Last week I got an email from a brand I'd never heard before, Trendlistr, about their recent lingerie collection in collaboration with Effie Butterworth. I was immediately intrigued because Effie Butterworth is a fabulous vintage seller on Etsy who in addition to selling vintage lingerie, designs and makes their own vintage inspired lingerie. The concept was also interesting to me because of who Trendlistr is as a brand. They're based in Newcastle Upon Tyne and they too are a vintage clothing company, and they sell garments for men and women from the 1920s through to the 80s. So the question is, how do two vintage sellers collaborate?
As it turns out, very well! The lingerie collection created by Trendlistr and Effie Butterworth is absolutely incredible. The concept is that upcycled vintage silks are used to create a soft bralette and tap short sets. The idea came from Louisa from Trendlistr and Ellis from Effie Butterworth noticing that their friends had heirloom silk items that were never worn and both Louisa and Ellis wanted to bring life back to these pieces. “It seemed a shame to be unable to enjoy such beautiful items, which are often in near perfect condition.” Louisa from Trendlistr explains.
I was sort of skeptical about how these kinds of pieces could look before I saw the photos. But then I was floored, the collection is STUNNING. The silk prints used in the ready-to-order pieces are so intricately detailed and beautiful and truly unique. These sets run for £40, which isn't bad at all for a beautiful silk lingerie set. These sets run in S/M/L and due to the nature of these garments, there is only one of each.
They also offer custom sets for £85 in which the buyer will supply Trendlistr and Effie Butterworth with their own silks and have the lingerie made using those. These pieces take between 8-10 weeks to create and ship, but if you have a beautiful silk print that you don't wear, this is a wonderful way to upcycle it. In creating new pieces from old, Ellis says, “My background in costume has given me an appreciation for how creative you can be in fashion, and the use of salvaged fabrics to create new, exciting garments really appealed to me”. Ellis will be making the custom pieces from her studio in York.
I appreciate this line as a beautiful example of sustainable fashion. In the era of fast fashion, we create so much waste with our clothing, we buy something cheap, wear it a few times, then toss it for something new. This system is hardly sustainable financially, socially, and environmentally, and has only really developed in the past few decades. One of the reasons why I appreciate indie designers so much is because they want to create pieces to combat the fast fashion cycle. The Trendlistr and Effie Butterworth collaboration shows that clothing doesn't have to "die" in a landfill or even in the back of someone's closet, it can be reimagined and created into something completely new and fresh.
I've added more photos of the ready to wear pieces below to drool over!
What do you think of upcycled lingerie? Let me know in the comments!