Tag: responsiblefashion

14
May

5 authentic and unconventional stylists

Posted by / Standard


Emerging from a world of trending hashtags, these 5 unconventional stylists are redefining the way we’re looking at fashion, especially in a post-pandemic era.

Beyond the glamour and elegance of celebrity-styling, their perspective focuses on the changing curve of the industry, towards authenticity and the raw essence of fabric.

Ekta Rajani, a freelance creative consultant is revisiting the memory lane to glean eco-conscious lifestyle tips and tricks, while staying true to character and opening a canvas for sustainable fabrics to paint a story within the fashion frame. Inspiring mindfulness in everyday life, she inspires a creative outlook towards going 100% sustainable.

Anushka Sharma looks comfortable in her skin thanks to the precise balance that Allia Ul Rafai puts into styling. Choosing the right fabric and molding the look to reflect the self is an art that she has practiced for long, bringing character into each outfit with an innate sense of confidence. Style is not imitation, but rather a reflection of who we are inside.

Similarly, the flow of a garment dictates the way a look comes across on camera. Who can understand this better than Devki, styling Taapsee Pannu with an insight into the chic-urban scene while being aware of the energy that she portrays. The crisp minimalism complements the bubbly flair nature in each look. This insight develops into each outfit looking tailored to fit not just her form but also her mood.

This vibe harkens to return to Indian roots with ‘Who Wore What When’ by Pranay Jaitly and Shounak Amonkar. An Indo-modern touch to each silhouette makes their styling unique in its taste and framing. Tradition flows easily within the threads looping an urban silhouette while the continual feminity is punctuated by effortless undertones of liberty.

This understanding stems from conscious sensibilities that call to the unveiling of a façade in which the industry has been wrapped, instead, manifesting a raw aesthetic that reveals the truth behind the look rather than carpeting it. As we step into a sustainable era, these stylists remind us that it’s equally important to be true to our roots and to enhance the sense of self for a more authentic world to thrive on-screen.

12
May

WILL SHOPPING FROM THRIFT STORES AND VINTAGE SHOPS RISE POST COVID-19?

Posted by / Sustainable Fashion


As we collectively move towards another two weeks in lockdown, the earth has pressed a pause button on most of our personal and professional lives. The Fashion Industry as we know it no longer exists. As global financial markets tumble, non-essential markets shut their doors and consumers lock themselves indoors under government directives, the humankind has come to a standstill. As an industry, we witnessed shocks to supply chains and sales. Stocks are down and retail markets struggle to keep their employees on the payroll. We now have an industry in front of us that needs to be built from the ground up. It’s time to redesign and reimagine our business models as producers and revaluate our decisions as consumers. Since we have to start over again, we can do it right this time.

The fashion industry is particularly problematic due to its swivel-eyed pace of change that it not only undergoes but also promotes. It encourages consumers to buy into styles to stay on-trend. As a result, we as fashion consumers contribute to 4% of the world’s waste each year. As an industry, we contribute to 10% of the global carbon emissions and 20% of wastewater. Fashion sucks up more energy than both aviation and shipping combined.

The question that now arises, is that how do we as consumers start over? How do we get it right? How do we make use of all this time we have to rethink our decisions? Shopping resale is both sustainable and better for the environment. Thrift shopping helps the planet and your cool factor. The saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” is now truer than ever.

COVID-19 can live on and thus be passed through used and pre-owned items. It is this stigma that can affect the future of the resale industry. This puts us all in a pickle, but is it warranted? It is preferable to shop resale if not advised with the right precautions being taken. It’s time for both sellers and consumers to be more proactive about cleaning and disinfecting items. Wash garments in the hottest water recommended for the fabric, wipe your shoes and bags with alcohol wipes as soon as you purchase them. It is important to take all the necessary precautions.

In light of the events, it’s wiser to shop from hobbyist sellers like Etsy, Instagram pages, and online resellers as it not only provides them with an income but is safer for you as compared to big box stores that have a large number of touchpoints.

In this new post -COVID-19 world the factors that need to be considered before making your new purchase have changed. It’s not about “Can I buy this from a Thrift store?” anymore. It is more about considering questions like “What do I need?”, “Can I make this on my own?”, “How much use will I get out of this?”, “Do I have a substitute?”, “Can this be borrowed?”, and so on. Numerous questions based on lifestyle choices need to be considered if we wish to start over right.

07
Jan

Zero Waste: How Priyanka Raajiv delved into sustainability long before it became a hashtag

Posted by / Upcycled Indian Couture

Priyanka Raajiv is a designer based in Pune who brings ageless culture into the modern world. Her design aesthetic and the clear vision of the architecture of a silhouette is what sets her apart. Moreover, she contributes to promoting the Indian handloom industry since the conception of her label. Her ensembles also hold a badge of responsible fashion.

Upcycled ‘Jod’ saree

She began designing outfits with a ‘Zero Waste’ approach long before the trend began. From the beginning of her labor, she held a certain respect for the fabric she used, and her label saw immaculate precision to avoid waste.

Upcycled ‘Gulaal’ lehenga

Textile experimentation made her work stand out. Incorporating these fabric pieces seamlessly into her new ensembles and, tailor-making new looks take forward an heirloom piece through generations.

Hand-embroidered ‘Pushp’ blouse

The vivid detailing and hand embroidery in every collection showcase the profound thought and effort behind the handspun threadwork so integral to her design philosophy. Her latest collection, Praana, is based on the consciousness that breathes within us, and the understanding that life is a circle, and it grows through nurturing thought and understanding.

Patchwork upcycled ‘Roshan’ lehenga

We are surrounded by this energy everywhere. It is why spaces affect us; we inhabit our clothes every day. Praana, the Autumn-Winter 2019 collection is inspired by this collective energy that we possess and share.

Any waste fabric piece from the studio is put back in the ‘Iraada’ box to be used and integrated into a collection that embodies thoroughly studied design sensibility. This is turned into wardrobe pieces that become essential

Upcycled ‘Ek Jod’ dupatta

In ancient China, there was a belief that anything broken must be put together using gold. This belief transcends the very idea of discarding anything.

In our daily stress and hectic schedules we often dismiss our negative thoughts and stagnant mindset. Aspiring to Chi, or Pranayama, the meditative state of understanding oneself, Priyanka Raajiv endeavors to unveil the illusion of separation, putting together seemingly unconnected pieces of fabric together in a puzzle that astounds you with its creativity and diligence.

Fully upcycled ‘Sharad’ Lehenga

Praana is a collection of carefully curated pieces, handcrafted to build a flow out of a mosaic of crude textile weaving and finesse of undiluted design. Upcycled pieces, like dupattas and scarves, become heirlooms in the process of recycling what is old into the artistic element of the new. With painstakingly earned expertise, the repurposed studio textile becomes intuitively structured through intricately embellished handwork.

Patchwork Kishto dupatta

The outfits rejuvenate your mind in with its texture and exquisite drapes and folds. It turns the complexity of fabric patchwork into a singular movement.

‘Resh’ saree with upcycled blouse

Praana at its core symbolizes the metamorphosis of energy forms. From breath to texture, and cold mist to the layers of fabric, it demonstrates that what appears cast aside is, in fact, the same thing in a different form. What appears new and fresh is a deliberate transformation.

This is the transformation that occurs at the Priyanka Raajiv studio with the discarded studio fabric in upcycling every piece.

07
Jan

Reiki by Word

Posted by / Sustainable Fashion

With a rustic wooden bowl of oil, soft aroma of the essence, a light breeze touching upon fresh flower petals and soothing oriental music…all in a bamboo built room. Like flowing water, your ki or life energy resonates with this exact aura.

In this age of imbalance, climatic disruption and disturbed mind, Reiki pave the path to rejuvenating life. Our earth needs healing, as do we. Combining the two, Reiki brings meaning to the essential intimacy of guided touch.

In the sheer innocence of draping, a hand or a garment, you find your senses blooming, an invigorating joy of belongingness. With plant-based materials- fragmented rose petals, eucalyptus plant, aloe vera, and milk-based layers of cloth, Word handcrafts your connection with nature, to fit your form.

Creating a line of outfits that soothe and evolve around you, inspired by the ancient art of energy healing and sprouting from universal life, Word presents Reiki.

Heal. Soothe. Retain.

04
Jan

Shwaas- A concept by Ploti

Posted by / Sustainable Fashion

Ploti is a community of creative minds pouring their souls into establishing a niche in lifestyle and fashion. Exuding soothing, clean energy, we try to blend simple humanity into an adaptable brand impression.

Shwaas Ploti as a concept took birth through our belief in keeping this humanity behind any process alive and thriving. Keeping the trend to a minimum, and maintaining a sustainably rooted attitude, we, beyond a brand wish to form a community that believes in staying true to grounded principles.

Through this project, we endeavor to guide the labels that are mind crafting the inherent Indian lifestyle, holding their hand and together, bringing forth the unique qualities their designs hold.

When Rutuja Kamble, founder of Ploti, first began thinking of creating this medium for promoting sustainable fashion labels, she held a firm line of principle: organic interaction. We cannot hope to build a community surrounding nature and be concerned with investing in longer lives by not being true to ourselves. She decided to start a new project that would exercise the same philosophy.

There is a delicate balance between humans and nature. The key element in giving voice to today’s sustainable fashion struggle is the strategic research that goes behind understanding textiles, dying processes, and zero waste collections. The labels that staunchly practice this are shaping a mindset towards slow fashion.

Inculcating a sensibility in our business model, we hope to be the teaspoon of sugar in a cup of brewed tea, for our essence is to add to the existing niche of a person and help them grow as they help us with their painstakingly developed qualities. With an unwavering stand on organic growth, we want to share an interactive empathy with both, our employees and our clients.

Dedicating ourselves solely to sustainable brands, we want to make their design ideology an open experience for the layman through creative direction.

Deriving from the spark of connection behind any design concept, we strategically extract the thought behind anything. It’s raw and untouched nature works like sandpaper for our abrasive imagination to expand on our client’s philosophy.

Through connecting the Shwaas community, we endeavor to shed light on the honeycomb of layers in the creation, fabrication, and presentation of new-age responsible fashion.

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