PHOTO BY: Harley Kemp for Triumph

StyleNest interview stylist to the stars, TV presenter and soon to be new mum, Grace Woodward.

You may know her from the judging panel of Britain and Ireland’s Next Top Model, as the one-time X Factor stylist, or for her endless fashion shoots with the industry’s leading titles. Which ever it is, Grace Woodward is the UK’s most recognised stylists.

We had the pleasure of meeting Grace, to talk babies on the way, her all time favourite designer and why even at 9months pregnant she can’t give up her heels.

 You’ve just teamed up with Triumph as a face of their new ‘Supporting Women In Making’ initiative. Tell us a little about that.

It’s a new bursary offered by Triumph with the aim of setting one lucky woman up in business. The winner will be supported and mentored by women who have a huge and varied amount of experience in their own businesses. These real women include an illustrator, mosaic and multi-media artist, furniture designer, jewellery designer and a chocolatier.

The campaign supports and celebrates talent and individuality of inspirational women. Which women inspire you and why?

Any woman who can remain soft while playing hard in life and business. Women actually scare me far more than men because I’ve had a really difficult relationship with my mother, but weirdly that’s inspired me the most.

You’ll be making up the Triumph panel along with the likes of Gizzi Erskine, Paloma Faith and Roksanda Ilincic. What will your roles be?

Such a great line up isn’t it, like the best dinner party. The beauty of having a panel of women with oodles of real life and work knowledge is that none of us are playing a role, even if that’s what we do in our careers. This is a chance for all of us to impart some usually hard found, real advice on someone else. We have all learnt by our mistakes and hopefully we can help by imparting some of our hard learned lessons to help get this person into business in the most informed and seamless way possible.

You’re soon to be a new mum, congratulations! Have you had any weird and wonderful cravings throughout your pregnancy?

I’ve got all of two weeks to go if things go to plan. Boringly I’ve had no cravings as I’ve religiously been taking supplements. They say your body craves what you are lacking and my husband’s mum licked the mud off potatoes! She must have been lacking in minerals, which luckily we can get in nice handy not muddy little packet these days. I had to become pretty adept on how to make mackerel interesting though as I gave up on tinned sardines as they were just foul. Ah the things we do eh….

You haven’t let your style credentials slip throughout your pregnancy. Who were your go-to designers and favourite pieces to wear with bump?

I’m telling you it’s been the hardest project of my career so far and not every day has been a success. 9 months is a very short amount of time to get your head around not only a constantly changing body, you think you have it nailed and then you literally wake up and you’ve changed shape again, but also how your identity starts changing as you think about becoming a mother. I’ve still not been able to relinquish heels though so I think that in the battle of Style Grace Vs. Earth Mother Grace, McQueen is still winning. I couldn’t live with out my grey maternity jeans from H&M, a couple of heavy stretch Alaia dresses which just sucked everything in, a surprisingly slashed to the waist black dress by Boudicca, was able to fit growing bump into the deep cowl neck. I wasn’t really into spending loads on clothes that I’d wear for a few months, so I just got clever on my old wardrobe.

You’ve styled shoots for huge titles such as Harpers Bazaar, Nylon and The Sunday Times Style. What’s the weirdest shoot you’ve ever done?

Nothing is weird everything is wonderful and the more challenging the more creative you have to be. I once shot in the Atacama desert in Chile  – you have to be doing hair and makeup at 2am as you can only shoot till 9am as it gets so hot and the sand starts blowing all over the place.

You were part of the judging panel on Britain & Ireland’s Next Top Model. What was it like working with Elle Macpherson, Julian MacDonald et al?

A totally nuts and brilliant experience. Julien and I even thought we ‘hated’ each other for the first series, but we’re good friends now. I love him.

What’s your earliest fashion memory, good or bad?

Longing for and then getting a parka jacket and refusing to take it off to go to bed so I slept in it for a week. I was about six then. Even though I still want to behave that way with new things when I love them so much, I try not to as my husband thinks it’s a bit odd. I won’t really buy anything unless I feel this way about them though.

If you had to wear one designer for the rest of your life, who would it be?

Argh just one?! I think Westwood and McQueen would have to battle it out and I’d wear the winner. Though I have to say, I’m getting the urge to make a line of my own. That would solve the issue nicely.

You’re glasses have become a signature of your style. Do you have an extensive collection and which are your favourite frames?

They are a necessarily evil. Sometimes I love them sometime I hate them, but I need them to actually see. I don’t really like being defined by one thing, but it helps people identify you easily, a bit like that game Who’s Who. Sometimes I don’t want to be the brunette with the glasses – luckily no moustache though! I have quite a few pairs and I seem to like to go big. My faves are from Retrosuperfuture, Cutler & Gross and Linda Farrow and I look at eyestylist.com for inspiration.

We imagine your little one is set to be very well dressed. Have you been eyeing up any childrenswear brands?

No pressure! Sometimes though it’s a ball ache being such a perfectionist with stuff and I’ll want to redesign it. I’ve found myself musing a lot lately, things like that would be great of only they hadn’t put that monkey/elephant/bear there/all over it.  I like Jo Jo Mamam Bebe, Bonpoint, some Mamas & Papas, and then I love looking at the designer stuff just for a giggle like the Fendi pram set and full on Gucci section in Selfridges. The collaboration between Cybex and Jeremy Scott is the most, most fun thing I’ve ever seen – I want the whole lot.

Of late your career has moved more into TV and presenting, most notably styling the X Factor. Can we expect to see more TV projects this year?

I’m doing another guest judging slot on Ultimate Shopper, which has got to be on of the most hilarious shows on TV. There’s a slight problem with being pregnant and filming anything as it dates it and the continuity can go a bit funny with bump size going up and down.

You live in London, where are your favourite places to eat in the city?

Well kinda, I’m in the process of buying in Hertfordshire but I’m a London girl born and bred so can only stand being 30minutes away on the train. I haven’t been yet but I’m dying to go to Jason Atherton’s Social Eating House in Soho. J. Sheekey is my fave all round night out. I would eat there every night if I could like some grand old theatre dame that only drinks champagne out of daisies.

You’re a keen Tweeter and have a huge following. Do you see social media as an important tool in your career? Have you noticed a real change in fashion digitally in recent years?

Twitter is amazing. It took me a while, like everyone to work out what the hell it all meant, but i love playing with language and so trying to express something in 140 characters becomes like a game of Sodku or solving a crossword. However, there are times when I tweet too quickly and they don’t always make sense. I use it as a place I can have a voice, share stuff I’m in to, be a real person on there not just have someone tweet for me as a business tool. Saying that, it can be useful for business too as it’s a really easy way to get in touch with people you are genuinely interested in. Fashion has changed tonnes in the digital age, it’s everywhere and sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming.  I think our consumption rate has gone thought the roof and deep down I’m still part of the less is more crew in terms of how you develop a significant personal style.

Will you be taking some time out to spend with baby or juggling work and mummy mode?

When you are a creative there aren’t any days off from your head. It’s in everything I do so even if I’m not working I’ll be plotting something – even if that’s how to make Hitchin, my possible new home look even more aesthetically pleasing and raise the house prices. I will also be working with Triumph throughout and I’m especially excited to see Maison Triumph, their pop-up space in Covent Garden.

Do you have any advice for people wanting to break into the fashion industry?

I think the industry is amazingly good at PRing itself and so looks like the most fun, glamorous life but that’s the point of its own artifice.  It’s a bit like sugar; we love it but you have to know how to use it and what the side affects will be. If you can go into it with your eyes wide open, talk to anyone and everyone that does anything related, not about getting a work placement or job but really talk to them about the highs and the lows of their own careers and of the industry itself, I think that’s the best place to start. Learn before you leap, which funnily enough is the opposite of what I did.

Grace Woodward is part of Triumph’s ‘Makers Collective’; inspirational women who span across a variety of creative disciplines in a celebration of true craftsmanship and expertise. For further information please visit www.facebook.com/triumphUK

For the latest fashion news and finds, visit StyleNest’s Label Watch page here.