Her path was set at an early age when she cut up her mother's Twenties lampshade to make accessories. Parlaying parental frustrations into a highly successful career as a designer, in time Alice Temperley became known for whimsical, dreamlike creations that have an air of drama about them.
Early life and company
© Dave BenettBorn in 1975, she was one of four children brought up on her parents' Somerset cider farm. "Desperate, desperate, desperate to get out of [the countryside]", she applied to Central Saint Martins in London. They told her then and there that she had secured a place. On graduating, she set up her own company, Temperley London.
Alice founded the company with her then boyfriend Lars von Bennigsen in 2000. Hailed as "the designer making the biggest waves in British fashion" by the US edition of Vogue in 2006, Alice is known for her focus on intricate designs, beautiful fabrics and hand-finishes.
With headquarters in the capital's trendy Notting Hill district Temperley London is sold in 37 countries worldwide and consists of five labels. One is a bridal range, another is a diffusion line catering for a new generation of cool British girls - she picked Alice Dellal, Georgia May Jagger and Amber Le Bon as the faces for it.
Family
© David M. BenettAlice met financier Lars in 1998 and they were married in 2002 in a Twenties style wedding covered by Vogue. Speaking of her dress, she said: "It was made out of crinkle chiffon, and the finest lace that I had collected years and years and years ago and little 2mm sequins scattered a little bit, and it had a very low back with pearls across it."
The designer announced she was expecting her first child in February 2008 after years of "begging" Lars. "I am delighted" she said. In September 2008, five days after presenting her spring/summer fashion show, Alice produced another prized creation - her son Fox London Temperley von Bennigsen Mackiewicz.
However, in 2012 the pair announced their separation. Speaking to the Telegraph, she explained: "He wanted to go and travel the world and be a free man. You have to respect what people want to do with their life. I will keep being responsible and looking after my beautiful little boy and keep everything going."
Honours
Alice has been awarded several honours, including English Print Designer of the Year in 1999 at Indigo, Paris, as well as Elle magazine's Best Young Designer of the Year Award in 2004.
But her biggest accolade came in 2011, when she was awarded an MBE for services to the fashion industry. She has a host of celebrity followers, including Princess Kate – who wore one of her dresses to a Christmas reception in 2010, Halle Berry, Scarlett Johansson and Sarah Jessica Parker.
