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| After her formal education at Sydenham High School for Girls (GPSDT) Gilli Reeves gained a Diploma with Distinction at The London College Of Furniture and Design; her specialist subjects were Interior Design and Textile Design. Aged just 17, financing her course was critical. By successfully making a range of pillows and soft furnishing items and retailing them at The Covent Garden Craft Market Gilli not only generated much needed cash but also gained early commercial experience.
Graduating 3 years later, in 1979, she embarked on the formidable task of combining artistic flair with hard-nosed business and during the next three years enjoyed employment with exclusive textile retailer Suzanne Garry, of Walton Street, and Royal Warrant Holders H.J.Tomkins and Sons, suppliers and fitters of interior fabrics and furnishing. Her natural flair for design, her formal training and her acquired business acumen were sufficient for her to gain the position of Senior Designer at Heal and Sons, in London’s West End. International clients during the 1980’s property boom, with their demands for functional design and sumptuous décor, were well served by this quality store and it’s first-class interior design department; at the forefront of this was Gilli Reeves – still only in her early 20’s – catering to the needs of Middle Eastern families and domestic dignitaries alike. Her professional activity was put on hold briefly for the birth of her two daughters – Kathryn and Charlotte – born in 1987 and 1989 respectively but her creativity simply found new realms in which to florish. The inventive hands never ceased and baby clothes, bedroom interiors and playroom furnishings effortlessly took the place of sample boards and fabric swatches. Her house, shared with ‘City-wise’ husband Jonathan and the girls, was featured in magazines and even the garden displayed her creative touch. |
About Adornment by Gilli Reeves |
| In January 1991 ADORNMENT by Gilli Reeves was created as a corporate entity. Choosing a title that would convey the company’s activities and reflect Gilli’s remarkable talents was not easy. How, for example, does one embrace Gilli’s unique system (perfected since childhood) of transferring painted shapes from paper to fabric using an iron or her ability to write and draw freehand with a sewing machine or her gift of designing original items which rapidly became saleable in the open market?
All this, and much more besides, is encapsulated in the profoundly simple expression: ADORNMENT by Gilli Reeves. The designing and manufacturing talents of Gilli had become a commercial reality once again and pillows, nightdress cases and other soft furnishing items began appearing at local craftfairs and charity functions. Inevitably, the net was spread wider and leaving her family to set up stalls from Saturday morning to Sunday afternoon as far a field as Parham House, West Sussex; the Conference Centre, Brighton and Alexandra Palace, North London became the exhausting norm in the pursuit of establishing her unique, design-led range. Local shops were astute enough to comb weekend craft fairs in search of saleable product lines and by the Christmas of 1992 Gilli’s range was ‘adorning’ the windows of retailers across the southeast of England. The identity and activity of Adornment was moving inexorably from the parochial cottage industry to the quality national supplier which shops across the country are familiar with today. The range of items offered grew correspondingly greater and national exposure to one particular example was afforded courtesy of The Times newspaper! A weekend supplement featured Gilli’s ‘Tooth Fairy Pillow’: soft and safe for babies, this 20cm square pillow features an intriguing ‘marsupial’ pocket, capacious enough to accommodate an extracted tooth by night and a magically inserted coin by morning! The marriage of friends and family spread the word about another early ‘best seller’ - the Wedding Ring Pillow; this eye-catching creation featured the names of the happy couple, dates, locations and traditional salutations. The fabric was coordinated to compliment the chosen colour scheme of the day and the pageboy or girl would be charged with bearing the pillow up the aisle behind the main party. Secured to it, with matching ribbons, would be the wedding rings, on hand to be proffered at the appropriate moment and with a flourish of unique style al la Gilli Reeves. The pillow itself was destined to adorn the newly weds home “from that day forward” and the item contributed to the growing success of her range and reputation. Similar items are still available today. After successful showings at Central London shows such as The Daily Telegraph at the Royal Horticultural Halls, Westminster and Gilli’s first trade show - Top Drawer at Earls Court – buyers from the West End and elsewhere began commissioning bespoke ranges. These included Floris of Jermyn Street, Perfumers since 1730, their close neighbours and fellow Royal Warrant Holders Fortnum and Mason, the John Lewis Partnership, the National Costume Museum at Bath, gift shops at Belvoir Castle, Leeds Castle and numerous other prestigious venues.
In the ‘Spirit of Laura Ashley’ the manufacturing function was carried out across various rooms of the family home but in1997 changes were made and the business was about to take a giant step forward. Supplying such discerning and demanding clients provided the impetus, and the finance, to enable Gilli to convert the loft of her house into a spacious and inspiring studio. Production capabilities increased dramatically and local outworkers had to be employed to help with the more fundamental functions of the process. Six years further on and the product range, turnover and general corporate activity continues to grow, exponentially. Attendance at local craft fairs has been well and truly superseded by the larger trade fairs and Gilli is now a regular exhibitor at both Top Drawer, Earls Court, London and The International Gift Exhibition at the National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham. The company stand appears within the Focal Point exhibition area, where smaller design-led giftware manufacturers enjoy a concentrated presence amongst the heavyweights of the industry. Various agents across the country carry and promote the Adornment range and the launch of the www.adornmentuk.com interactive website completes the present marketing activity of the company. Adornments clients, throughout the U. K. and Ireland are, almost without exception, independently owned, up-market gift shops catering for discerning customers seeking unique, handmade items for special occasions. Each proprietor is in regular contact with Gilli and many know her personally; they trust her to continue supplying them with an inspiring range of innovative products, hallmarked with a consistent level of quality and standard of service. With such a success story behind her, and increasing national and international demand, the temptation to mass produce and flood the market with sub-standard items is obvious. Nothing, however, could be further from Gilli’s mind as she enters the thirteenth year of trading. If you wish to know more about the company please go to the CONTACT page on this website or continue to peruse the site. Thank you for your interest in ADORNMENT by GILLI REEVES |
