Meet The Artisans

As our name suggests, hand smocking sits at the heart of Smock London. Every piece is individually hand smocked by craftswomen, shaped stitch by stitch through years of practice and exceptional skill. This is slow, deliberate work, with a single piece taking up to three days to complete.

Our collections are produced in limited editions and conceived as future heirlooms, designed to be worn, loved, and passed on. The result is one of a kind pieces that celebrate individuality and the human touch, pieces that are better for the craftswomen who make them and for the planet we share.

Designed in London and brought to life by craft communities in Madagascar and Vietnam, our collections are made using responsibly sourced fabrics and threads. Supporting these communities and safeguarding this age old craft is a founding principle of Smock London. For every sale, a donation is made to support a child or woman in need within our artisan communities.

Hand smocking at Smock London is not organised around factories or production runs. It is a community led craft, practised in small local groups of women, where time, skill, and care determine the rhythm of making. Each piece is pleated and stitched by the same craftswoman, allowing work to unfold in harmony with family, home, and daily life.

TRUONG THI

Aged fourty, Truong is an experienced smocker in the Smock London team, with over twelve years perfecting the craft. In this time she has become a passionate and exquisite artisan. Truong has a passion for smocking and can smock the most difficult curve and wave patterns beautifully. She is mistress of our beautiful Mermaid Tail smocking motif: made up of layers of perfectly undulating waves, it requires immense skill and accuracy. Truong can also pleat fabric manually without a machine which is something that takes many years to learn. She works from home where smocking allows her to divide her time flexibly between her 18 year-old daughter, household tasks and work.  She is grateful for the flexibility that smocking gives her to work at home, earn money and chose her hours. Watching her work is mesmerizing.

nguyen

Meet Nguyem. She is a team leader who has been smocking for over 30 years. She is originally from the North of Vietnam but now lives in a bougainvillea filled neighbourhood just outside Ho Chi Minh. As the team leader, Nguyen is the mother hen of this smocking sisterhood, teaching and training the newbies and solving smocking conundrums as they come up. She is incredibly skilled in different stitch types as well as tricky pleating. When Nguyen was a child she loved to knit clothes for her dolls and dog, she thinks this passion lead her to smocking! Nguyen has two sons, her youngest son and his wife and child live with Nguyen.

THÂN THI

Than is one of the youngest and fastest members of our smocking team. She was inspired to take up smocking after seeing her neighbour stitching panels 15 years ago. The team leader Nygen Them took her under her wing and she is now one of the most versatile artisans on the team, skilled at honeycomb, curves, zigzags and manual pleating. For Than smocking offers her the opportunity of earning money creating something beautiful, while flexibly fitting around the needs of her two daughters age 15 and 18.

THU HÀ

Once upon a time Thu was a policewoman. After retiring three years ago she took up smocking as a means of developing a new skill and earning money. A proficient tailor and knitter, smocking is the next creative feather in her cap. Her favorite stitches are the diamonds and zigzags.

tran thi

Tran is a newer member of the team. She has been smocking for five years after learning from the Team Leader herself. Tran has one son who is 27 years old. Always smiling, Tran prefers zigzag and diamond stitch designs. Tran tell us “Smocking is gentle work, which suits my personality and is kind on my health.”

NGUYỄN THI NHƯ HOÀNG

Nguyen is the smocking soul sister of the group. She feels smocking is in her destiny and tells us it is the love of her life, beyond her grown up daughter. When she began 30 years ago, smocking came to her completely naturally, she intuitively knew how to stitch. Today she is one of the most skillful and experienced artisans on the team. She is master of difficult outline stitches and is head of innovation when it’s time to try out new stitch designs and combinations.