Turning the Waste Nettles from Prince Charles’s Highgrove Residence into Contemporary Fashion
Leading pioneers in eco and sustainable fashion, VIN + OMI, will be holding their next groundbreaking Spring Summer 2020 fashion show during London Fashion Week on the 17th September 2019.
With this collection, STING, the designers are pushing the boundaries of textile production using UK plants, focusing on ‘weeds’ and readily available native plants. This is significant because nettle fabric and clothing is more commonly made from the Asian varieties of nettle, whereas the UK nettle (urtica dioica) is seldom utilised in fashion.
Following a suggestion from HRH The Prince of Wales, VIN + OMI have harvested nettles from the prince’s private residence, Highgrove House. The nettles, that were destined for strimming, were gathered with the help of a team of students from Oxford Brookes University. Thousands of nettles have been hand processed through a series of ancient and new techniques into contemporary clothing. This forms part of an ongoing VIN + OMI project at Highgrove to look at ways in which organic and waste materials can be creatively repurposed.
“VIN + OMI pride themselves on launching a new concept, process or product every fashion season. A large percentage of our work is research, development and education. We strongly believe we have to look at new innovative eco and sustainable ways to produce fashion and products in order to counteract the effects fast fashion is having on the planet. It’s the only way forward.” - VIN + OMI
The show will be held at London’s Savoy Hotel on the 17th of September which also forms the start of a partnership between VIN + OMI and the Savoy. The partnership will explore creative eco and sustainable projects throughout the hotel.
The show will be screened across the UK digital boards by Ocean Outdoor.
"Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, Justine Simons OBE said: “It’s important that we all play our part in reducing waste for the good of our environment, so it’s great to see VIN + OMI continuing to champion sustainable fashion. This innovative show is a great example of what can be achieved and how this important message can be shared."
Given the unique nature of this sustainable project, the Victoria and Albert Museum will be acquiring garments from the catwalk for their permanent collection.
“VIN + OMI’s development of nettles and other natural materials found in the UK to create fashion fabrics with a contemporary aesthetic has the potential to open our eyes to the value of plants that thrive in our climate and soil. The V&A is looking forward to seeing the fruits of their research in their SS20 London Fashion Week Show and is delighted to have the opportunity to acquire an outfit from it for the museum’s growing collection of sustainable fashion.” Edwina Ehrman, Senior Curator, V&A Edwina Ehrman
This groundbreaking show will also include textiles made from recycled plastic from VIN + OMI’s various river and ocean clean up schemes. Also, VIN + OMI are working with UK based art company Daler Rowney to explore creative recycling. The show’s jewellery will be made from Highgrove plant waste and the additional garments will include textiles made from flax and cow parsley grown in fields at the designer’s studio.
In order to keep this show fully eco and sustainable, the bags on the catwalk will be made by recycling vinyl posters from leading outdoor advertising brand, Ocean Outdoor. Also, pioneering adhesive plaster company, Patch, will be creatively incorporated into the show, their plasters made from biodegradable bamboo is the perfect show fit. Innovation will also be incorporated into the after-party by Jägermeister, who will be exploring edible drinking vessels made from the Savoy’s kitchen produce. The host venue, the iconic Savoy Hotel, is working with VIN + OMI to turn their plastic waste into scarves for sale at the hotel and for a remodeling of their iconic doorman’s uniforms.
To date, VIN + OMI have developed 20 new eco textiles. Each of these textile developments have a social impact project attached. They are currently working on a project with Riverkeeper in New York City, to turn plastic collected from the Hudson River into garments for the volunteers.
The fashion shows have always included celebrity models, such as Debbie Harry from Blondie, Olympic Gold Medalist Nicola Adams, Jo Wood and supermodel Jodie Kidd. This show will feature guest models including British Olympians.
At Dr Jackson’s we believe in beauty that goes beyond the surface. From our beginning, our science-led natural skincare and organic herbal tea brand has supported projects and initiatives which bring knowledge, encourage debate, support innovation, tell good stories and, most importantly, promote wellbeing, bringing more beauty to our daily lives and souls!
You can learn more about VIN + OMI’s work on sustainable fashion here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUFjz4GoIEw