Wesley Harriott's Killer ASOS Collab Gives Off Some Seriously Chic Villanelle Vibes

Since 2016, ASOS has amped up its support of fresh new design talent with its Fashion Discovery competition. Giving emerging designers the chance to win £50,000, expert mentoring, and a spot on the ASOS site, the contest gives fashion fans a whole host of new names to pay attention to. One of the winners of the 2018 competition, Ricky Harriott, is ready to launch a bunch of badass designs via his brand, Wesley Harriott. And Wesley Harriott's ASOS collection is guaranteed to be what your summer wardrobe is currently missing.

Born in Tottenham, Harriott designs womenswear that shows the true power of females everywhere. He is influenced by both real women he knows and fictional women he looks up to and has a strong interest in video games and anime. Combine the two sides and you get innovative tailored pieces that promote both utilitarian style and functionality.

The first drop of Wesley Harriott x ASOS lands on the site on June 20. Comprised of six pieces, the collab's colour palette spans neutral black and white along with a sharp neon hue. Shirting appears heavily in the capsule collection along with cycling-style pieces, lots of layering, and cut-out detailing (or negative space, as the fashion crowd likes to call it). Pricing starts at £65 with sizes available in a UK 8 to 16. If you don't manage to snap up a piece of this drop, a second one will be coming in the near future.

Harriott only launched his line in 2016 after graduating from the London College of Fashion. But in just a few short years, the designer has already dressed the likes of Lady Gaga, Kendall and Kylie Jenner, Jorja Smith, SZA, and K-pop star CL. He still longs to add to that impressive list, telling Dazed that Rihanna, Chloë Sevigny, and Lucy Liu's Kill Bill character, O-Ren Ishii, would be the ultimate next wearers of his clothes.

There is a definite assassin feel to his work. (It's safe to assume Killing Eve's Villanelle would be a fan.) Harriott referenced a sense of costume in an interview with Fashion Monitor, telling the site: "Since I was a child, I became very conscious of the strength and resilience that women were capable of in the face of adversity and mistreatment. My brand seeks to tell stories inspired by the women I love and continue to encounter, creating a uniform that supports them as they blur the lines between civilian and superhero."

Harriott explained his brand further in an interview with Dazed, saying it was like "a love letter to women." As well as lifting women up, the designer also has a few other focuses. He ensures that Wesley Harriott sticks to a certain degree of sustainability, sourcing and producing everything in London. And he is well aware of the need for diversity, telling Hunger: "It’s all about inclusion for me, I’m half Jamaican and so I ensure my cast is diverse. I want to ensure people see that inclusion is powerful and it belongs in fashion."

Harriott wasn't the only one to win ASOS' 2018 Fashion Discovery competition. Lyph, led by Frederick Edmondson, was chosen as a joint winner for its unisex pieces with a similar focus on function while designer Desree Akorahson won the new People's Pick award for her '60s scuba style.

Keep your eyes peeled for more from this trio in the coming year.