The advent of 2020 has raised the curtain on the new decade, bringing along questions and expectations on the upcoming trends in the fashion system. What are we leaving behind? The age of luxury streetwear seems to be waning – as Virgil Abloh, the visionary designer of Off-White and the Louis Vuitton menswear line, claimed in a long interview with Dazed – for a return to formality with an edgy twist, as the brand’s latest FW 2020 menswear fashion show has proved.
In fact, fashion houses treasure so many precious archives that creatives are easily encouraged to brush up on their heritage and iconic codes, whereas vintage shops all over the world boast a wide selection of sophisticated second-hand pieces that are only waiting to be bought. A warning has come from Anna Wintour herself, who has sided with the culture of recycling to champion the importance of reusing clothes, while blaming fashion as guilty of not-so-green practices.
Vintage to shape a personal style identity, but also as a viable solution with sustainability being at the core of the debate in the fashion system.
A growing number of luxury brands have been committing to the cause in various ways, from choosing eco-friendly materials to adopting responsible production processes.
Sophia Webster has launched the Upcycled collection, in line with the shoe designer’s efforts to reduce leather and fabric scraps from the previous ranges by giving them a new life.
That was the basis for this capsule, made with upcycling techniques to create new edits of the famous Renata style. The materials mainly come from the Freak Like Me FW 2015 collection, as well as from the Dolly Birds of Paradise SS 2015 line.
The Renata sandals, with their trademark square toes, are thus revisited in several edits with a playful mix and match of leather and fabric scraps. Being made from leftovers, they will come as an exclusive, definitely eco-friendly limited edition.
Woven, iridescent leather with contrasting trims, multicolor tweed paired with pastel glitters, white velvet with black dots and red plumetis for a bon-ton effect, or again metallic color-block and tie-dye glitters: these are the leitmotif of the first sustainable capsule collection by the British designer.
“I love being challenged to create compelling new designs with a random selection of colors and patterns, that’s my idea of fun. The best thing about this however, is finding another way to reduce our impact on the environment, this time by re-purposing much loved materials.”
Sophia Webster
