by Fiona White, London Region committee member
Sustainability in textiles and dyeing is an important issue that needs continuous discussion for idea generation, inspiration and education. This topical theme was to the forefront of the SDC’s London region November 2019 event. With an interesting panel of speakers, we welcomed over 90 attendees – students and global fashion brands – for an engaging afternoon.
Chris Hewitt from Hewitt Heritage Fabrics began the event by discussing the opportunities and challenges associated with founding a creative business with sustainable values at the core. As the only company in the UK commercially producing selvedge denim, Chris explained how he wanted to manufacture denim that had a low impact on the environment. Partnering with a Lancashire mill that has been run by the same family since 1907, Chris noted how his customers are increasingly realising the value of locally soured fabrics, noting a shift in mindsets with an importance being placed on local production.
Penny Walsh from AO Textiles, a consultancy that specialises in sustainable luxury textiles followed with a presentation on natural dyes. Penny is committed to the research and production of textiles that utilise natural colour derived from plant sources and conform to the principles of circular economy design thinking. Contrary to popular belief that natural dyes from plants struggle to produce vibrant luxury hues, Penny presented the extensive colour rages that can be achieved from plants such as madder, wild broom and indigo. AO have been some of the first producers in the UK to provide naturally dyed fabric that is suitable for couture fashion. Their vibrantly dyed fabric has been worn by celebrities on the red carpet at the Oscars proving that natural dyes can mean luxury!
Having worked for luxury brands such as a Ralph Lauren, John Abate founded Bluehanded. Whilst living in China, he explained how he discovered his passion for indigo fabrics. John’s presentation gave a wonderful insight into the world of indigo dyeing with a focus on print and pattern. He talked us through the hand-crafted artisanal process of creating resist indigo dyed fabrics concluding with his recent artist collaborations in London. John highlighted the importance of combining the new and the old by explaining how this ancient craft still has relevance and can look very contemporary when handled in the correct way. By using modern pattern design, wonderful products full of character can be created.
Following on with the same theme, Jess Yang the founder of Jugo discussed indigo with a focus on shibori techniques. Jess grew up in the Himalayan mountains in an area called Yunnan, South West China where the indigo plant is indigenous. She is a native Naxi tribe member who are experts in working with the dyestuff. Now living in London, she is dedicated to promoting tie-dye, shibori and batik craft by working with local women in the Far East to produces clothes, accessories and homewares. Her presentation included fascinating videos of crafts people at work carefully drawing batik with bees wax and stitching intricate tight shibori fabrics. Jess discussed how Chinese families are being separated with parents moving to more industrial parts of the country for work. She explained that the mission of Jugo is to counteract this by keeping the traditional skills alive and encouraging local communities to stay together.
Dian-Jen Lin from Post Carbon Lab presented the studio’s forward-thinking concepts in relation to microbiological bacterial pigment dyeing. With innovative practices, her presentation brought us through the process of the future of non-conventional dyeing. She began to question the norm of ‘what is sustainability in fashion,’ and instead to change the question to ‘what is the ecological role of fashion?’ The pioneering research of the studio challenged our perception of sustainable fashion.
The event finished with a lively panel discussion. Thanks to all the speakers and delegates for engaging in such an interesting debate.
02/03/2020