Category Archives: Fashion Design

Winners Announced! Fashioning the Future

Miriam Rhida

I’ve got some exciting news to share with you! On November 25^th I won the “Systems for a Sustainable Future Award” in the Fashioning the Future international student competition. This competition is run through the Centre for Sustainable Fashion at London College of Fashion. There were 5 winners in total, each representing five separate categories, with forty finalists over all. I’m excited to have had the opportunity to showcase and share my graduate research, and this website.

Emma Rigby

Zoe Fletcher won the Enterprise & Communication Initiative for a Future Fashion Industry Award (Highly Commended: Ruby Hoette and Julia Crew)

Varun Gambhir won the Role of Materials in a Sustainable Fashion Industry Award (Highly Commended: Karina Micheal)

Mary Hanlon won the Systems for a Sustainable Fashion Industry Award

Miriam Rhida won the Design for a Thriving Fashion Industry Award (Highly Commended: Eleanor Dorrien-Smith and On Ying Lai)

Emma Rigby won the Water – The Right for All Citizens of this Planet Award (Highly Commended: Anne Prahl).

International competitions such as the Fashioning the Future awards offer students the chance not only to showcase their work, but to benchmark themselves against other students in their field at the international level.

Please visit the Centre for Sustainable Fashion to check out the details of the competition, and the full list of finalists! For more images, check out this photo gallery from The Guardian.

On Ying

Also, if you are in London, be sure to stop by London’s City Hall and London College of Fashion to check out the highlights from the 2009 awards. Here are the details:

FASHIONING THE FUTURE AT CITY HALL, 19 November – 4 December 2009
Highlights of the 2009 awards to be showcased at London’s City Hall, with thanks to the London Sustainable Development Commission.
Open to the public, free of charge.
Greater London Authority, City Hall, The Queen’s Walk, London SE1 2AA

FASHIONING THE FUTURE AT FASHION SPACE GALLERY, 16 November – 11 December 2009
Highlights of the 2009 awards to be showcased at London College of Fashion.
Open to the public, free of charge.
London College of Fashion, 20 John Princes Street, London W1G 0BJ

Congratulations everyone! And thank you for your support!

Images via The Guardian

Heirloom: Style, Materials and Sustainability

“The 11^th Annual New York Fashion and Design Conference considers the link between sustainability and stewardship as embodied in the broad concept of ‘Heirloom,’ the process whereby one generation’s creations become the valued patrimony of those that follow.

“Our examination will be inclusive, focusing not only on objects that are traditionally conceived of as heirlooms such as watches, wedding gowns, and jewelry, but also on the materials used to create them (fibres, for example) and on other, less obvious heirlooms (fragrance, for example). Eco-consciousness, differing approaches to the transmission of craft, and fair trade are considered, as is the notion that enduring design and craft are a form of preservation.

“Linking all are rituals that transform materials and objects into heirlooms. The ultimate heirloom is the Earth itself, and attention to eco-friendly principles and practices is important to the custodianship that heirloom status implies and requires. We consider a central question for the 21^st century: How do we carry on the traditions of the past while meeting contemporary challenges such as the need for conservation of the earth’s resources?” (Initiatives in Art and Culture)

For more information, you can download the PDF here.

Title: Heirloom: Style, Materials and Sustainability
Location: New York
Link out: Click here
Start Date: 2009-12-03
End Date: 2009-12-05

THEKEY. T(W)O

THEKEY T(W)O

Be part of the {Shift}Title: THEKEY. T(W)O
Location: Germany
Link out: Click here

THEKEY.TO was successfully launched in July 2009. Its start leads back to the visionary idea of an international team of interdisciplinary professionals who decided to give birth to the first international event for green fashion, sustainable lifestyle and culture in Berlin.

THEKEY.TO is the ideal event to spot new trends and visions in the fashion industry. It aims at showcasing a strong selection of future minded brands that stand out for their style and for their green approach. Through the labels’ selection and the intense cultural program THEKEY.TO aims at spreading the signal that the shift towards an era where coolness and a strong sense for quality and responsibility are naturally interlinked, is already possible. It’s now!

THEKEY.TO is a forum of sustainability providing a platform for the interchange of information, culture and spontaneous networking, with an intense event program including expert workshops and forums with international guest speakers.

According to their website, THEKEY. T(W)O’s full program will not be up until Dec. 14^th. We’ll be sure to keep you updated when the info is available-stay tuned!

Start Date: 2010-01-20
End Date: 2010-01-23

Source: THEKEY. T(W)O and Ecotextile News

[Lesson 1] Sifting through the ‘Ecofashion Lexicon’

Lesson1 This lesson introduces the following concepts: consumer choice, designer choice, the ‘Ecofashion Lexicon,’ greenwashing, unintelligent design, and cradle to cradle design theory. For more information on these issues, please visit the ‘Works Cited’ page at the end of the lesson.

* If you are planning to use this lesson, please let us know so that we may keep track of our progress.

Introduction

Both consumers and designers alike have been left to fend for themselves when it comes to understanding the social issues and environmental concerns increasingly associated with the fashion industry. Signals of deception, such as greenwashing, as well as unintelligent designs that have created products with hidden ingredients, known as products plus, have seemingly hijacked the potential for any real choice to exist at all.

Click here to download this lesson: Lesson 1: Sifting through the ‘Ecofashion Lexicon’

Curb Your Consumption

MA Design Studies (MADS) student, Katie Hart has recently launched an initiative set to investigate the relationship between consumer behavior and over-consumption. Through the online lab, Curb Your Consumption, Hart shares her research and ideas, bringing together resources, news, events, and links on the subject.

Her final project explores patterns of consumption within the UK. Along the way, Hart hopes to “work with a diverse range of consumers to:

Educate and communicate the problems with over-consumption of fashion products in the UK
Understand what consumers need in order to actually change their behaviour (i.e. labelling, information pack, seminars etc)
Contribute to a grassroots movement of positive change in consumer behaviour” (Hart, About Me)

Here are some of the exciting things happening over on her site:

Hart has created a large visual artifact that illustrates “the problem with fashion overconsumption, and the global torment we are creating with this excessive spending” (Hart, About My Project). She will also be conducting a series of workshops. If you are interested in participating, be sure to contact her. Her book, titled Buy Now. Pay Later – today’s treasure is tomorrow’s trash, will soon be available on her site, and she is currently working on what she calls “bite-size learning materials” on the following topics:

Fibres and Fabrics – taking the microscope to our clothes
The hands that touch our fashion – a journey into the histories of our garments
Fast Fashion – the issues
Recycling/Reuse – what to do with your clothes when they are worn out

If you would like to learn more, be sure to follow Hart on her journey toward solutions for sustainable consumption and learn how you can ‘curb’ your consumption habits.

***Will you be in London the first week of December? Her work will be on display at the MA Design Studies Final Exhibition, Applied Imagination – Bringing Method to the Madness at T2 Truman Brewery – from 4th – 8th December 2009.

Here are some images of her work via the online lab:

For more images, visit Curb Your Consumption.

MADS is a graduate program offered through Central Saint Martins. For more information on the program, click here.

A New Approach to the Issue of Living Wages

[Worker sowing at home. India, 2009. © Ankur Ahuja/ Clean Clothes Campaign.]

One of the root causes of poverty wages in the industry is the power of global buyers to constantly relocate production in search of ever lower prices and better terms of trade. This power is used to exert a downward pressure on wages and conditions – labour being one of the few ‘production costs’ or ‘inputs’ that can be squeezed.

The solution

The basic idea of the Asia Floor Wage is to put a ‘floor’ under this, thereby preventing this competition from forcing wages below poverty levels and making sure gains are more equitably shared along the supply chain. The Asia Floor Wage alliance have formulated a unified, regional demand for a minimum living wage which is decent and fair and which can be standardised and compared between countries. This regional collective bargaining strategy will unite workers and their allies from different Asian countries behind one wage demand.

The goal is to attain this standardised minimum living wage for workers across Asia through negotiations between garment industry employers and workers’ representative organisations, and with the mediation and support of governments, inter-governmental organisations and social movements.

The report constructed by the Asia Floor Wage organisation is available here.

Source: Asian Floor Wage

R4: The Next Dimension of Fashion

Theives, by designer Sonja den Elzen.

Title: R4: The Next Dimension of Fashion
Location: Toronto
Link out: Click here
Description:

“R4 Fashion is an event looking to bring together students, young professionals, industry leaders, fashion community members, and green advocates for a celebration of top and upcoming Canadian fashion designers who view fashion with an added green dimension. Also it’s to promote sustainable design & technology, lifestyle, and eco-friendly consumer decisions in the community.

“Join us for an exciting evening of Haute Couture fashion featuring some of Canada’s top fashion designers including headlining AIME by Monica Mei, CARRIE by Carrie Hayes, Thieves by Sonja den Elzen, and Rachel Jasmine Chan. All will present sexy and fashionable eco-fashion lines proving that going green doesn’t leave style behind.

“Hosted by the wonderful Candice Batista of A Greener Toronto, the evening will also feature upcoming young fashion designers who combine their environmental consciousness with talent for fashion design. A competition will make the evening more exciting, as one winning student designer will be selected from our jury of special guests: Kelly Drennan, Amanda Brugel, and Gail McInnes!”

Start Time: 8:00pm
Date: 2009-11-20

Source (both image and text): R4

Community News

A roundup of some of the stories, headlines, and updates you may be interested in from in and around the community of socially responsible fashion design.

Abigail Doan

Interview with Modebewust

Body Politic

Vancouver based Body Politic launches new online store

Fashion Loves People

Why I’m Over American Apparel

How Nike will legitimize eco-design for the masses (and eco brands won’t)

Ethical Style

Issue #25: Design Issue

Centre for Sustainable Fashion

Green Gucci

Pratt Blog

Valerie Casey: A Leader in Sustainable Design

Clothesource Comments

Forced labour added to list of ethical hot topics

November Summary

EcoTextile News

Handbook to aid retailers source cotton

Click here to download the handbook

Project H

Design Revolution is taking to the road! 25 schools, 75 days and 6300 miles. Click here for more info.

The Girlie Girl Army

Chatting To Summer Rayne Oakes At Green Fashion Week

DBTV: Girlie Girl & The Brute at The Green Shows, Pt 3 from The Discerning Brute on Vimeo.

Image Source: Core77 via Fashion Loves People

Ethics + Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion

Thanks to Ecouterre for letting us know about this great exhibition coming to the Pratt Manhattan Gallery in New York. The exhibition will run for 3 months, so if you find yourself in New York, be sure to check it out!

Title: Ethics + Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion
Location: New York
Link out: Click here

“This exhibition will survey the work of artists and designers (many of whom are based in New York) who explore practical and symbolic solutions to the question of integrating sustainable practices into the fashion system.” (Pratt)

Panel discussion with designers and curators: January 26, 6pm, Pratt Manhattan, room 213
Guest curators, Francesca Granata and Sarah Scaturro
Opening reception, Thursday, November 19, 6 – 8 p.m.

Start Date: 2009-11-20
End Date: 2010-02-20

Source: Ecouterre

Fashion Summit: Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical – NICE

In preparation for the Fashion Summit, Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical (NICE) is currently conducting hearings in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark to discuss the implementation of a new 10-year plan as well as a Nordic Code of Conduct- for best practices among fashion companies in Nordic countries. This 10-year plan will be unveiled at the Fashion Summit.

Title: Fashion Summit: Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical – NICE
Location: Copenhagen
Link out: Click here
Description: “Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical (NICE) is a joint Nordic project with the main purpose of motivating and assisting companies in integrating sustainability and social responsibility in their business processes and practices for the better of society. NICE is an educational project and process created for, and in collaboration with the Nordic fashion industry.”

Date: 2009-12-09

Source: Nordic Fashion Association

Social Alterations

An education lab for responsible fashion