present/future) of Fair Isle. With my design, I wanted to honour the heritage by celebrating it rather than trying to disguise it.

Why did you enter the Barbour x Vogue competition?

I wanted to try and help raise the profile of the island of Fair Isle and our small community here and introduce it to an audience who may never have even heard of it or know where it is!

What is it about Barbour that appeals to you?

The heritage of the brand and the fact that it has remained a family business. I especially love how, although new designs evolve every year, the waxed jacket would still be recognisable to someone who bought the original ‘Beacon Brand’ back in the 1890s!

Tell us a little bit about yourself?

I’m 44 and a crofter and knitter in Fair Isle, the UK's most remote, inhabited island. I breed Shetland sheep (I have around 80) and sell my own wool which I have spun from their fleeces.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I wish I had spare time but with 80 sheep, a croft to run single-handedly, hens, cats, dogs and several part-time jobs as well as my own fledgling business, it’s something of a rare commodity!

Yvonne Courtney

Tell us about your design?

The reimagined ‘JacketScarf’ encapsulates my ‘hybrid’ approach to clothing; blurring boundaries - indoor/outdoor; town/country; formal/casual… and addressing our unpredictable weather!

The piece retains the jacket’s distinctive front detailing and can be worn on its own over a sweater or layered under a cardigan or coat. The hood adds a protective element as well as a sculptural point of interest as the wearer turns their back! The ‘tailored scarf’ is a versatile piece of kit when doing errands or doing a zoom call… when you want to look presentable, minus the restrictions of a jacket – and potential overheating – and keeping your essentials safe while on the go.

What was the inspiration behind your jacket?

I’ve always veered towards utilitarian design (following my grandfather’s footsteps perhaps, who pivoted from luxury outerwear to utility wear)– after all, fashion follows function, no?! Waist-up is where you make the most impact and this tailored ‘wearable’ will do just that!

What is it about Barbour that appeals to you?

First and foremost, that it’s a family firm – which is so heartening in this day and age.

I’ve long had a passion for outerwear, due to the timeless detailing, functional components and earthy colour palette and Barbour has cornered this category in spades.

What did you think of re-waxing when you had a go in the Barbour factory?

Not sure I was particularly adept at this! Quite a satisfying process though and fantastic how this gives a new lease of life to people’s long-cherished Barbour jackets, which become almost moulded to the wearer to become life-long friends. I consider all my clothes as friends that I constantly reacquaint myself with.

How important is sustainability to you and what changes have you made in your day to day life to become more sustainable?

Repurposing existing clothing is a prime example of sustainability, and has been instinctive for years. Buying ‘less, but better’ has increased – likely thanks to living in a bijoux flat! Perhaps my biggest sustainability brownie points are not having any dependents – or a car!

What do you like to do in your spare time?

Getting a new venture off the ground means there’s little spare time, but I love nothing more than catching up on my reading pile… creating ’scrap files’ of ideas and inspiration, discovering new enclaves… kicking autumn leaves… and improving my tai chi postures!

Discover more about our sustainable initiatives and Wax For Life here, or learn more about the competition, here.