Fashion For Social Change Scotland
Scotland Re:Design x Shelter Scotland 2022
Shelter and Shelter Scotland retail use fashion to connect with people about the critical issues we are battling - to start a conversation around unfit housing, the housing emergency, housing injustice, homelessness and its impact on communities, families and individuals.
Using the power of fashion as a tool to communicate, means we can also start conversations about sustainability and re-use. This gives us many unique opportunities to lead discussions in a creative and engaging way.
We partnered with Scotland Re:Design (SRD) to run the competition for designers in Scotland. This is the first year, with plans to make this an annual event.
SRD are focussed on supporting the development of a successful fashion, textiles and interiors communities in Scotland through connecting with audiences internationally.
The Shelter Scotland competition winners were part of the prestigious annual fashion show of major and up coming Scottish design brands, at the Dundee V&A.
What’s exciting about these projects is the unexpected and to see how people interpret our activist attitude. We asked designers to develop and create fashion around the theme of 'activism' for housing rights. We want them to start a conversation, share stories and empower people.
The prize was to be part of a catwalk show at the V&A Dundee and to be displayed there afterwards during the Fashion Festival.
Professional models strutted their stuff on the catwalk to claps and whoops. Our designs were second on the catwalk, which is a great honour for all involved.
We had designs using zero-waste techniques and integrating old Converse trainers as pockets, designs using multiple pairs of jeans to create one garment and one pairing even sourced old tea towels featuring Scottish homes, as their base materials. We’re hoping to create more blogs about each item, as each one boasts their own stories and design/crafting techniques.
It’s time to celebrate these amazing designs and plan where we can share them with customers in Selter Scotland shops and wider.
“We were amazed by the quality, detail and finish of all the designs. A true inspiration. The use of charity shop finds and damaged materials also really shows what’s possible in a more sustainable future for fashion. Exciting times ahead for all these designers.”
Winners
Winner: Conor Blessing, Gillian Macdonald, Jayne Stephen, Kirsteen Stewart, Rita Szentivanski, Rosamund Williams, Jack Stamp, Finlay Grant
Next year
Open to students from all year groups in Scottish colleges and universities. Open to all independent artists, crafters and fashion designers living in Scotland. More details will be released in 2023.