St Asaph designer's Italian fashion success

Aug 11 2008 By David Simister

Ross Barnes

A DENBIGH-EDUCATED designer living in St Asaph has made his mark in the fashion world by reaching the world finals of a top fashion competition staged in Italy.

Ross Barnes, who now lives on Bishops Walk, St Asaph, made the final heat of the prestigious World Wide Competition for Fashion, held in Trieste, alongside just sixteen other finalists from around the world.

"To even get as far as the finals with over 1,000 entrants was really exciting and I found the experience really worthwhile" he said.

"It went really well but the most important thing was that I made lots of contacts while I was there, which was important."

Barnes, who was a student at Denbigh High School before going on to Wrexham’s Yale College, recently gained an MA for Textiles in Fashion from London’s St Martin’s College. This has led to him being able to display nine of his designs on the catwalk at London Fashion Week earlier this year.

He has completed work experience with some of Britain’s best-known designers and moved to London, which he says is a world away from his native St Asaph.

"Eventually I’d like to be a creative director and have my own fashion house but I’m working my way up at the moment. It can be very expensive to put on a show and that’s a huge obstacle, but I’ll get there in the long run."

Find out more about Ross’ designs on his website at www.ross-barnes.co.uk