Bio-Fashion talks: amazing w-e at Change-up Winter

This w-e was amazing for the chance to talk with great Italian brands of responsible fashion both at the workshop and at the stands during Change-up! Winter (SuperstudioPiù, November 18-20).

Credits: Federico Simone www.federicosimone.it
Here are the main topics of the workshop.
We started from topic of "etical fashion and international cooperation" with Gabriella Ghidoni and Lorenza Marzo.
Gabriella Ghidoni (Royah, Arte-fatto Onlus, www.royah.org) talked about “Royah Ethical Design: fashion in Kabul” explaining how fashion can help to reduce the distance between the eastern tradition and culture and western taste thanks to a group of women that collaborate in the Royah and Arte-fatto project started in 2005 in Kabul.

Credits: Marco Valerio Esposito
Lorenza Marzo (Light for New Life Foundation,www.light4newlife.wordpress.com) talked about "The condition of women in Tanzania and international cooperation": Light for New Life Foundation is a non-profit organization with the objective of sustaining a group of about 100 Tanzanian women giving new job opportunities.
The production of carpets becomes an activity for the women empowerment in the society. A small artisanal group with about 10 tailors are also producing bags with kitenge and batik, typical african coloured fabrics.

Credits: Federico Simone www.federicosimone.it
The second table was about the deep relationship between ethics and aesthetics with many guest speakers, starting from Roberta Rizzoli (Dr. Hauschka Cosmesi, WALA Italia, www.drhauschka.it) that talked about "Cosmetics and Natural glamour” and the importance of having a high quality certified product with the use of organic and natural ingredients.
Since it is a great challenge to produce high quality cosmetic and always available Dr. Hauschka started several projects of cultivation abroad, which ensures a constant availability of the highest quality ingredients and encourage bio-dynamic and organic agriculture. They also offer the opportunity for poor countries to contribute infrastructure to determine their own future. With these projects, farmers are guaranteed contracts in place for collaboration and long-term purchase and because of that local communities receive assistance in both financial and organizational, for obtaining organic certification. Here are the plans: Shea butter in Burkina Faso, Rosa damascena in Bulgaria, Afghanistan and Iran, Castor oil in India.

Credits: Federico Simone www.federicosimone.it
Ondine for Wave-O (www.wave-o.it) described the challenge of Wave-O, which is granting the premium quality using organic cotton trying to reduce the price of the final product: this is possible by having a monoproduct brand (producing T-shirt only), by increasing the economies of scale (keeping the production in the same factory in subcontracting) almost "0 Km".

Then we discussed about "Chic rycicling" together with Margherita Vaghi (La Bolsina, www.labolsina.com) which (re)uses fabrics that were "once for (luxury) hotels, now for bags”.

Carmela Lacerenza and Maria Gualtieri from Cami Gualta (www.camigualta.com) showed their incredible ability to make fashionable earings, necklaces, brooches and bracelets using rubber!

Francesca and Margherita Paglia from FeM Paglia (www.fempaglia.it) described how they "start from the recycled prestige fabrics" to make wonderful fashion creations.

At the end we all were delighted by the incredible jewels of Patricia Vergara from Madreplata (www.madreplata.com). The jewelry line Madreplata born in 2007 with the aim of providing a high quality product that combines the traditional Peruvian expertise in jewels with the Italian design. Silver,Peruvian shells and semiprecious stones, are the materials used to create unique pieces crafted with traditional techniques such as hammer, knitting, crocheting, and the watermark.