NEW . UUS

The collection has been created for the Estonian Fashion Festival OmaMood 2021

NEW . UUS means that every old piece can become a new one.

The collection is dedicated to the legacy of a time when nothing was available, however, everyone had everything because the Estonian woman was smart and created everything herself. Not that I wish back to times when a mother’s dress was remade for a daughter and then for a granddaughter and then again and again, but I desire a situation where there aren’t that many things and the ones that are, have a higher value. I am dreaming of clothes that are made from natural materials. The garments have more moral value if a person knows the designer or creator and therefore is willing to pay a fair price. Wanting to wear something special, I combined my own two pairs of jeans and my father’s brown velvet pants into one pair of pants. Today, these three-in-one pants are in fashion again. The collection is a recycling project, inspired by the pants I sewed twenty years ago, which at that time were made because of the circumstances. Today, these three-in-one pants are in fashion again. My daughter fell in love with them. At that point, I came to the realization that a fashion-conscious young person cares about recycling when the old is made into a new one professionally and tastefully. Recycling, which is gaining popularity today, is not something new, but rather easily forgotten old. This is our ancestor’s legacy where clothes tell their own story.

The collection is completely a recycling project. The inspiration came from the pants that I made twenty years ago. At that time the pants were made because I couldn’t afford to buy new materials, therefore I used my and others’ old clothes. Wishing to wear something special, I matched my old jeans, dad’s brown velvet pants and other beige pants that were dirty and no longer washed out. Currently, these combined pants are back in fashion and my daughter fell in love with them. At this point once again, I came to the conclusion that a fashion-conscious young person is into recycling, however, the old has to be made into a new item professionally and tastefully.

Why do I want to make a recycling collection nowadays?

1. Mul on hulga oma pere rõivaid, mida materjali kvaliteedi ja hea väljanägemise tõttu ei ole ära visanud. Taaskasutuspoode külastades ägedad materjalid lausa kutsuvad looma midagi uut ja kantavat.
2. Soovin taaskasutada teksamaterjali.
3. Mul on tungiv vajadus leida rakendust toomisjääkidele, ka neile, mis tekivad minu enese väikeset ettevõtmisest
4. Maailm vaevleb asjade koorma all. Teha midagi lihtsalt tegemise pärast, ei ole enam ammu mõistlik. Taaskasutada materjale, peaks olema iga inimese igapäevane mõtteviis.
5. Soovin kanda edasi erinevate aegade pärandit. Sellesse kollektsiooni on kogutud pärand sellest ajast, kus midagi saada ei olnud, aga kõigil oli, sest Eesti naine oli nutikas ja tegi kõike ise. Nii on minu mälestustes see, kuidas minu ema sai oma ema vana kleidi, kohendas selle omale uueks peokleidiks ja hiljem sain mina sellest pihikseeliku, mis omakorda rändas suguvõsa väikeste tüdrukute riidekapist riidekappi. Tänapäeval populaarsust koguv uuskasutus või taaskasutus ei ole teglikult midagi uut, vaid hoopis kergesti unustatud vana. Kõigil taaskasutatud rõivastel on rääkida oma lugu ja see annab neile tugeva väärtuse. Vana ese saab olla uuesti uus, kui osata kasutada meisterlikke oskusi, just seda soovingi propageerida ja taas elule äratada.

The collection consists of sewn men’s shirts, jeans, denim jackets, sweaters, socks, scarves, woollen furniture leftover and my own small defective fabrics and leftovers from cutting the materials. In this way, many handcrafted items are “saved”. The preferred choice of materials is natural fibres. The patterns on the garments are made with Katré author’s techniques whose inspiration comes from Estonian folk art. Lush sleeves are a common feature of the collection. This characteristic is also mutual to the shirts of Estonian folk costumes.

Not that I am longing for the time when dresses were made from mother-to-daughter and daughter-to-granddaughter again, but I desire a situation when we wouldn’t have that many things but the ones we do have, hold greater meaning to us. The clothes that are made from natural materials sustain a moral value if a person knows the designer or creator. Therefore, people wouldn’t throw out clothes so easily and there would be less pollution and the world would be already a little bit better place to live. Recycling or reusing, which are gaining popularity today is not something new but rather easily forgotten old. An old piece of clothing made into new has the power of the story behind the clothing. An old item can be new again if you know how to value and use skills, which is what I want to promote and to revive in young people.

The collection is completely a recycling project. All items are made out of recycled materials and are therefore this makes them unique. To make old garments into new ones, I am following the idea that the key is to make them look new, hence they are one of a kind. There are 10 outfits for the EFF competition which have 15 pieces. There will be 100 pieces in this collection which are made from old to new. Each garment has its own name which is presented by a number. It comes in handy to have tailoring skills, cleverness and patchwork skills. The patterns on the clothes are from Estonian folk art which are created in Katré author’s techniques.

The collection is a recycling project and all garments are one of a kind. This collection will have up to 100 pieces which will be one collection. The collection is designed for women and brave men.

First goal: The aim of the collection is to develop wearable models, their manufacturing tips and technologies and reach the customer again with new clothes. It is also necessary to understand what materials and what products are worth redesigning. The process must lead the items for a new life and look like new. Therefore, it is not excluded that details from completely new materials are used. For example, zippers need to be new because they prolong the life of the product. Choice of materials is very important because of the time-consuming manufacturing. Therefore, it is wise to use only high-quality natural materials. But what happens when fashion goods are made of man-made fibres from fast fashion? This is one endless circle, so the goal of my collection is to draw the customer’s attention to the composition of the materials as a source of clothing, their manufacture, and wearability. You don’t have to have a lot of clothes, instead, they could be unique, high quality and combinable.

Second goal: The goal of the collection is to develop models to teach the making process in courses. People are very different, some want to buy, the others want to make it themselves. My desire is to promote self-making as an opportunity to be stylish while saving the environment.

Third goal: I want to go as far as possible with this collection. So that means that the customer has the ability to come to me with their old items and we will find a new use. My goal is to reach an understanding with the client about which material of clothing should be purchased so it lasts longer and whether it is reasonable and it is also possible to make new clothes again. Creating clothes with customers also creates an understanding of the volume and profitability of the work and how much it costs. When it is clear to a customer, there will also be respect for clothes and they will no longer buy quick and cheap clothes so easily.

Read more ➡️ Why the collection ”NEW . UUS” 2021 was made?

Photos: Liina Laurikainen
Models: Liis keel & Eliise Kuus
MUA: Eliise Kuus