Edgy, rock ’n ’roll and glam — that’s the style of a new range of dresses created by two Oxfordshire fashion graduates. They have gone to great trouble to ensure that none of their customers will turn up to a Christmas party to find someone else wearing the same outfit.

Anna Scott, from Oxford, and Jen Harris, from Curbridge, are selling their unique Christmas party dresses at Witney hairdresser Curl Up & Dye.

Their company, the H:ott Wardrobe, aims to sell clothes that are not available at high street stores. They both have full-time jobs as well, working for Aurora Fashions, parent company of up-market labels Oasis, Coast, Karen Millen and Whistles.

Ms Scott said: “We met at work, at Aurora Fashions distribution centre in Stanton Harcourt, where we work in quality control. We are obviously looking at clothes all day, and we both have a degree in fashion.

“We were talking one day at work and we thought ‘Why don't we do something together’. It was a bit of a spur-of-the-moment thing, but it has turned into something special.

“We did a lot of talking and came up with a range. Jen had already made some clothes to sell in Curl Up & Dye and, as it was getting close to Christmas, we have done some party dresses and jewellery.

“They are all things we would wear ourselves, but we haven't stuck to one shape. They are quite varied.

“We bought a lot of fabric and a lot of the designs were inspired by the fabric.”

The pair used Facebook and Twitter to alert their friends to their venture, and their launch party last month went with a bang, with plenty of sales on the night.

Ms Harris said they had been overwhelmed by the response.

“Everyone was really interested and we sold a lot of jewellery and accessories that we had designed to go with the dresses. We both like glamour — 1950s classic styles.

“If you are paying a bit extra for a handmade dress, you want it to be something special. We are trying to get away from the throwaway fast fashion that has become such a part of our culture. Our clothes are a bit more bespoke.”

Ms Scott said: “We tried to make every piece a one-off, or part of a small batch. We wanted something different.”

She admitted that they could not compete with high street shops who import huge bales of clothes made in workshops in the Far East, where wages are low.

But she added: “We can’t really compete. In a way, we are doing it because we enjoy making clothes. We don't want to mass-produce things. We aim to be more individual and it’s a personal project.

“We like to do fittings and make sure the clothes fit and are what someone wants, rather than just buying what's in the shop.

“People can see something that we have made, and we can change it to suit them.

“Our prices are really competitive at the moment. We haven’t gone too high-end at the moment because we don't have a lot of overheads.

“If that changes and we do set up our own shop, we will try to keep it affordable.”

Once the party season is over, they have fresh plans.

“We would like to do prom dresses for school proms, and we have a more casual summer range planned.”

At the moment, Facebook is their main marketing tool — as well as word-of-mouth — but they are hoping to have a website running soon.

The H:ott Wardrobe clothes will be on show at a Christmas shopping fair at Oxford Downs Cricket Club in Standlake on Sunday, November 21 from 10am to 4pm.

o Contact: email thehottwardrobe@hotmail.co.uk or type The H:oTT Wardrobe into Facebook