For every purchase you make on the treen website through April, they will donate 5% back to Smart Works Edinburgh.
treen champion living sustainably while also making women feel amazing in their clothes. We love what they do and hope you will too.
You can have a look at their collections here – we especially love their beautiful knitwear for staying cosy at home, and the gorgeous jewellery is the perfect pick-me-up.
Given the government advice around COVID-19, we have taken the decision to pause dressings for the time being. We will be taking referrals for interview coaching via zoom or telephone. This is a precaution to protect our clients, volunteers and staff.
It is a temporary measure, and we will be in touch when the situation changes. If you have any questions or wish to refer someone to the service for interview coaching please do get in touch on 0131 516 7787.
As we have had to temporarily close our centre, we are also unable to accept clothing donations. However, your donations will be desperately needed soon so please do keep things to one side for us.
All of our staff are working from home and contactable by email. The team at Smart Works Edinburgh are really grateful for all of your support. We wish everyone in the Smart Works family – clients, referrers, donors and volunteers – good health during this challenging time.
Smart Works Edinburgh are delighted to be teaming up with Sarah Haran to celebrate International Women’s Day. The Scottish handbag designer is supporting Smart Works Edinburgh by donating 15% of sales of her cult Dahlia handbags to us from the 1st-8th March, along with a 15% discount for customers.
Sarah started making handbags when she couldn’t find one that looked stylish for work and kept her organised. We were really struck by her ethos of making practical, beautiful handbags that allow women to move through life with confidence. Customers have described the Dahlia as “life-changing” in its ability to keep you organised from morning through to night, without sacrificing on style.
Use the code “IWD15” to shop for Smart Works Edinburgh from 1st March – 8th March.
We are delighted to invite you to join us for a fun evening to celebrate International Women’s Day at Harvey Nichols. We will bring together some amazing women – like you – to talk about how we can ensure women, of every generation, are more visible and valued.
Tickets are available through Eventbrite here.
Journalist Gina Davidson will host a panel of inspiring women to get the discussion going, and we’ll be joined by stylists from Harvey Nichols for styling demos.
Joining Gina on stage will be:
Amanda Jones, Global Women’s Advancement Director of the law firm Dentons. Amanda is responsible for increasing the number of women in partnership and senior leadership positions on a regional and global basis.
Laura Montgomery, a Scottish football manager who captained Glasgow City after founding the club in 1998, and a leading advocate of women’s football in Scotland. She is head of sales and sponsorship at Hibernian FC.
Linda Urquhart, OBE, is highly successful in the world of law and business. A former chairman of one of Scotland’s top law firms, Linda is passionate about gender parity in the workplace. She was the first women to chair CBI Scotland. She is president of Girlguiding UK.
Louise Masson, the general manager of Harvey Nichols Edinburgh, has a long and successful career in the fiercely competitive retail sector. After Aberdeen University, Louise joined Miss Selfridge and has worked for diverse groups including Oasis and House of Fraser. She has headed up Harvey Nichols Edinburgh for seven years.
So please join us for a glass of fizz, a macaron and a good blether.
We’ll also be toasting the success of our fabulous fundraisers who will be fresh – if sore – from Spinning 500 miles for Smart Works Edinburgh in the run up to International Women’s Day.
The event will feature a draw with prizes including a Strathberry handbag, a massage at EK Holistic Therapy, and vouchers for Dishoom and Bon Vivant.
Don’t miss out. Tickets are limited and can be bought here.
See you there.
Smart Works Edinburgh, in partnership with international law firm, CMS, celebrated its 5th birthday in style last month, raising more than £6,000 to help women get back into employment.
For the third year, together with leading lifestyle magazine, i-on, more than 130 guests gathered for an evening to shop from an array of local retailers and enjoy networking with like-minded women who support the Smart Works cause.
Held in The Scottish Café, beautifully refurbished venue by the ever-supportive Contini family, guests browsed stallholders, mostly small businesses run by local women: le tee Paris; Life with Style; Cheri Milaney; Rachel Scott Couture; McTavish Collection; Jigsaw; Dandelion & Ginger; Scottish Textiles Showcase; Bawbags; Black & White Publishing; Grace Chocolates; Vincent Bell and Sarah Haran.
National partner, Jigsaw, treated guests to a styling demonstration, offering top tips to create the perfect capsule wardrobe and key seasonal looks.
Artisan bakery, Creamed Edinburgh, created a beautiful vanilla and bramble birthday cake for the occasion.
It was an important milestone to reflect on past achievements and how far the charity has come in its mission to empower women to transform their lives. And, crucially, the funds raised, will allow more than 100 women to be supported back to work, with increased confidence and self-belief.
Our sincere thanks to everyone who made the event possible – we couldn’t have done it without you.
And, finally, watch this space for more exciting events ahead in 2020!
Smart Works Edinburgh celebrates 5th birthday with exclusive fashion event
The Scottish arm of Smart Works, the charity supporting women back into employment, has announced an exclusive fashion and beauty pop-up evening in Edinburgh as part of their fifth birthday celebrations.
Fashion magpies can expect discounted pieces from a swathe of covetable brands, including the likes of Rachel Scott Couture, Kakao by K and luxury knitwear brand Cherie Milaney. A raffle to be held on the evening includes a handbag from celebrity favourites, Strathberry, valued at £525, a Smythson notebook worth £47 and a bespoke Bonnie Bra Company bralette with a retail price of £55.
Maggie Darling, Chair of Smart Works Edinburgh comments: “These celebrations are an incredible opportunity to grab some serious bargains while also supporting a seriously good cause: helping women get back into work. All the money raised will go to helping Smart Works Edinburgh make an even bigger impact with local women in the future.”
The event, set to be held on 30th October at the Scottish Café in Edinburgh, with tickets costing £12.50 (plus booking fee), is being supported by international law firm CMS. Emily Catterwell, Senior Corporate Responsibility Manager at CMS has said of the collaboration: “Empowering women to be the best that they can be is truly transformative. CMS is delighted to be working in partnership with Smart Works and supporting the incredible work that they do.”
i-on magazine are also supporting the event for the third year in a row. Laura Wood, co-director of i-on magazine commented: “We’re delighted to celebrate Smart Works with the most exciting fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands in Edinburgh and beyond. Savvy shoppers will not want to miss this event.”
Smart Works Edinburgh provides women with interview training, clothing and styling advice to help those who have been out of work feel confident and succeed. The charity has an impressive success rate: 70% of women who come through their doors secure employment within a month. Smart Works Edinburgh has dressed and coached over 1000 local women for interviews since 2014.
Tickets can be bought via Eventbrite here. Find out more at @SmartWorksEdi on Twitter, or @SmartWorksEdinburgh on Instagram
Event details: Wednesday 30th of October 2019 6.30pm – 9pm. The Scottish Café, In the Scottish National Galleries, The Mound, Edinburgh
Shopping partners include:
WEDNESDAY 30TH OF OCTOBER @ THE SCOTTISH CAFÉ, EDINBURGH 6.30pm – 9pm
For the fourth year our annual pop-up event has returned, bringing together some of Edinburgh’s best fashion, beauty and lifestyle partners in partnership with i-on magazine and we’d love you to join us.
This is a special year as we approach our 5th birthday – let’s celebrate together!
Come along to our pop-up fashion sale with the opportunity to shop some gorgeous clothes and accessories at fantastic prices, with beauty & lifestyle activities; fizz, canapes, fun & some surprises in store too. Watch this space and make sure you follow @SmartWorksEdi for all the news.
We are delighted that the event is being supported by CMS.
We will be joined with lots of fantastic partners including…
Life with Style style consultant & personal stylist
Le Tee Paris Timeless pieces with a chic French influence
Rachel Scott Couture Special occasion jewellery and accessories
Sarah Harran Beautiful and functional bags for women on the move
Bawbags Premium quality underwear for men and women
Scottish Textiles Showcase Scottish made homeware and accessories
Kakao by K Clean lines and Scandi simplicity applied to clothes, accessories and jewellery
Cheri Milaney Italian-inspired lifestyle brand offering luxury knitwear and fragrances
With many more to be announced soon!
You will also have the opportunity to enter our raffle, with some amazing prizes ready to be won including a beautiful Strathberry handbag.
Smart Works Edinburgh provides interview clothes, styling advice and interview training to unemployed women. We help them feel confident, look fabulous, succeed at their job interview and move on with their life. All funds raised will help this brilliant charity get more women into work, and we promise you a fabulous night out at the same time.
WHERE AND WHEN
Where & When
Wednesday 30th of October 2019
6.30pm – 9pm
The Scottish Café
In the Scottish National Galleries
The Mound
Edinburgh
EH2 2EL
HOW TO BOOK
See you there!
We are so proud to be included in the seminal, September Edition of British Vogue guest-edited by our Patron, The Duchess of Sussex.
In the article, The Duchess writes:
“The reason I was drawn to Smart Works is that it reframes the idea of charity as community. It’s a network of women supporting and empowering other women in their professional pursuits.”
For the special issue, The Duchess brings together a group of inspiring women from all walks of life. From activists to artists, prime ministers to climate change champions, this group of incredible women are all changing the world for the better.
Kate Stephens, Smart Works CEO, comments:
“Our Smart Works family is flourishing under the Duchess’s patronage. We have dressed more women than ever before, and we have just had our best ever July, helping 27% more women across the UK than the same time last year. We want to help more women find their way to a Smart Works centre so that they may, in the words of the Duchess, be ready to take on the world, get a job and transform their lives“
The Duchess and Smart Works have more exciting plans in store (watch this space) but for now, we hope you’ll buy this very special copy #ForcesForChange edition of Vogue and be inspired by what you read.
We are proud to announce that we have been awarded £5,000 from the Main Grant Programme, courtesy of OneCity Trust.
OneCity Trust is an independent organisation which acknowledges the vast inequalities and social exclusion present in the city of Edinburgh. Itself funded through donations and fundraising initiatives, OneCity Trust seeks to provide strategic funding to both large and small local organisations working to address our city’s problems. They do this by helping local projects tacking obstacles that residents may face; especially in areas such as education, social welfare, homelessness and mental health.
As we at Smart Works Edinburgh continue in our dedication to widening women’s access to employment, we are proud to be supported by an organisation whose vision aligns so well with our own.
Smart Works Edinburgh will use this funding to continue to provide high quality professional clothing and one-on-one interview coaching to women facing structural challenges to employment.
Gabriella is an author and journalist based in Glasgow. Her first book, The Art of Coorie, is a Waterstones bestseller. It’s been translated into French and Russian and looks at life in contemporary Scotland. You can buy it here. Her features, interviews and news stories have appeared in The Times, The Telegraph, The List, and Scottish Field. Gabriella covers matters of the home, food, travel, nature and design.
In 2019, she will work on a new collection of writing exploring how the built and natural worlds collide. This has been made possible thanks to Moniack Mhor, Scotland’s creative writing centre, whose travel writing award Gabriella won in January.
WHERE & WHEN
WHAT
HOW TO BOOK
You won’t want to miss this incredible event – book your tickets here
See you there!
