Green is the new black: Fashion Week exhibits eco-friendly garments
The Associated Press
Published: February 15, 2007
LONDON: Forget black: Green was the color to watch at London Fashion Week Thursday, as environmental consciousness merged with style.
A group of 20 designers participated in the environmental exhibition — called "Estethica" — which includes fair-trade clothing, as well as garments made from organic and recycled materials. The chief executive of the British Fashion Council, which oversees the week of events, said the goal was to promote style that is also environmentally friendly.
"You don't get into London Fashion Week just for being 'eco,'" Hilary Riva said. "What we're looking for is high-level design incorporating 'eco.' So they've got double the criteria to meet; it's so much harder for them."
London-based designer Gary Harvey, who is exhibiting, only uses material he finds in places like secondhand clothing stores to avoid waste.
"You get people who come in and buy clothing," he said, "wearing it one or two times then discarding it because it's suddenly deemed aesthetically unimportant and out of date when there's years of life left in the garment."
His collection "was a comment about thinking about the real cost of the garment that you buy, about that cost being natural resources,
exploitation of labor, the biodegradable nature of garments," Harvey said.
The shapes are similar to what celebrities wear on the red carpet — tight around the upper body and flowing past the waist and legs. But his materials are eclectic — one dress is made from 42 pairs of blue jeans, and another is made from 37 black T-shirts. Harvey said his garments, which are priced from 3,000 to 5,000 pounds (US$5,900 to US$9,800; €4,500 to €7,500), are meant to challenge the status quo.
"The main idea for me was actually taking very, very familiar everyday garments, things that you see in a context that you have an established thought in your mind about what that is, and then putting it into a new arena," Harvey said. "There's also a very negative perception that people tend to have of eco-fashion. It tends to be considered to be very crusty and vegetarian and purely functional with no style. Part of what I've done is challenging these perceptions."
Each dress takes between one and two weeks to complete, and some of the sewing is done by hand — Harvey said he broke three sewing machines while working on the garments.
Estethica is making its second appearance at London Fashion Week after its debut last September. The exhibit has increased by 30 percent this season, with 20 designers exhibiting and one designer on the catwalk. Riva said the exhibit started as part of a larger movement in London toward an eco-friendly lifestyle.
"It's a real movement that's only going to go one way," Riva said. "It's now very firmly part of the scene. Everyone I know is now working out their carbon footprint. I mean, who would have thought of that — even 12 months ago?"
The exhibit includes designers from around the world displaying ready-to-wear garments and accessories. The booths include unique items like handbags woven out of recycled candy wrappers, but there are also more conventional looks such as skirts and cardigans made from organic cotton.
Riva said she sees eco-fashion as a "real London thing," and it's also one way that she's working to expand the city's Fashion Week.
"London really has established itself on its credentials of young talent and creativity," Riva said. "You know, street really is the background of London Fashion Week compared with the big brand centers of Milan and Paris and latterly New York. Everyone knows what to expect from those cities, and I guess in London, you expect the unexpected."
