Clothing Ration Books

After a weekend spent with Grandma, old photographs and Wedding Albums of 4 generations, the clothing ration books above were found mixed in with various family birth and death certificates.

No clothes could be bought without also handing over the ration coupons, leading to the development of a 'black market' where those who did not want to buy any new clothes could sell their coupons to others wanting or needing new clothing for example, a wedding dress.

Revolve: Recycled Products

Walking past a skip today I saw this circuit board on the top of the contents. It reminded me of a company I heard of initially about 3 years ago -Revolve UK. They take circuit boards, plastic bags, juice cartons, coffee cups, yoghurt pots and plastic bottles and recycle them into new materials and products. Click here to be taken to their website. They are familiar products made with unusual and unique 100% recycled materials.

Boots Display

I love Boots.
They are my favourite type of footwear.

Walking through Sainsburys (above left) and then BHS (above right) I saw these boots displayed and I was really shocked to see the stores obviously not making any secret of how mass produced, syntheticially similar they all are!

I'm not saying they are amazing quality and deserve to be put on a pedestal, but i'm sure there used to be a time that stores at least attempted to mask the fact their products were mass produced and cheap by presenting them well?? It is such a shame that they are hooked together and packed in like sardines so the store can sell more, faster, and in the process entirely compromise on display.

I know this isn't just BHS and Sainsburys by the way, there are plenty of stores that are worse, but it seems really sad.

Recycling Vans that have been driving round London

Mary Portas V Day

Real life mannequin: Three 'senior citizens' modelling in the window of House of Fraser on Oxford Street a couple of days ago. Filming with Mary Portas for the new series of Queen of Charity Shops.

The V Day campaign aimes to encourage everyone to volunteer at their local charity shop, encourage donation and consumption of second hand clothing.

As a result of this I will spend some time volunteering at my local charity shop - The Salvation Army.

SHOWstudio Fashion Revolution

Show Studio Fashion revolution article

As Fashion Week and the Design Festival hit London, so did the opening of SHOWStudio Fashion Revolution. As well as providing the new base for London Fashion Week, Somerset House is also the venue for the temporary exhibition.

SHOWStudio is a website and blog platform established by fashion photographer Nick Knight that aims to ‘demystify the creative process’ (www.showstudio.com). Opening the virtual doors to The Studio, a mostly hidden world, provides an insight into concept developments, mistakes and inspiring moments that precede the ubiquitous polished fashion image.

The diversity of projects documented within the unique SHOWstudio frame are regularly uploaded by an industry network of contributors and collaborators. Viewers are able to voice their opinions and interact with the website content, blurring the divide between ‘viewer’ and ‘artist’. One feature of the exhibition that demonstrates this concept is Design_Download. Paper patterns for garments designed by Martin Margiela, Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, to name a few, are available to download and viewers are encouraged to incorporate their own unique creativity as they construct the garment. When complete, the interpretation is photographed and uploaded onto SHOWstudio.com. The beauty of this concept lies in the fascinating results. Unfortunately sometimes within the mainstream fashion industry ideas of unique interpretation and diversity are replaced with repetitive garment shapes. However, this process communicates the multitude of possibilities that stem from a single pattern when you encourage creativity and participation.

The three main areas of the exhibition are Process, Performance and Participation. As well as including the work of well known designers and fashion in a familiar catwalk or studio setting, the exhibition successfully questions how we see Fashion. It opens our eyes to the importance of movement, body, life, art, music, colour, film and photography. They weave together and pull apart to stimulate ideas and challenge opinions.

As I left the exhibition I felt forced to redefine my view of ‘Fashion’ - an appropriate question in uncertain times of necessary change. SHOWstudio Fashion Revolution displays our time of Fashion transformation, for which the internet will continue to provide an essential platform. Interaction and communication are also vital elements that have the ability to involve and sustain the artist/viewer.

To look beyond the final product and styled image, to question the process, to ask ‘how did it get here? ’ is not exclusive to the core of SHOWstudio. The future of the fashion industry requires all involved within it to ask questions, to redefine, challenge and doubt what we already have. To look behind the scenes, to realise our clothes are part of a much larger ‘fashion’ chain of actions and events. Challenging such actions and looking beyond what we see, remains a key element to sustaining our industry.

Some Things Never Change

I recently found this old photograph of my Uncle carrying me out of one of his 'Hump and Dump' house clearance skips. I was about 8 and loved rummaging through the new arrivals of 'junk'. Amazed at what people threw away, I wished I could take it with me and give it a new home. On one occasion I managed to pursuade my parents to let me 'rescue' a bucket of old spoons so that I could make a wind chime. A ball of string, a roll of selotape and a bucket of PVA later you can imagine the resulting product wasn't exactly a symphony for the ears. To this day I still can't figure out how the string became so tangled!...

and I still can't walk past a skip without having a sneaky peak at its contents.

"Customised" clothing on the high street

Amka 'Trench Dress' All Saints £145.00: Dress that looks like it has been made from a coat
Karen Millen 'customised t-shirt' £69.95

E&KO

'Focuses on value and the re-valuing of things'

The Elvis and Kresse organisation have built their business transforming unwanted fire hoses into luxury handbags. Speaking recently at Crafting Mass Production, a seminar as part of the Greengaged Design Council series, Kresse Wesling saw her business as ‘building value into waste’ (Wesling 2009). Thinking long term however, it may be argued that the fire hoses are not diverted from landfill, merely delayed as they are transformed into another product.

‘Many researchers are beginning to suspect that recycling actually provides an ethical get out of jail free card which liberates consumer conscience and in doing so generates even more waste,’ (Chapman 2005 p.10).

Although upcycling and recycling rely on a supply of clothing waste (generated in part by the disposable nature of cheap clothing) they have a role to play within our fashion system short term. Through education and awareness of the reasons for recycling and upcycling, these business initiatives have the potential to influence lifecycle thinking and change attitudes towards consumption through unique fashion garments.

The work of E&KO was also the inspiration for the 'Wasted' installation at the V&A as part of the Design Festival September 2009.

Fashion Diversity@Museum of London

As part of London Fashion Week the Museum of London has been involved in a series of workshops and fashion shows held in the main foyer of the Museum as 'Fashion Diversity'. The photos here are a couple of outfits from the Junky Styling collection.

Whilst looking around the museum I noticed an interesting comment within the 'trade' themes. It is a quote from a trader in the 17th century but the name was not listed:

"If I should begin to set down the variety of fashions and foreign stuffs brought into England in these items I might seem to number to starts of heaven and sands of the sea"

Although globalisation has become an issue for great debate, trade and export of goods have always been a large part of the history of London.

Radley & The Heart Foundation

The above window notice in this Radly shop reads:

"£40 off your new handbag when you donate an old one,
all donations go to the heart foundation see in store for details"

This photo of the shop was taken at the start of the summer, so I am unsure if the project is still running. I thought it was worth a mention here, as it is another example of high street retailers supporting charities by encouraging their consumers to donate their unwanted fashion products.

It is vital for consumers to become familiar and comfortable with the ideas of donating and reusing clothing and accessories.

Monsoon Campaign - Clothes for Life

Another national high street retailer taking action to encourage consumers to reuse, pass on and donate their unwanted clothing.

Monsoon have launched the 'Clothes for life' campaign
where you will receive a £5 voucher for future purchases of Monsoon clothing (over £30) when you take to the store and donate items of unwanted Monsoon clothing.

The money raised from the resale of these clothes will help support the NewLife Foundation.

Initiatives like this provide fantastic potential source material for Upcycling designers. Maybe to make more people aware of the scheme Monsoon could pass on some of the clothing to Upcycling designers/student designers to create unique garment designs from unwanted Monsoon clothing. The remade and one off pieces would be of a higher value and able to raise more money for the charity.

M&S Waste Targets

A reminder on the wall at M&S in Leeds of their target for zero waste as part of plan A.
Upcycling is a creative and unique way for clothing to be transformed and as such can play a vital role in diverting unwanted clothing items away from landfill sites.

The Marks and Spencer union with Oxfam will also support their campaign for no clothing to end up in landfill. The importance of reusing, donating and wearing for longer is communicated through this target, and upcycling combines all three.

Urban Outfitters: ReNewAll

check out the website

Read the interview

The Urban Renewal (RenewAll) collection from Urban Outfitters is a great example of how Upcycling can be included within the high street fashion retailers. Each piece is made in America from vintage clothing and surplus textile stock.

Urban Outfitters do have a quirky image and maybe this is why the Renewal Collections have sold well. Could the ideas behind the renewal and upcycling format work and sell in all high street stores? What is important is that a stereotype of upcycling doesn't evolve. It is not a 'style', it is not a 'look', it is a method of garment production. A diverse variety of styles and designs can be created, styles to suit all types of fashion retailers using reclaimed garments and textiles.

Myco Anna

A short You Tube video interview clip

This Canadian reclaimed and upcycling fashion company have been in business since 1995. The clothing in the above video is quirky and creative, but a bit too 'patchwork'. If upcycling and reclaimed fashion is to reach a larger audience it needs to move away from the stereotypes of patchwork, and the 'rag doll' look. Upcycling and fashion design based around reclaimed fabrics need to find more inventive ways of using unwanted fabric and garment pieces.

See a clip of some Myco Anna clothes on the catwalk

LMB Textile Recycling

LMB In East London

Professional Texile Recyclers

Lawrence M. Barry is a large textile resale, reuse and upcycling plant.

With over 400 textile and clothing donation banks around London, LMB are a great source for Upcycling designers.

The majority of the clothing donated is sold to African second hand clothing merchants who sell on the clothing or 'mitumba' in markets.

The clothing unsuitable for resale or reuse is sold to textile downcycling and flocking companies who break down the fibres to create fabrics of lower quality.

As well as sourcing unwanted clothing, LMB also work with companies to take the old uniforms and promotional clothing that is no longer required.

The company is involved with education and design collaborations, providing source material for Upcycling designers and design students at various Universities including University of the Arts London.

A new initiative with students from the Univeristy of East London and Dr.Noki to open an Upcycling shop on Bethnal Green Road!!! AMAZING!!!

I collaborated with Zoe Fletcher who is also on my MA course to create a short film about the amazing work LMB do! Click here to be taken to You Tube

Junky Styling - The Book!

Yesterday I bought such a fabulous book!

'Junky Styling - Wardrobe Surgery', put together by the founders of the company, tells the story of this brilliant Upcycling clothing business. Looking at their collections through the years, the developments that have lead them to where they are today and with some helpful 'DIY' tips at the back, it is a great book for any Upcycler- and so inspirational to hear their story.

If you haven't yet visited the store or seen their work, check out their website - click here!

M&S Plan A Update

I recently received an update email from Marks and Spencer regarding their Plan A.

Check out their recent work with Oxfam and the Clothing Exchange, encouraging consumers to donate their unwanted M&S clothing to Oxfam in return for £5 shopping vouchers.

There are also a couple of other articles on the website about how to clear out your wardrobe; what to save, what to give!

Follow this link for the webpage.

Recycle Signs hit the Floor

Paving stones on the floor in Whitstable town in Kent with recycle signs to decorate them!

My Upcycled Dresses - Black Collection

Black Silk Dress: Made from a pair of black silk trousers where the zip had broken

Black Flocked Dress: Made from a pair of dark grey trousers with a flocked pattern.


Dotty Dress: Made from two silk scarves

Folded Dress: Made from half a pair of pin stripe trousers and a wollen dress