found: miel / b

I’ve been having a few of those evenings lately where you just sit and wander through the internet; finding amazing designer makers, new vintage shops and great books to add to my already lengthy reading list. I’ve got loads to share, but I’m going to start with one of my absolute favourites – vintage style accessories with a bit of a twist.

miel / b, owned by the lovely Kate, is an online business stocking the most beautiful chiffon scarves, all digitally printed with vintage and vintage-inspired prints. I’ve pretty much fallen in love with all of them, but I think my favourite is the Rations scarf from the S/S13 collection (top image) – not surprising given it’s wonderful mustard and olive colour combination!

Kate kindly took some time out of her busy day to answer some of my nosy parker questions about her inspirations and the meaning behind the name of the business.

First things first; where do you live?
My hometown is North Yorkshire, but I’m currently living in London. I love it here; there’s always something interesting happening, and you can go out on any night of the week and find something amazing to do.Plus, it’s absolutely full of fabulous markets that I love exploring – you can find so many hidden gems!

How did you come up with the idea for the scarves?
The whole thing started when I was going through an old box that belonged to my late Grandfather. It was full of things he’d collected during his life; vintage books, postcards and matchbox cards, and I knew instantly I wanted to create something from it. The scarves just seemed to evolve from that really!

How did you come up with the name ‘miel / b’?
The name miel / b in short, means ‘honey-bee’ (‘miel’ is honey in French). When I graduated from university, my Mum bought me a beautiful necklace with a honey bee on it, and to me that symbolised a new start in life. It was also around this time that I started designing the scarves and decided to start up the company – it’s quite a meaningful little name to me!

Describe a typical working day.
As miel / b isn’t my full time job, I try to fit it in where I can! This usually means getting in from my job as a Buying Assistant, eating some dinner and then starting work on the scarves. I usually stop at about 9pm, when I feel like I’ve probably done enough for one day!

Do you have a favourite scarf?
I feel a bit like I’m having to choose a favourite child! If I had to pick one, it’d probably be King George – it was the second scarf I ever designed, and I remember being so proud of it!

If you could see any celebrity wearing your scarves, who would it be?
I’m not really big on celebrities, but if I had to say someone, it’d probably be Lily Allen. I like her attitude towards a lot of things, and she’s got a great style which combines both modern and vintage. She really just fits in perfectly with what I try to create with miel / b.

To see both S/S13 and A/W13 collections, head to the miel / b website, where you can also find a list of stockists. All images of courtesy of miel / b.