Turning trash into runway treasures | _shift London

For the next generation of designers, waste is not wasted

With another successful fashion month coming to a close, buyers and editors
alike are once again piecing together the trends and themes for the season ahead. But, for a wave of young designers, creating clothes simply for Instagram likes is no
longer enough. There has to be a deeper message behind their creations. The
increasing awareness of environmental issues has meant an increased concern for sustainability, with many fledging designers experimenting with the concept of
upcycling this season.

Upcycling, the act of recycling something to an outcome of higher quality, is
widely used in interior design, but is a lesser-known practice in fashion
design. Until now. French design prodigy, Marine Serre is at the forefront of
the move. Upcycling is set to become the new vintage. Serre, who staged her
Formula 1-inspired spring/summer 2019 collection during Paris fashion week,
started working with the concept of upcycling last season, redesigning old
wetsuits or vintage scarves into couture-like dresses. Serre joins designers
such as Jiri Kalfar, Nathalie Ballout and Christine Hyun Mi Nielsen – all of
whom are retelling the story of couture as a feeling, rather than something
price determined.

Upcycling, more importantly, deals directly with some of the waste that is being
discarded by the broader fashion industry. “Upcycling is one way of combatting
the problem of excess fashion produce, which is an issue as a result of the
evolution of fast fashion and ever-changing trends,” argues Akanksha Kaila,
founder of Refash an online platform featuring designers working with upcycling.
The reality of fashion’s wasteful practice was brought to the surface this
summer when luxury-giant Burberry admitted to burning stock worth £28.6 million
to avoid its sought-after goods falling into the hands of imitators. While the
world was shocked to discover that burning stock is common practice at many
brands, for fashion insiders the extent of waste in the industry is a well-known
secret.

“We see how much waste has been generated by generations before us and know that design needs to be sustainable to be functional in its true sense. We have been
a consumption driven global economy, which is only now taking notice of the
collateral damage that has been done,” Kaila says.

A 2017 report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation revealed that only 1% of
materials used in fashion production is recycled into new clothes, with most
recycled fabric being down-cycled to wiping cloths or mattress stuffing where
they are likely to end their circulation before going to landfills.

Luckily, the growing number of upcycling designers are taking fashion’s waste
problem as a challenge. One of them is Berlin-based designer Melisa Minca, who
started the upcycling label in her own name in 2018. “I started teaching myself
to sew about three years ago. Upcycling, repurposing and reworking allowed me to
learn while experimenting, but also keep waste at a minimum,” she says.

And given fashion’s excessive waste problem in a time where sustainable
awareness is a must-have, it is perhaps not surprising more and more designers
are turning to the practice of upcycling. “It’s a necessity,” Minca says. “It
should be integral to how we operate in this society, because of the limitations
and scarcity of natural resources.”

Agreeing that there is a need for more circular practice, Ariel Ting, a design
student of Whitecliffe College of Arts and Design in New Zealand who works with
upcycled materials, says: “We as designers should be leading examples to others
and educating the people who are unaware of the linear economy they are
contributing to.”

“Most people have no idea regarding the issues of fast fashion and how harmful
the industry is on a global scale. Designers who are passionate, not only about
fashion but the message behind their work will feel the need to spread that,”
she argues.

However, while upcycling might put your old clothes into good use its unlikely
to solve fashion’s waste problem on its own. “What’s necessary is a concerted
effort on all sides, including fast fashion companies,” Minca explains. “I think
the future of the fashion industry is very dependent on new technologies,
whereas the future of upcycling comes down to people’s own creativity and
willingness to spread awareness of the issues the fashion industry is causing.”

“Upcycling as we know it today therefore serves more as a tool for raising
awareness for the bigger issue we face as a society and the unprecedented levels
of consumption,” she concludes.

https://www.shiftlondon.org/features/turning-trash-into-runway-treasures/