This garment was created as a finalist entry for the Eco-Friendly Design Contest: Wear We Are Going. (https://wearwearegoing.org/)
The vision of this garment is to create a flower in the city; the embodiment of the resilience to be yourself surrounded by uniformity. The garment is in pattern and motion inspired by the nature of the ocean, and in color and silhouette inspired by the nature of the land. Inspiration was drawn from the Firewheel flower and hollow stem Joe Pye weed because these are plants native to New York. This inspiration can be seen in the two mood boards. The garment hopes to show that one can remain true to themselves while adapting to their surroundings and was photographed in Manhattan.
The grey pattern on the bottom of the shorts is derived from sound waves of marine life, and shows that adaptation (the grey of NYC) is an enhancement to your being, not a hindrance. Further inspiration of the city is the practicality of the outfit. It is a part of the piece that does not take away from it, but simply allows it to exist in the environment it was catered towards. Due to the upwards volume of the sleeves and detachable cape, the wearer can walk in a crowd, ride the subway, and perform other everyday activities with ease. The garment juxtaposes the architecture of New York City while maintaining the heart of its people and the designer.
In being sustainable, all textiles used to create the garment are acquired from Fabscraps. Fabscraps, a local 501(c)3 charitable organization based in Brooklyn that collects textile waste and reuses/recycles it, and from Saint Vincent De Paul, a second-hand shop. The garment is primarily out of cotton and is all naturally dyed.
Alexandra Alesii Debler 