This year, I had the pleasure to participate actively at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion week (August 26 – 28) as a designer for project WHITE, which was exhibited at the Future Fashion Exhibition (FFE). The FFE was the official “sustainability event” of the MB Fashion week. The event was a co-initiative by Future Threads Project, Sustainable Fashion NOW and SwapShop, and was a good opportunity for anyone interested in sustainable fashion to meet and connect with like-minded. I was happy to see not only a film team from SVT and reporters from DN and ELLE magazine, but also representatives from PR and communcation bureaus and Ernst & Young. The sustainability agenda of the fashion industry is clearly gaining more media interest and also attracting a growing number of actors.

The WHITE project is an upcycling fashion challenge launched by Future Threads Project and Stormie Poodle. All the final pieces of upcycled design were made out of soft white striped hotel linen. I contributed as one of six designers with the design and making of a white cotton blouse (see photo below). The blouse had a simplistic design with three-quarter length arms, generous width and wrinkled details. The idea behind the blouse was to be a ready-to-wear piece that would suit most wardrobes and that could be easily put into production by Stormie Poodle. By visitors, it was mainly appreciated for its timeless and “ready-to-wear” model and its suitability also for mature women.

In my opinion, the most fascinating aspect of the WHITE collection was the apparent variety of clothes that can be created from the same material. (See photo above by Caroline von Post.) This clearly demonstrates how large a influence each designer’s unique creativity and craftmanship have in shaping the final product. Also, the WHITE collection exposes the large upcycling potential of any textile, even as “simple” as a white bed linen. With some basic sewing skills, a little fantasy, a suitable pattern, a sowing machine and the necessary time span, the WHITE project shows that “almost” anyone can create his or her piece(s) of fashion using nothing but linen and some thread. The vast potential of upcycling textiles (regardless of their original purpose) has only begun to be shown in the fashion field.