People are reminded everyday in newspaper headlines, news broadcasts and public pleas, of the destruction caused by consumption and immediate gratification. I take inspiration from current issues and the state of the world in which we live. There is more waste than the Earth can handle and this is resulting in damage to its natural beauty. If the earth’s deterioration stops being ignored, even if it is a small change, everyone can benefit from halting this manmade disaster looming on the horizon. My collection is an answer to mass over-production and the alternative methods of immediate disposal. Up-cycling is an impacting way in which designers can act on embracing the idea of being more sustainable.

 

A large portion of my collection is made of ‘waste’ or often single-use materials, in a colour palette influenced by manmade production such as: petrol black, acid green, battery yellow, metallic aluminium and bleached white. I am intrinsically hands-on and textile driven, as I value the beauty of seeing a garments’ detail up-close, as well as catching a glimpse walking down a catwalk. My collection is designed to look like detailed, embellished art, but created with everyday items and devalued belongings which have lost their previous value or worth. Examples of these techniques are knitting with plastic bags, up-cycling used jeans, collecting and attaching safety pins together to create a fluid fabric form, using nuts and bolts as fastenings and trims, and using football nets as an alternative to fishnet. I hope the viewer's perception of the raw everyday materials instills appreciation in their new, up-cycled form. I aspire to have the pieces exhibited in a way that allows viewers to see this interaction and reach a conclusion on their own about the significant message I am trying to spread.

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SPONSORED BY SWAROVSKI