Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Sustainable Candy Wrapper Dress

What would you sew together if you were asked to create something to wear using candy wrappers headed for the landfill? This is the super fun challenge designer Melissa of Mountains Of The Moon took on, when she was asked to participate in Chicago's Fashion Week "Sweet Chic" exhibit. Here is her experience in her words...
"Charleston Chew is recognized as a favorite vintage candy, my design was also created with a vintage feel, evocative of late 1950’s Audrey Hepburn chic (with a modern twist). Finally, sustainability was an important part of the design process (I am an eco-fashion designer), and I was thrilled to able to recycle wrappers into our creations."
"We were given excess wrappers and candies that would have otherwise ended up in landfills to work with. Because we had to make these designs 100% wearable, we were also able to incorporate fabrics, and I chose a gorgeous vintage silk dupioni that featured the same tones seen in the wrappers. Despite the sketch I designed (I knew from the moment I was assigned my candy the exact look I was going for), the dress really changed and evolved with every hour I put into it. This project was a major challenge - the wrappers wouldn't sew without ripping, for instance - but it was proof that you really can make something new and unique out of materials that most would consider useless trash. "
Pictured here is Designer Melissa of MOTM (isn't she so cute!) with her fantastic creative design being displayed at the Chicago Modern Museum Of Art.

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