Part of the Young Entrepreneurs & Leaders Speaker Series showcase in Brunei
From November 27th to December the 2nd 2019, we’re showcasing Australian sustainable fashion designers and creatives who form part of the Youth Entrepreneurs & Leaders Speaker Series delegation to Brunei covering the Future of Fashion. Our keynote speaker is the incredible Britt Dreghorn, founder of Britt’s List, who will be accompanied by curator Elise Stephenson to run a week of workshops on sustainable fashion and social enterprise. Join us in celebrating Australian excellence in sustainable and ethical fashion, and follow along to learn more.
Curated by
With thanks to
for support and funding
Our sustainable fashion showcases brands that:
Are Australian-owned
Strive for ethical employee outcomes
Women and/or minority-led
Make ethical & sustainable fabric choices
Use recycled / upcycled materials
Demonstrate an ethical & sustainable supply chain
Indija
Mahjoeddin
Who is Seljak Brand?
Seljak Brand makes recycled wool blankets using offcuts from the factory floor of Australia’soldest mill in Tasmania. The blankets are made in the same mill from 70% recycled Australian merino wool and a 30% blend of recycled alpaca, mohair and polyester for strength. Wool is a natural fibre that isincredibly hard to replicate – it’sarenewable resource, it is odour and stain resistant, antibacterial,lightweight, breathable and insulating.After the blanket has enjoyedalong, adventurous life we’ll collect it free of charge using Sendle,a carbon neutral courier service. Back at the mill, we’ll shred it and spin it into new yarn to makefuture blankets.
This circular model allows us to divert waste from landfill and create a luxurious and usefulblanket for your cosiness.
Who is Magknitude?
My name is Colleen McCormack and I am the founder of Magknitude a bespoke business for handknit accessories and homewares. I make products that range from simple merino hats and wrist warmers with loving detail and design a feature of both, to more lavish scarves and also very large chunky knit merino throws and blankets as homewares. I mostly utilise fibres such as merino, bamboo and alpaca in my creations but intend to expand this range as is evident in the garment ‘The Right Angle’ featuring yarns such as hemp, linen, llama, lyocell, mohair, silk, bamboo, cotton, wool and banana silk.
We source the finest raw materials from suppliers who share in our mission and excel in social and environmental responsibility. Every button, rivet, and stitch is carefully selected by our designers with intention to minimise impact on the environment and to mitigate the risk of exploitation in our supply chain. I love that my work allows me to use up accumulated or ‘stash yarns’, reclaimed yarn (when appropriate), sustainably sourced yarns, Australian or New Zealand (local yarns), organically certified yarns, there are currently so many options and it is a simple process to register with a local charity to fundraise for them via your business which I have done for Rural Aid by means of gold coin donation. My intention is to repay the very producers of wool who go through all the hardship that they endure just so we can work with such a fine product and reap the benefits.
Who is The Social Outfit?
We’re an independently-accredited, ethical trading social enterprise that provides employment and training in the fashion industry to people from refugee and new migrant communities in clothing production, retail, design and marketing. We believe that by tapping into the creativity of refugee communities it can lead to empowerment and social inclusion.
The Social Outfit is accredited and licensed to display the Ethical Clothing Australia trademark on its Australian-made garments. Ultimately, we want to continue to make and sell quality products that help financially empower people, and provide customers with unique pieces that tell amazing human stories.
Who is Amira Al-Maani?
As a designer I endeavor to fuse my Ethnic heritage with the modern flare of the West to create wearable works of art. Elegance and confidence is the ultimate experience I want to create when clientele wear my garments. My products have a special personal touch and are unique in the sense that they are limited edition in fabric and colour. I design functional yet stylish modest clothing that can be worn to any occasion. I follow the slow fashion trend of bringing out a collection once or twice a year so as to reduce consumer waste. My designs are versatile and can be worn in many different looks to reduce the need to buy multiple products. My staple designs are timeless and can stay in the wardrobe for many years to come. Everything is made in Australia to support the economy and to pay fair wages.
Who is Full Circle Fibres & Australian Super Cotton?
Not all products are created equally and you care about the true origins of the materials you use. We source and supply high quality yarn and material with the full journey attached so you can create with conscience. Full Circle Fibres is about connecting the links from grower to user, respecting the source and the stages to usefulness as gently and carefully as possible.
With Full Circle Fibres you’ll join a journey about finding and using sustainably and ethically sourced fibres, yarns and fabrics, crafting tips, articles about the wonderful growers, suppliers and processors, and as the rage grows, products for you to enjoy, use and share.
Australian Super Cotton are third generation family owned and operated cotton farmers and Australia’s only remaining dedicated grower of Australian Long Staple (ALS) Cotton. We can value add to brand owners via “ingredient marketing”. The brand has multiple layers including the Australian family farming story, high quality cotton and care for the natural environment and was designed to position Australian cotton against other competing nations such as America and Egypt.
Through collaboration with the Australian textile industry and Full Circle Fibres we have managed to create a 100% Australian made and grown the supply chain to make Australian Cotton fabric accessible to Australian designers and the craft market.
Who is Team Timbuktu?
Team Timbuktu’s journey started from crowdfunding to build our community and help fund our first production run and we’ve been growing ever since then. We’ve evolved from Mister Timbuktu to Team Timbuktu, to show our commitment to inclusivity and our belief that this really is a team effort.
Sustainability is a core value for the brand, with all products being made in the more responsible way, using recycled fabrics, eliminating plastic packaging and doing everything we can to reduce our impact. But sustainability is an ever evolving journey, we’re not perfect (and no one is), so as we grow we’ll continue to implement more sustainable practices as soon as we can.
We know that it can be pretty overwhelming to know where to start, we’ve made a lot of negative environmental impact as humans so far, but we think there’s an incredible opportunity to create change and improve, rather than focus on everything we’ve done wrong so far.
Who is Outland Denim?
Outland Denim crafts premium denim jeans designed to bring the worlds of our seamstresses and our customers closer together. We source the finest raw materials from around the world while offering sustainable employment and training opportunities to women who have experienced exploitation. We have proven that a sustainable career path and holistic approach to supporting our staff is the key to true social change in not only the lives of our staff but their families and communities.
We source the finest raw materials from suppliers who share in our mission and excel in social and environmental responsibility. Every button, rivet, and stitch is carefully selected by our designers with intention to minimise impact on the environment and to mitigate the risk of exploitation in our supply chain.
Who is Genkstasy?
Sunshine Coast born Evie Willsteed started Genkstasy in 2017 as a way to open up conversations about gender and diversity. Genkstasy creates non-binary unisex streetwear. Exploring these territories through clothing and fashion felt like an authentic and inclusive way to open up a dialogue about what it means to be who we are in 2019, in Brisbane, and also in the world. Bringing over 15 years experience in creative clothing construction and combining that with years of self-directed studies of sustainability, gender, society, and what it means to be human, Evie has grown Genkstasy into a solid brand that speaks to a new and expanding generation. With features in publications such as Peppermint Magazine, Frankie, The Courier Mail, The Cocktail Revolution, 2serFM, and many more, Genkstasy is making their mark in Australia’s expanding and thriving fashion landscape.
Who is Citizen Wolf?
Citizen Wolf exists instead to promote a healthier relationship with the clothes you wear, built around the three core values below. Our vision is nothing less than shifting the global fashion industry away from mass-production to on demand tailoring.
You know food miles? Well the exact same thing applies in fashion and most of your clothes have criss-crossed the planet during their production, spewing unnecessary carbon in the process. This is clearly insane, so our story begins by building the shortest supply chain in the game and proudly playing our part in the renaissance of local manufacturing. Most of our fabrics are knitted in Melbourne and every Citizen Wolf Tee is cut and sewn in our St Peters factory.
We are proudly Ethical Clothing Australia (ECA) certified which means that our staff are paid award wages or better. We are regularly audited and have voluntarily opted-in to the Modern Slavery Act to work towards eliminating exploitation throughout all tiers of our supply chain (ie down to the farm level). Our merino wool is also certified cruelty-free, sourced only from non-mulesed sheep around Dubbo in central NSW.
Our pledge to send nothing to landfill starts by upcycling all our offcut scraps into our famous Zero Waste Tote.
Indija
Mahjoeddin
Who is Indija Mahjoeddin?
As a freelance artist Adelaide-born Indija Mahjoeddin operates her business under her own name. Her enterprise currently offers tiny sculptures and wearable art made of porcelain and silver. She is always branching out though – another project in the pipeline is making chocolate rhinos in a bid to raise awareness of the endangered status of these creatures.
Indija began ceramic carving when ‘serendipity’ presented her with a few bags of fine porcelain at a time when she needed a break from working on her Master’s thesis. Indija’s cultural background has informed her aesthetic and work in the arts, from dance to children’s theatre to writing libretti for a Sumatran folk opera. Everything she’s done comes together in her small sculptural pieces, which are works of art first and items of jewellery second.
Who is Britt’s List?
Britt’s List is an online fashion publication dedicated to telling the stories behind Australian fashion brands that lead their industry in environmental sustainability and ethical treatment of people and animals.
Lots of Australian brands are making efforts in sustainability. It means ethical production. It means renewable energy in manufacturing. It means quality fabrics that don’t cost the earth and break down easily. It means responsible waste management. And it means ethically sourced animal products or none at all. Britt’s List strives to educate Australians about the brands that are driving change.
We also talk to experts in the sustainable fashion industry – from researchers to sustainability advocates and designers – to make sure all of our information is backed and up to scratch. We help our readers understand and avoid companies that embrace unsustainable and damaging practices in the fashion industry
Media Kit
For reporting and covering any of our events and involvement.
Opportunities
To get involved in some way, collaborate, or help promote our work, get in touch with our Curator, Elise Stephenson: elise@sgo.tempurl.host
Our values
We are committed to running ethical and environmentally sustainable events that are inclusive and welcoming of youth and supporters from all backgrounds.
Our events are safe and celebratory spaces for all genders and sexualities, cultures, (dis)abilities, and other intersectionalities.
Thank you to the Australian Government for providing the support and funding to make this possible.
