She's the editor-in-chief of MaudeZine; branded "cult creation", on the cover of the London Fashion Week paper, and regular contributor to VOGUE... but ask who she is, and her inebriated assistant will promptly toss the contents of her hip-flask over you. To save you the embarrassment- as well as the clean-up- we got talking to Maude about her ongoing support of designer (... and creator) David Longshaw, fellow VFS designers, and potential rivalries between the cashmere mouse, and other editors. Read all about it below...
M: We're still very much by each others side- he can't do with out me really- I mean, my God have you ever tried to deal with him without me there to keep him in line? He starts talking about the correct temperature for a sodding Diet Coke, or how much he likes pizza, or some bloody artist he's into. I let him talk a bit about sport, as were all rugby fans and Man City supporters at MaudeZine (but to be honest we don't get much time to go, as we're far too fabulously fashion-frantic for normal life pursuits). Apart from the odd diversion, I do try to keep him on message- by which I mean on Maude (the subject- not me I'm a cashmere mouse - he'd crush me).
VFS: We see you're already clad [ahead of time] in the Autumn/Winter looks of VFS designers- Manuela Dack, Kirsty Ward, and T.Lipop to name a few. We take it you're as big a supporter of emerging design talent as we are...?
M: I think it's important that I champion emerging talent- it's such a boost for them to have an Editor-in-Chief such as myself involved. It also makes me seem terribly modern, and relevant, rather than just banging on about how much I love Givenchy, or Prada (which I do). If I throw in an emerging designer or two it shows I'm at the cutting edge and terribly influential.
VFS: Word around town is ELLE's editor-in-chief, Lorraine Candy is just as keen on David's "lateral thinking on pattern and print" as you are. Not worried David will jump ship from team MaudeZine to team ELLE, and exclusively dress them, are you?
M: David's collection's big enough for him to dress the lovely team ELLE- as well as me... and any other editors that fancy rocking his looks. To be honest, that Longshaw will never stop dressing me- I've got too much s*** on him!
VFS: Intriguing- we'll have to get into that "off the record" later. Being an editor-in-chief is surely busy work though, and as you've said "fashion waits for no man- or fabric mouse"; so, what's next Maude? Working endlessly on MaudeZine, or sat swigging gin, awaiting news of Longshaw Spring/Summer?
M: Work and Gin! I'm excited about David's Spring/Summer collection; I've seen plans for his new story- characters, and advising on design sketches- he's got lots already... but we're always so busy at MaudeZine; fictional magazines take a massive amount of time to run. Not only with the magazine, but also all our special projects with different mags, and consultancy with brands. There's always time for Doris's special brand of Gin though...!
VFS: ... and finally- this stays between us (well... us, and VFS blog readers)- do you not think all the "Maude is my muse" talk is really just a ploy to get into your Agent Provocateur pants?
M: Well, you would think! ... But David's only interested in my genius, rather than my petite, cashmere body. What most people don't realise is that Maude- like Morrissey- is asexual. They say "every hole's a goal", but I'm all sewn up- literally- or my stuffing would fall out.
Maude, MaudeZine's Tumblr page, and Twitter
Image from Vogue Illustrations by David Longshaw
Interview by VFS Sub-Editor, Sara McAlpine
Follow her @sara_mcalpine