Upcoming designers in Fair Fashion
Merunisha Moonilal represented Clean & Unique, together with Erica van Doorn from Fair Wear Foundation, at the IVN Textile Conference in Berlin. She paticipated in a workshop aimed at SME’s who are interested in CSR.
Today was the launch of The Green Fashion Competition. As it is the year of Biodiversity AIFW and the Dutch ministry of Agriculture joined their forces to encourage sustainable development in Fashion.
Fashion and biodiversity have a big impact on each other. Lots of designers use nature as inspiration for their collections and also the choice of materials they can use depends on what raw materials nature has to offer. The other way around the Fashion Industry has a big impact on the earth and her biodiversity. The designer’s choice for certain raw materials and the way these raw materials are being developed into fabrics play a very important role in this. The Green Fashion Competition awards the designer who handles these issues best and who can create a sustainable collection out of his or her ideas.
At the launch of the Green Fashion Competition Kentroy Yearwood proved with his ‘Rangaku’ collection that sustainable fashion can be everything except boring! Kentroy Yearwood is a pioneer in the field of sustainable fashion and uses materials as silk, organic cotton, linen, wool, recycled paper and denim treated with a natural indigo to create outstanding fashion collections which are being sold worldwide.
A lot of Dutch Clean&Unique members where present and we also spotted some beautiful design pieces created by our Clean&Unique members!
Monkee is nomitated for the GREMAN DESIGN PRICE, given by the Bundes Republik Deutschland for best product and Kommunikation design. 
Amsterdam International Fashion Week (AIFW) and the Dutch ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) have launched a competition in token of the international Year of Biodiversity; The Green Fashion Competition.
The Green Fashion Competition is a competition for entrepreneurs in the fashion industry, for individuals (and teams) with a vision of what the future of fashion should look like. The aim of the competition is to find the talented entrepreneurs in the industry who aim to create a fashion business while sustaining biodiversity.
The Green Fashion Competition will be communicated within the fashion academies in the Netherlands, among technical universities, to young entrepreneurs and creative individuals.
Everyone with a vision on ‘the future of fashion’ is eligible to participate in The Green Fashion Competition.
The competition question is:
Design two outfits and write a business plan, which explain how your fashion enterprise contributes to sustaining biodiversity.
Also this year Strawberry Earth organizes the Dutch Environmental Film Festival (DEFF), an annual platform for the best international, environmental films and documentaries.
Each year DEFF screens major international and national premieres, hosts inspirational speakers and creative green organization, and organises memorable festival parties with talent from the European DJ and live music scene.
DEFF is the only major international film festival in the world that uses 100% of all money raised to make the screening venues eco friendlier. DEFF has grown to become one of Europe’s premier environmental film festivals.
June 3 and 5 DEFF is taking place at Studio K in Amsterdam and June 4 in Lantaren Venster, Rotterdam. June 5 Studio JUX and Charlie + Mary will be there in the lobby of Studio K.
Fair fashion is focusing on the entire production process of clothing, from cotton field to garbage. During the Fair Fashion event May 12th various experts from the fashion industry shared information about the part of the fashion industry they work in. Beauty Zibula from South Africa told everything about working in a factory in South Africa, where the sewing of the clothing is being done.
Visitors of the Fair Fashion event could make a selection of workshops they wished to attend. For example Sophie Schop from the Fair Wear Foundation played an interesting auditing game with her group. Roosmarie Ruigrok from Max Havelaar explained everything about Fair Trade cotton. And Marieke Vinck from Charlie + Mary explained how she and Charlotte van Waes started the Charlie + Mary concept and what is involved in selling fair fashion.
Would you like to buy a sustainable piece from four of the Clean & Unique members? Visit the Guerrilla Store, a pop-up store in Arnhem initiated by Awearness Fair Fashion Events. Charlie + Mary, Ecocouture, Merunisha Mounilal and studio JUX sell their collections during the sustainable fashion month of Arnhem. For more information, check: http://www.awearness-fashion.nl
Monkee’s philosophy convinced the ispo BrandNew Award jury: Environmentally friendly, fairly produced street and sportswear that is not only sustainable but also cutting edge style won the ISPO 2010 inaugural Eco/Fair trade award.
“The sourcing of sustainable fabrics, the problem of certifications, the need of an efficient sustainable supply chain and CSR management demand a lot of extra commitment for the teams of small and medium sized fashion companies. What are the solutions for new designer brands in order to be sustainable? This workshop highlights different examples. The first one regards the designers collective Clean & Unique, providing its members the chance to be verified on labour practices by the Fair Wear Foundation. Carlien Helmink from Studio Jux bring the experience of their brands production projects on stage”.
The new conceptstore Charlie + Mary is located in the heart of the Pijp in Amsterdam. Only fashionable, fair and eco friendly products are to be found in this store. The assortment is diverse, hip and changes the image of social responsible products forever.
Charlie + Mary’s fashion is hip, stylish, and internationally orientated. The design collections of Studio Jux and Alchemist, both Dutch labels, are perfectly complemented by cool British labels as Monkee Genes and Neurotica, sneakers by the French Veja label en accessories by Sevenply from New York. Also the collection from MLY, the independent designer Emily Hermans is available at Charlie + Mary.
You will not only find clothing for men and women in the Charlie + Mary concept store. Also gifts, fashion accessories, books and cosmetics are to be found. In the back of the store there is a tearoom where the most delicious organic coffees and cakes are being served. On the big wooden table you can work on your labtop in an inspiring surrounding with a cosy feel.
