We love to see our tartan take on a new life and just had to know more after spotting our tartan offcuts on student Millie’s outfit in the Junk Kouture competition. You might be wondering what the Junk Kouture competition is and how did Millie get involved? Keep reading to learn all about it.More
We love to see our tartan take on a new life and just had to know more after spotting our tartan offcuts on student Millie’s outfit in the Junk Kouture competition. You might be wondering what the Junk Kouture competition is and how did Millie get involved? Keep reading to learn all about it.
Junk Kouture is a fashion competition which encourages students between 12 and 19 years old to design, create and model fashion made using only recycled materials. Students can use anything to create their pieces, as long as they are breathing new life into something that would otherwise go to waste. Here at MacGregor and MacDuff, we are always doing our best to make sure as little of our materials go to waste as possible so we love the ethos behind the competition. Fourteen year old Millie was encouraged by her art teacher to get involved in the project, along with some of her classmates. Historically, very few Scottish schools have taken part so this was an excellent opportunity for Millie to get involved and showcase her creativity.
The idea behind Millie’s outfit started with the materials themselves. She was given scrap cashmere and tartan, two materials synonymous with Scotland and continued with this theme when developing her design. She wanted to take these traditional textiles and make them into something modern, mixing the fabrics with lace and scrap metal. Working with the tartan was a first for Millie, but she enjoyed the process. The result is a kaleidoscope of colour and texture. With sustainability being at the heart of the project, the students also have to provide a written piece explaining the story behind their outfit.
The results of all of Millie’s hard work is a breathtaking outfit that combines these traditional materials with a contemporary silhouette. Millie combined weaving techniques with draping and even made unique footwear to complete the look. The name of the outfit is ‘Woman’s Work,’ which Millie told us “ties into the brief and the fact that weaving and dressmaking (and every other technique used) showcases something which was historically done by, and deemed as, women's work.” This goes to show just how much thought was put into every detail. To complete the project, Millie planned a photoshoot and modelled her outfit in the grounds of the Dunfermline Abbey and Palace. This location has strong links to Scottish kings and queens, with Robert the Bruce being buried there, so this again ties in perfectly with the contrast of old and new.
Millie’s outfit impressed the judges so much that she progressed to the London final of the competition, with only 40 other UK finalists. Ten of these competitors will advance to the world final later in the year. It’s clear that Millie has put a huge amount of effort and dedication into both her outfit and photoshoot, and we are sure all of her hard work and effort will pay off. This is just the start of Millie’s creativity journey, who would like to pursue a career in the fashion and textile industry in the future.
Head to Millie’s Instagram to see more of her work, along with her fellow students’ outfits here. You can learn more about the Junk Kouture competition and follow Millie’s progress here. A huge thank you to Millie and her dad Paul for taking the time to speak with us. We wish Millie all the best with the next stage of the competition. If you're feeling inspired to give some old materials a new lease of life, shop our tartan offcuts here.
