FOUNDERS

AMI MOUNTFORD

Born and raised in England, Ami graduated with a degree in Fashion Textile Design from Amersham College, Buckinghamshire. It was here where she discovered her passion for traditional media. On graduation, she was awarded membership to the Chartered Society of Designers.

JEANNINE UMRIGAR

Born and raised in England, Jeannine studied Fine Art and Photography at the University of Miami. She then moved to New York to study Fashion Design at FIT where she majored in tailoring. Whilst at college she entered the styling industry working with top NY editors and photographers.

ASHLEIGH CRAWFORD

Born and raised in Northern Ireland, Ashleigh received her Bachelor of Arts Fashion degree in England from Nottingham Trent University, where she was awarded the prestigious Courtaulds Womenswear and Reiss Menswear Design Awards, recognizing outstanding student talent.

AMI MOUNTFORD

CREATIVE DIRECTOR-ARTIST-MENTOR-ENTREPENEUR

Initially based in London as a textile designer and illustrator, Ami made New York her new creative home, where she went on to hold executive leadership roles in mens and womens accessories, underwear and footwear, at luxury, fashion and innovation based brands. These included Ralph Lauren, Cole Haan/Nike and Nine West. Work published in magazine editorials include POP, Nylon, Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

Ami contributed her work and behind-the-scenes industry insights to the first Accessory Design textbook, published by Fairchild in 2012. Accessory Design by Aneta Genova/Parsons The New School. Ami has been invited by Polimoda, Florence, Italy, to give a week-long workshop for their Accessory and Footwear Masters students in 2020.

In 2019, Ami was accepted into the MFA program at the New York Studio School of Painting, Drawing, and Sculpture, whose founding manifesto was endorsed by artists including Willem De Kooning, Mark Rothko, and Isamo Noguchi.

Ami was a recipient of the Jane Chace-Carroll Scholarship Award for Exceptional MFA Talent 2020-21.

Ami graduated in June 2021 with her MFA in Sculpture and Painting and is now pursuing a post-graduate year with the school, whilst volunteering with their NYSS Alumni Association. Ami has been elected as co-student representative 2021-22, reporting regularly at the school’s Board of Governors meetings.

Ami has concurrently honed her artist practice and enjoys merging the craft of traditional art mediums, with the digital world, to inspire and progress her vision.

 JEANNINE UMRIGAR

CREATIVE DIRECTOR-TREND FORECASTER-STYLIST

ADJUNCT PROFESSOR OF FASHION

THE PRATT INSTITUTE & FIT

A ten year career as a fashion stylist proceeded college, her work is featured in publications such as The Face, Arena, Vibe and Exit. Jeannine’s commercial clients include brands Kate Spade, J Crew and Abercrombie and Fitch.

As a Design Director Jeannine has a wealth of experience with creative direction, specializing in concept ideation, accessories and apparel design, merchandising and design leadership. Global brands partnered with include Zero + Maria Cornejo, Adidas, Cole Haan, Uniqlo Japan, Club Monaco and Frye Italy. As a trend forecaster Jeannine’s work is featured with the online platform Futureland.

In 2018 Jeannine joined the faculty at The Pratt Institute as Adjunct Professor of Fashion. There she has nurtured her talent for teaching portfolio development, mentoring, and inspiring under-grad students toward a successful career in the global fashion industry. In 2020, Jeannine was also added as an adjunct fashion professor at FIT, teaching portfolio development to their Masters Post-Grad Fashion students.

Jeannine continues to explore her passion for photography through film and digital mediums and recently began working in clay to develop her ideas into three dimensions.

 ASHLEIGH CRAWFORD

CREATIVE DIRECTOR-CONCEPT DESIGNER-FASHION ILLUSTRATOR

Ashleigh’s international experience in design, trend, and concept development as a Creative Director encompasses womenswear, menswear, and children’s design. In these diverse fields, Ashleigh has led and inspired world-class teams for Ralph Lauren, Levi Strauss & Co, Joe Fresh, and Benetton, Italy. In 2021, Ashleigh’s renowned expertise brought her involvement to a childrenswear start-up where she acts as Creative Director, virtually, for the concept, design, materials sourcing, print design and product development, fittings, and management of all creative freelancers.

Ashleigh is a noted fashion illustrator for clients including Karl Lagerfeld Paris, Robert Graham, Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren.

Throughout her design career, Ashleigh has critiqued design students at Parsons The New School, The Pratt Institute, and Fashion Institute of Technology and has been invited to speak with faculty and students at the Royal College of Art, London.

Ashleigh’s designs have been featured in British and American Vogue, British Elle, and Vogue Bambini.

Headshots by Holger Thoss

http://holgerthossphoto.com/