THERE'S a certain understated style of dressing which, while specifically equated with one European country, has always had widespread appeal throughout the continent. The English attitude to clothes still inspires enormous devotion in countries such as Italy and France, both of which produce their own highly popular versions of this approach to fashion. But no matter how hard other nations try - or maybe precisely because they have to make such a visible effort - when it comes to relaxed style using the finest fabrics, England remains unsurpassed.
This is an approach embodied by the work of Margaret Howell, whose clothes are now available here for the first time this year at Brown Thomas. Howell, as much in person as through her designs, perfectly represents the low key, almost throwaway spirit that is English anti fashion fashion. Her natural inclination is towards for subdued good taste, in which soft and luxurious fabrics are used to create comfortable shapes forming the basis of a permanent wardrobe.
"You really have to feel what I do and wear the clothes to know what I'm about," admits the designer "because from a distance, it's just another piece of clothing." Howell wouldn't, however, choose any other option and neither would her substantial loyal following. Her light tone of speech reflects the gentleness of her clothes, they're straightforward, uncluttered by detail and not likely to demand attention. That's why, although she has been in the business for the past 25 years, it was only last year - and with great hesitation - that Howell staged a show of her latest collection during London Fashion Week.
"Putting on a show and yet not breaking trends worries me quite a bit," she says. "But it seemed to me that not even our own press in England understood what I was about. Yes, my clothes are classic in origin, but they're modern in feel. They're not so heavy because we're using lighter fabrics and stream lined looks."
Both because she is, by choice, outside the rush of twice yearly change and also because so many of her clientele don't look for any radical shift in direction, Howell regularly repeats certain items in every collection. This means the basic form remains constant while fabric and colour may alter according to seasonal trends. "If I still like them and we're getting demand, I'll continue to produce some pieces," Howell confesses. "We often get customers coming back with something they've had for years and years and asking us to repeat it."
At the moment, one perennial favourite - turning up again in the latest range as a grey, black and white check harris tweed - is a sleeveless shift dress which buttons up the back but Margaret Howell thinks her best seller right now is a pair of flat fronted trousers. "In the past it was a gymslip done in various forms and also some of our raincoats." Twinsets in cashmere and also white linen shirts are other pieces which have acquired a large band of devotees.
Underlining the designer's take on fashion, none of the clothes mentioned above could be described as ground breaking radicals. Instead, they're the kind of comfortable, and comforting, staples which form the core of her business. "I like them myself because they have a certain inherent character," she says, "and the fabric is right for the design."
Learning what was right for the design began at an early age while Margaret Howell was growing up in Surrey and was encouraged to make her own clothes - "I used to buy Yves St Laurent's patterns and try to make them up." Her tastes even then were for understated refinement in clothes; as a schoolgirl, she says, she saved up money to buy herself a red Shetland sweater, a shirt by Cacharel and a Burberry raincoat. "I still get quite a kick going to second hand shops and jumble sales and hunting around," she remarks.
Leaving school, she chose to study not fashion but fine art. "The usual route after that was into teaching art and I didn't want to do that. The combination of character in me enjoys organising and designing, so I think that's why I started working in fashion." At the start, she specialised in accessories which were sold to retail outlets in London and it was during the early 1970s that Howell began to design and produce her own lines of clothing for men and women.
THE progress hasn't been all steady - like many others in the same field, over ambitious expansion led to a bad patch in the 1980s which coincided with the break up of her market but thanks to having a substantial shareholding in her business bought by a Japanese company she can now confidently focus on designing clothes.
Margaret Howell is now second only to Paul Smith as England's best selling fashion label in Japan, a country seemingly possessed of an insatiable appetite for all things English. Her market in Europe, she believes, is generally older than the typical Japanese customer. "I've friends aged from 20 to 60 who wear my clothes, but the average is 30-50. It has to do with spirit and lifestyle; whether the person likes a natural feel, a quality which isn't ostentatious. I think she's an independent working person who likes practical clothes." The clothes themselves she summarises as "casual in character and relaxed. I try to get a mellowed feeling in them straight away." While that mellowness may be quintessentially English in spirit, it has proven to be international in appeal.