For the past five years, Fashion Week Columbus (FWC), has proven that trash can be treasure with the annual Recycled Runway show.
The goal of the event is to transform second-hand items and other discarded materials into stunning haute couture designs, proving in the fashion industry, trash can be used to create beauty.
Keira Chatman, the executive director of FWC, said the idea for the event came about following the organization’s partnership with Nurtur Salon + Spa, a Columbus-based eco-friendly salon — located 1581 W. Lane Ave. — that was founded in 2006 by Patrick Thompson along with the help from the Aveda Institute of Columbus.
Chatman said bringing on a sustainable sponsor provided the inspiration needed to work towards creating a sustainable runway event for the week’s event.
“We definitely wanted to make sure that we were giving them their space to have an event with us,” Chatman said. “It made sense to partner with them in terms of fashion because obviously sustainability has been a really big push over the years and continues to really be the focus in the fashion industry.”
Chatman said along with the inclusion of the fur-free runway policy during last year’s FWC, the Recycled Runway helps further the organization’s goal to be as ethical as possible in an industry where they’re often overlooked.
“There are so many elements to fashion that are not just glitz and glam,” Chatman said. “We want to make sure that people understand that we’re very cognizant of the direction the fashion industry is going and just knowing the importance of putting these things on a platform and putting these designers on a platform to allow people to really see, ‘Okay, I don’t need fur and I don’t need leather. I can look for other ways to enjoy fashion without destroying the environment.’”
This year’s Recycled Runway — which took place Oct. 16 in the Idea Foundry, located at 421 W. State St. in Columbus — featured unique designs from eight local designers.
Alex Tremblay, a third-year in psychology at Ohio State and a two-time participant in the FWC Recycled Runway, said his interest in incorporating recycled materials in fashion is what first led him to apply for the runway in 2023.
“I am just really interested in recycled materials in general,” Tremblay said. “I think a lot of what I like to do with fashion is take materials that people don’t necessarily think of as fashionable and I like to turn them into something that can be worn.”
Tremblay said following last year’s event — for which he designed and created a floor-length gown using plastic bags — he felt more prepared for this year’s runway.
“Last year I was honestly so stressed. I had just started really experimenting with recycled materials so I wasn’t sure of what direction I wanted to go so I remember there being a lot of stress around that and finding materials,” Tremblay said. “This year I had more of a direction of what I wanted to do which made the whole process a lot more smooth.”
Tremblay said for this year’s design, he found inspiration in the vibrant coastal textiles of his beloved East Coast, weaving the essence of his home into every stitch.
“I really wanted to showcase fisherman sweaters and I had also bought some fishing nets from the commercial fishing industry so everything was already used or second-hand,” Tremblay said.
Along with the knit fisherman sweaters and fishing net, Tremblay said he also used nautical rope used in lobster traps, which forced him to be creative in the construction of the final look.
“It’s made out of a really hard thick material that you can’t really sew through on a machine so I had to use crochet and tying techniques to fashion that into the skirt shape that I wanted,” Tremblay said. “It is just a lot of trial and error and using different fiber art techniques to get it all together.”
Scarlett Yu, a senior at Olentangy Liberty High School and a first-time Recycled Runway designer, said after creating five pieces for Scarlette Magazine’s ocean-themed photoshoot this semester — a skirt, a jacket, two tops and a dress — she decided to keep the collection going, creating one more ocean-themed look — a floor-length, strapless dress — to showcase during the runway.
“It is ombre, the top is white and it goes to blue, like waves in the ocean,” Yu said. “I cut these petals; I was going to do circles but I ended up making them more of an organic shape. It ended up being this flowy shape that was more natural, like the ocean. The cool thing about them was since I only attached the top of them when my model walked and the dress moved it rippled like the ocean.”
Having designed previous looks out of Duct Tape and paper bags, Yu said she was enthusiastic about working with recycled materials again.
“I’ve always been somebody who loved the idea that I can make anything,” Yu said. “I used to watch these YouTube DIY videos of people making stuff out of cardboard and then I would just make them myself. I just feel like I have more freedom with these unconventional materials.”
Yu said her creative process goes beyond simply designer — it’s also about the challenge of working with unique materials.
“I enjoy working with these unconventional materials but I wanted to do it in a way that people wouldn’t expect so I made up a lot of my own techniques and play around with a lot of materials,” Yu said. “I really wanted to surprise people and show that these ordinary materials that you can get every day, they can surprise you too.”
This being Yu’s first professional runway show, she said it was a unique experience to work with the Nurtur hair and makeup team to bring the final look to life.
“They are students from the salon so it was their chance to practice and express themselves too but I think because of that we all worked together really well,” Yu said. “It wasn’t just about the dress. We had decided to do this wet hair look and then I had got these water droplet beads and we put them dripping around her eyes and her face. It really made it look like she had just come out of the water. She looked like a goddess.”
For more information about FWC and the Recycled Runway, visit the FWC website.
Read the Fall/Winter 2024 sustainability issue of Scarlette Magazine online at issuu.com.
