Profile: Berni Raeside-Bell – Only Natural Design Competitions

Berni Raeside-Bell

Nottingham Trent University

Fashion knitwear designer, founder of Detta Knitwear, and MA Fashion Knitwear student at Nottingham Trent University, my work explores the relationship between heritage craft, natural fibres, and contemporary slow fashion, creating knitwear rooted in landscape, endurance, and longevity. Inspired by the coastlines and rugged terrain of Ireland and Scotland, I work primarily with wool, Donegal yarns, merino, lambswool, and other natural fibres. My collections combine traditional craftsmanship with contemporary knitwear design, using vintage Dubied hand-flat knitting machines alongside small-batch digital knit production to create pieces that balance heritage techniques with modern manufacturing. My current research-led practice centres on Endurance – Threads of Discovery, a project inspired by early polar exploration, resilience, movement, and the emotional durability of garments. Through this work, I explore how fashion can reconnect people to material provenance, slower consumption, and lasting emotional value. Alongside my knitwear practice, I am also exploring the integration of reworked vintage denim, combining repaired and reconstructed garments with knit structures to create contemporary hybrid pieces. This evolving direction allows me to investigate circularity, material longevity, and the dialogue between traditional workwear and heritage knitwear. Working across both handmade and digitally engineered processes allows me to explore how heritage craft can evolve sustainably without losing its human connection. Through Detta Knitwear, I aim to create contemporary pieces that honour traditional craftsmanship while contributing to a more responsible and enduring future for fashion.

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Endurance - Threads of Discovery

Category: Apparel

Competitions: Fashion Competition 2026

ENDURANCE — Threads of Discovery Only Natural International Design Competition Entry Endurance – Threads of Discovery is a contemporary knitwear and reworked denim collection exploring resilience, landscape, and the emotional longevity of clothing through the use of natural fibres and heritage craft techniques. Inspired by the rugged coastlines of Ireland and Scotland, alongside the endurance narratives of early polar exploration, the project combines handmade wool knitwear with reconstructed vintage denim to create modern hybrid garments rooted in material authenticity and slow fashion values. The collection investigates how garments can carry memory, repair, and permanence in contrast to disposability within contemporary fashion. The knitwear pieces are developed using Irish Donegal yarns, Scottish wool, merino, and lambswool, produced on vintage Dubied hand-flat knitting machines alongside small-batch digitally engineered knit production. This dual approach allows traditional craftsmanship to coexist with contemporary manufacturing methods while maintaining low-volume, considered production. Alongside the knitwear, vintage denim garments are reworked through reconstruction, laser processes, surface intervention, and textile manipulation, allowing discarded materials to be reimagined into contemporary pieces with renewed value and purpose. The integration of wool and denim reflects a dialogue between heritage workwear and artisanal knitwear traditions. The silhouettes within the collection explore movement, protection, and endurance through texture, drape, structure, and layered construction. Influenced by Atlantic landscapes, weathered surfaces, and expedition clothing, the collection aims to create garments that feel both grounded and enduring. Through Endurance – Threads of Discovery, I aim to demonstrate how natural fibres, heritage craftsmanship, and circular design approaches can contribute to a more responsible and emotionally durable future for fashion.