NTA x NYFW 22 Sustainable Runway Recap
Photo: Sravya Balasa
As the week nears its end, the chaos of Fashion Week is dying down, and we’re trading our street style for sweatpants as we take a break to reset. This week has gifted New York City with the trends of next Spring and Summer, incredible memories, and quite a few hangovers. In a nod to sustainability, we’ve seen more and more designers openly discussing their sourcing and ethics practices. We love to see it.
You know what we love to see even more? Designers who are inspired by upcycling, recycled fabrics, climate activism, and the aesthetics of the Earth. On Monday, NYC welcomed 7 independent, self-proclaimed sustainable designers to fashion week, in a show coordinated by featured designer Natalia Trevino Amaro. From striking pieces inspired by the climate crisis, to the romantic touches of eco printing techniques, the show exhibited the artistry and innovation that sustainable fashion demands.
I couldn’t be more happy that the first NYFW show I attended (fashionably late, while live-streaming the Berriez show on my way to the location) centered clothing made from scrap fabrics, upcycling, and non toxic dyes, and that it created a space for so many Latine designers to showcase their work 💖
Photo: Sravya Balasa
Miami-based Puerto Rican designer Veronica Arroyo debuted their collection “2040 to ‘Dye’ For.” A collection inspired by the different climate crises we are seeing around the world - oil spills, droughts, water pollution. Arroyo was “inspired to make deconstructed business wear, because as the world is coming to an end, we’re being told [it’s] ‘business as usual'.”
The collection makes the Earth falling apart look so put together. It’s a powerful message sent through the medium of the hunky shapes of ‘80s business aesthetics, and telling of a long past and future through modern takes on 18th-19th century historical silhouettes of skirts, corsets, and dresses. The closing piece was stunning: a “trash” dress that was made from scrap fabric and Publix grocery bags.
Photo: Sravya Balasa
Based in Mexico City, Herim-po’s collection was inspired by African textiles. The name “Herimpo” comes from the word “courage” in Malagasy, a language spoken in Madagascar. Their slogan is derived from their name: “have the courage to be yourself, represent the strength to keep going, to show who we are, and never hide our essence.”
Photo: Sravya Balasa
The pieces that married neutral and bold colors with ornate African geometric patterns were styled with staples like denim and all black garments. We can very much get behind their closing piece: a white asymmetrical dress with the words “Fuck Fast Fashion” sewn onto the front in bright orange.
Inspired by nature’s romance, Tracy Garcia, of Transformations by Tracy, showcased a line of earthy and ethereal lingerie. Garcia aimed to bring focus to the colors and hues of the collection. By using foliage to create print textiles using an eco printing technique, she brings awareness to the amount of damage and water pollution produced by the toxic dyes of everyday clothing.
The pieces that hit the runway fused earth, body, and fashion. Sheer fabrics, corsets, lace, silk, and garters are incredibly sexy components to work with. These pieces remind us of Mother Earth's grace and sensuality. The collection is, in its essence, lingerie that can easily be styled as elevated street wear. Though not officially part of the collection, Garcia walked down the runway in an eco-printed corseted gown (that may have accidentally stolen the show 🤭)
Founded by Colombian-American duo Brian Valencia and Angelita Muñoz, Estudio Orgánico is a multi-functional brand based in South Florida. Their latest collection is based on the duality of nature in South Florida, showing key subspecies versus invasive species.
Photo: Sravya Balasa
My personal favorite piece of the night was a burgundy and white corseted dress with ruffled bell sleeves that was inspired by the lionfish, an invasive species of fish that is affecting the balance of invaded ecosystems and fisheries in Florida. In contrast, the collection was also inspired by the native species of Florida, like the iguana, represented by an olive denim set whose sleeves turn into bags.
Rachel Erin’s collection felt kind of like the Paper Bag princess grew up to be a regalcore queen with cottagecore tendencies. The Boston based designer specializes in corsetry, dressmaking, and lingerie. To the tune of T Swift instrumentals, Erin unveiled pieces that understood how to make neutrals bold, pairing them with round and angular shapes.
Photo: Sravya Balasa
Erin opened with a corset that left our CEO, Jazmine Rogers, with stars in her eyes. The corset trend has popularized tight-fitting corsets, but this one brought new life to the trend with its sweetheart neckline and peplum-inspired flared bottom. She ended with a stunning front-tie duster with puffy sleeves that screamed “I’m in my regency era.”
Photo: Sravya Balasa
Dominican-American designer Yannah Jones showed their debut lingerie collection for Bernelli. Based in NYC and the Hamptons, Jones' collection was inspired by textiles that they have collected since they were sixteen years old. Years worth of collected textiles created a line in which contrasting eras, colors, and prints reflected the nature of the collection - very pretty in punk.
Each look was almost entirely different from the next. The featured patterns and fabrics ebbed and flowed between bright, edgy, and near-naked, and cool-toned, dainty, and feminine. A deep purple and black corset with drapey pants was the perfect set to tie together punk and feminine energies. There was so much movement in the green slip dress that came out last - proof that our clothes can detail our motions, and turn us into art.
Closing out the night was the event coordinator Natalia Trevino Amaro’s collection. Trevino Amaro wanted to make a collection that was wearable, comfortable and could be worn and kept for an entire lifetime. She was stuck in a creative rut when some gifted fabrics from a job in LA suddenly inspired her latest line of basics.
The pieces were a departure from her usual hyper feminine designs, but attest to her ability to adapt to new environments. Trevino Amaro showed neutral toned basics that can serve as the perfect base for any outfit - and they looked so comfortable! She closed the evening with a white layered gown featuring a deep V neckline. The gown was a sharp contrast to the other looks, but called back to Trevino Amaro’s hyper feminine roots.
I left the event thinking that Bob Ross was right when he said, “the secret to doing anything is believing that you can do it.” A few years ago, at the beginning of the pandemic, these designers were bonding over the internet about their love for sustainability and design. The venue became a place where once-imagined designs materialized into ethically made collections. The designers and attendees got to meet their mutuals, their faves, and new like-minded people!
I met one of my favorite content creators, Berenice Castro, a Latina who is literally running the maximalist side of TikTok, and who was named one of TikTok’s Latinx TikTok Trailblazers. I was so happy to see her there, and to see that so many of the designers featured were also from a Latine background.
From being outspoken about the fact that fast fashion companies steal small designers’ designs, helping the community to learn how to sew, or spreading awareness of climate change and the role that fashion has to play in the state of the environment, these designers are doing it right. We couldn’t be more proud to have shared this moment with them.