London Fashion Week: The Exhibition Part 1 - Estethica
As well as the catwalk shows, London Fashion Week also plays host to an exhibition, featuring hundreds of designers. As well as clothes, the static exhibition is a great showcase for accessories – from hats and handbags to fabulous jewellery, it’s all here. This week we’re going to look at the four main areas of the exhibition – Demure Untamed - focusing on luxury and originality in accessories; Designers and Agents – bringing Americas newest and brightest stars to London; New Generation showcasing the best emerging talent in the UK; and kicking it off today, Estethica - the ethical design section.
Estethica is run in association with Monsoon and Accessorize, and plays host to 25 designers – from more established names such as Katharine E Hamnett and People Tree to newcomers Enamore and Terra Plana. All the designers that show at Estethica follow at least one of three principles - Fair Trade (production in a safe and social environment), Organic (use of man-made, natural and sustainable fibres), and Recycling (using only pre-existing materials). We caught up with three of the most exciting designers at the exhibition…
Enamore create gorgeous, vintage inspired garments all made from organic and vintage fabrics. Their underwear collection is made of 100% organic silk and soy jersey is particularly yummy, and is a far cry from how you might envisage organic underwear - it’s hemp, ladies, but not as we know it. Everything is made in their Bath studio, and everything possible is recycled - fabric scraps are either reused in trimmings or donated to school art departments.
Gary Harvey Creative’s stand at the exhibition is always a highlight, with his eye-catching designs always drawing a crowd. Gary spent ten years as creative director at Levis, and originally started making dresses out of recycled clothes as a hobby. However his past-time soon grew into a full-time venture, and his beautiful ball gowns really challenge ideas of what recycled clothing can look like. One of his most dazzling numbers is the wedding dress – made out of 10 abandoned wedding dresses, whilst the denim dress is made from 42 pairs of Levis, and the mac number is made of 18 vintage Burberry coats. Says Gary, ‘By sourcing fabrics and raw materials that have literally been thrown away, you can look good and be good too. Too many garments are deemed aesthetically redundant and discarded at the end of a season when there are still many years of wear left.’
Katharine E Hamnett is one of the most established names in politically aware fashion – her slogan tees were Henry Holland’s predecessors by some 20 years, and her tireless campaigning doesn’t seem to be easing any time soon. Her clothes are sold in Urban Outfitters and Liberty, confirming that ethical fashion is as covetable as any other. All her t-shirts are made from 100% organic cotton, and feature slogans that are somewhat more thought provoking than Mr Hollands… Her famous ’80s ‘Choose Life’ shirts are still available, along with new lines including this season’s, ‘No More Fashion Victims’ – referring to the appalling conditions suffered by workers in the manufacture of many high street clothes. Hamnett’s other garments are manufactured in the UK, and aim to preserve traditional skills - leather making, weaving, spinning and knitting. When questioned on how she thought we could increase awareness of ethical fashion, she explained that she is keen to promote the concept of slow clothes – that’s fashionable clothes that are bought and worn for years, as opposed to the high-turnover of fast fashion, which leads to quick buys quickly ending up in landfill.
For more ethically fashionable news, check out our sister blog Hippyshopper.
