Mary Benson x Abraham Moon get ready to shine at the Great Yorkshire Show

“It’s really gorgeous,” she says of the studio. “It's very different from London.”

Mary’s new collection features exquisite floral prints, hand-drawn then digitalised, then printed on organic cotton satin - “In the most eco way you can print,” she says. “I wanted to make dresses that were beautiful but super-friendly and good for the planet.”

They have been created, she says, to be easy throw-on dresses. “You don’t have to think about it,” she says. “The print is there, the shape is there, and it’s a full dress, so you just get a pair of shoes to match, and a bag. Maximum effect, minimal input.”

Still only 33, Mary is a veteran fashion designer and entrepreneur whose captivating work has attracted attention and acclaim since she was a student. Originally from Seacroft in Leeds, she sold bags and bows to school friends and local shops. In 2007, aged 17 and studying at Leeds College of Art (now Leeds Arts University) she was chosen to feature in BBC’s Mary Queen of Shops, which aired in 2008, presented by retail guru Mary Portas. Later that year she hit the headlines again when she created a shop called Pieces of Eight at Clarence Dock in Leeds, with seven fashion friends. In 2009, she made her Great Yorkshire Show debut and moved to London for her Fashion Design BA at the University of Westminster, interning with Alexander McQueen. She has shown at London and Paris and collaborated with footwear designer Terry de Havilland, milliner Stephen Jones, ASOS, presenter Gemma Cairney and more. Rita Ora, Ellie Goulding and Paloma Faith are among the many artists who have worn Mary Benson designs.

Mary remained in London for 12 years, forging her own brand of sustainable, highly original, ethically-produced fashion. But two years ago, she moved back to Yorkshire with her partner, Tadgh, who still owns a pub in London. They now live in York with their two small children. “We needed to get away from London - it was really hectic for us,” Mary says. “Also, the cost of living in London is crazy, so it didn’t make any sense, business-wise, because we were selling online and we can always sell online up North. That’s where we really wanted to be. Mum and Dad are in Knaresborough. We came to visit and we just loved it. We thought, yes, this is the place. It’s so historic and beautiful.”

Next week, Mary Benson’s designs will be back on the catwalk at the Great Yorkshire Show when she shows a collection of dresses she has made in tweed, in collaboration with Guiseley-based heritage weavers Abraham Moon.

She describes the new styles as “country lady” inspired. “The styles will work over summer and winter,” she says. “The fabrics are obviously wool but we have some lighter cashmeres, smart dresses, dresses for work, out and about, dinners, and a two-piece suit.

“I was really nervous at first because I have never worked with tweed before,” she adds. “I thought, is it going to work in a dress form, with frills and gathers, and all the volume that we usually have, but actually it’s so beautiful and gorgeous to work with, and feels really, really expensive.”

She was introduced to Moons by Bernadette Gledhill, coordinator of the Great Yorkshire Show catwalk, which takes place for the first time this year on the Sheep Shearing stage, hosted by Radio presenter Nick Hancock.

Mary says: “It’s lovely because it’s always been really important to me to promote where I am from and use materials from where I am from.”

Called From Sheep to Chic, the fashion show will focus on clothes made using British wool. Following a competition earlier this year, 12 amateur models will join professionals on the runway, showcasing Mary’s designs and collections from Skipton-based knitwear designer Joan Murray, Thirsk-based Galijah, from British Wool brand partners including Clapham-based Glencroft, and from Keighley-based tailors Brook Taverner, which is sponsoring the shows.

Mary plans to continue working with tweed and enjoyed working with Abraham Moon. “It does feel different being up North. Everything is straightforward and people are lovely,” she says.

She works with a pattern cutter and a sewer at the studio, and sends out pieces to be sewn by local seamstresses. She has also started selling fabric by the metre. Her customers have changed over the years, she says, from youngsters wanting party dresses to mainly 30-somethings and older, looking for something special to wear and to keep. “I have a big following among people who are keen on spending their money on sustainable, ethically made clothing,” she says. “I think people buy my dresses because they are fun, colourful and bright and not the stereotype of sustainable clothing.

“Also, 80 per cent of my orders are plus-size - plus size 16. We do a massive range of sizes, which not many brands do, from size 4 to size 30. We have had a lot of plus-size bridal. We want to be really inclusive.”

She would like to have her own Mary Benson shop in York. “A beautiful boutique and haberdashery style shop, where you can buy fabric by the metre and dresses and bridal and any collaborations that we do. But we are not going to rush it. If something pops up at the right time, we will go for it.

“It feels right that we live here now, and York is such a special place - it makes sense.”

• See www.marybenson.london. The Great Yorkshire Show runs Tuesday, July 11, to Friday, July 14. Tickets £32 for adults, £13 for children and £80 for families at greatyorkshireshow.co.uk/ticket-information. The fashion shows run each day at 12:30pm.