Francesca Smith (she/her), otherwise known as Fressie, is the genius behind the emerging Melbourne Brand, Feral. Growing up in the small country town in Rural, NSW, Fressie was left to cater her artistic side with the town's two op shops, and her mother's old magazines from the 90s. But here is where creativity blossomed, into a Melbourne Accessory Staple.
Fressie’s Bachelor in Urban Planning has not only allowed her to analyse the city of Melbourne but becoming part of it, from graffiti and djing classes at the Yarra Youth Centre, to her old Italian tie supplier on Sydney road, Fressie has transformed her mum's old jewellery, the concept behind a doll and the community around her, into the idea known as Feral.
What is Feral?
“Feral is a doll.” When returning back to her hometown in amidst the 2020 lockdown, Fressie was left to return to her routes of reading her mum's “Color Magazine” collection. This time Fressie stumbled across, edition 29 “Toys for a brighter future” upon which contained an article, about the “Feral Cheryl Doll”. Created as the “Anti Barbie Doll”, not needing her own “Ken”, Feral Cheryl goes against the norm of beauty standards in a way that highlights “a simply-living eco-feminist”. Instantly Fressie related, “ I feel like at the time I was like well it's kind of like me like I was like going through my activism and doing like getting into clothing and making jewellery the same time, and I was like whoa that's actually really cool, so I set up an Instagram and named it “Feral Cheryl Accessories”, but later changed it to just “Feral” and here we are”
Feral is an accessory brand at its true core, specialising in its jewellery and ties, of which all are completely upcycled. Fressie draws her inspiration for the brand, from her own drawings of “fluid figures” and independent avant-garde artist space headtr. Fressie also looks at other creatives from Melbournes Music Industry, as the “Intersection of Creatives allows ideas to grow”, while also allowing her brand to develop by getting individuals with high status within their respective industrys to wear each article of accessory.
From what I can tell from your work you specialise in accessories/jewellery, what spawned the idea to upcycle those items and not the go-twos such as shirts/pants?
Yeah, I kind of wanted things to be gender inclusive and a genderfluid androgynous kind of feeling. I feel like anyone can wear what I make, and that feeling gives me a sense of pure joy. I wanted to break the boundary that ties don't have to be bound to one kind of thing and bring light to the fact that they have multiple purposes. My ties can be ties, yes, but they can be worn as a scarf or any other way people want. But the idea comes down to producing more inclusive products for the industry. It's also fun to play with the idea of corporate capitalism and being a woman warrior. But the ties were a 4 am idea like most good ideas are. But to execute the idea, I just started overlocking random things I found. I actually still haven't set up my sewing machine I just overlooked stuff. But it's less of a boundary of creativity and more of a boundary of challenge, it allows me to do something different each time, and make sure no piece is the same and unique to each user.
How do you source your items?
I originally I just started with jewellery and it was my mother's jewellery that she just wasn't using and I pulled it apart and reused jewellery cases that have been pulled apart from like all shops but mostly my mum's jewellery and then my ties I like to I found this one like nice old Italian guy down on Sydney road, doesn't speak much English and he sells his ties cash only. But if I ever see any jewellery I like or ties I like in op shops, I grab them, but I never go out looking for them, they come to me.
What ways are you trying to differentiate Feral from other Naarm brands?
I feel it probably looks different from what other people I would like to say that I like the handmade elements of my craft compared to what a machine produces. I love the rustic and organic feel each of my ties and pieces of jewellery have. It has more of a DIY look, which I feel sits out from other people. I also think that I've utilised most of my creative skills in the embroidery and sewing process. But also the connections I have with people and the ability to connect with other creatives allow feral to keep on growing and adapting to the everyday environments.
Where do you draw your gothic/avant-garde style of accessories from and how much of an influence does the city of Naarm have on that?
I think being surrounded by the people and the city itself has quite a lot of influence. Especially the graffiti scene I'm really into the idea of how urban spaces inform our decisions, and how we can fill empty voids and use them as a creative outlet. I have spent a lot of time at the Yarra Youth Centre, I do a lot of my screen printing there and also they have like a space where you can graffiti, it helps in both ways, it is a place where you can express your creativity physically and also dubs as a place where you can charge your creativity with inspiration. The design of my logo actually came from graffiting on the walls of the Yarra youth centre, but everywhere in Melbourne is covered by graffiti, I love looking at the different styles and the different parts and the crevices that people find and their skill of space utilisation.
A Step by Step Guide into making a Feral Tie
1: Dont look for the ties, “they will find you”
Fressie never goes out and looks for her ties. When she does, she is never satisfied with the ones she finds. But when she goes out thrifting for her own personal style, she finds the most ties. Or find your own old Italian, cash-only tie dealer.
2: Get your a box of different colour threads (Play with Bold Colours)
Fressie doesn't spend much time thinking about what colours she will use for a tie. FORGET the colour wheel and its rules, and go use fun and bold colours.
3: Overlock those threads onto the tie: DOES NOT HAVE TO BE PERFECT
Once your colours are picked, it's time to overlock those onto your tie. If you have a sewing machine, don't even think about using it. The overlocking is what gives the Feral ties their “Rustic” and “DIY Look” Yes, changing the thread, will be annoying and time-consuming, but the more fun the colours, the more fun the tie.
4: Draw your design on the tie: Use a textured paint.
Grab your textured paint and go for your life. Your design on the tie must be unique to you. If you are having trouble with inspiration, jump on the 11 tram and head to the Yarra Youth Centre. If you're looking for a fun textured paint, Fressie recommends “Kids Puffy Paint”
5: Each design pattern will be different (NON ARE COPIED)
Fressie does have a book with all her sketches, but only uses it for inspiration. Fressie will never draw the same design twice, and nor should you. Freestyle your designs on your tie and throw out your rulers, it's already “hard to make things perfectly symmetrical”. If you do want something to help you replicate a design, “set up a mirror”, and use your eye. But remember, “it will still never be the same”
6: Once you're happy with how your tie looks, photoshop it
If you want to post your tie, don't put it on yourself or others to model. Put it on fun images that are unique to you. At the moment Fressie loves putting her ties on Yugioh cards, or other random characters she finds. Yes of course you could use a model, “But its more fun this way”
7: Upload it or Stock It
Fressie uploads all of her ties to her instagram, and website or stocks it at Stupid Vintage. So go out there, spread your creativity and “make others happy and feel sexy”.
What inspired the soccer jersey collab with pinup girl, and was this your first time venturing into the clothing area?
I met Pinup not that long ago actually like, we were both at this Hyperpop event and knew absolutely no one there. I met someone who had bought one of my ties, and then met the rest of their group. That's when I met Pinup. We instantly started talking about fashion and the ideas that he had but didn't know how to execute them. One of his ideas was a Soccer Jersey. I was instantly drawn and offered my help. Pinup Girl is really cool, I love how he uses lots of religion and symbolism within his art, and of course, Feral is also heavily influenced by those things as well. But the Soccer Jersey collab had nothing to do with the world cup. Yes, we started marketing for those around that time, but that's only because everyone was already talking about soccer. But the jerseys are set to release around the end of Feb and early march.
Do you eventually see Feral more of a clothing business, or do you always see yourself sticking to your routes?
Because I both work and stock at Stupid Vintage I can see what sells and what doesn't. Most of my stock in there is jewellery and that lasts on the selves. But compared to when I put one piece of clothing in the store or new ties, they sell within days. I guess because of that reason, naturally, I've started dedicating most of my time, to making my ties and working on other pieces. Large articles of clothing or my ties are easily identifiable, and that's what makes people more inclined to purchase them. They want to be seen wearing “Feral”. Yes, that is awesome, but also terrifying. I never intended for Feral to be a mainstream brand. I used to stock hats in Stupid Vintage, but I remember, an undisclosed, Tik Tok Influencer walked in and bought one, and that gave me a scary wake-up call. It's just the fact that someone can buy one of my products and share it with everyone they know, it's a blessing yes, but also terrifying. But yes, naturally I do see Feral becoming more of a clothing business, and I'm excited to be sharing some really cool things in the future!
