Minimum fuss, Maximum style by Anuj Sharma, India

Anuj Sharma got his post graduate degree in Apparel Design from the prestigious NID, India. He was awarded the 'Charles Wallice India trust scholarship' in 2002 to study Masters in High performance Sportswear Design from the University of Derby, UK. 


Recently selected as one of the four finalists for the'International Young Fashion Entrepreneur' of the Year award by British council, India, Sharma works with areas of craft development and performance wear. His other interests have included teaching fashion and understanding human behavior with the help of fashion. 


He was also awarded the Marie Claire Most Innovative Designer of the Year award in 2009.


He has previously shown his collection in Japan and at the Lakme fashion week in Mumbai. This revolutionary designer has developed a new concepts (patents applied for) to make garments that have minimal or no stitches on them! His missionary motives, revolutionary ideas and commitment to design have won him many accolades. 


Anuj’s philosophy is about sustainability and longevity instead of fashionable fickleness. He teaches crafts persons and weavers to become independent and make “designer” garments and would rather mobilize action and money for them than for a show at Paris Fashion Week. He makes his clothes with minimum fuss, minimum manpower, without any machines.

Both Knot For You, his 2007 collection, and Button Masala of 2009 were big hits. His latest New Improved, Button masala is a collection of garments that can be worn, then opened up, and refashioned into something else depending on your mood and ability. New, Improved worked with rubber bands just as Button Masala worked with buttons.

This is the Anuj Sharma genius. His easy, fluid, anti-fit dresses aren’t just dresses. They can be turned into a cushion cover, a bag, a shirt, a kurti or anything else by re-knotting or re-buttoning the fabric. He can teach you how in less than five minutes and make ten garments in half an hour. Take a worn, boring shirt from your man’s wardrobe to Anuj and he will turn it into an exciting bag or knot your stole into a tube top while you sip your coffee.

The garments are immensely wearable, modern and have a point of view. Audiences clapped loudly, industry bigwigs hugged him and fashion critics hailed him as Indian fashion’s wacky and ingenious beta. 

Melbourne awaits to unknot these beautiful creations at the humble Ethical fashion hub SO ETHIC.

mail@soethic.net

With inputs from Shefalee Vasudev  who was the editor of Maire Claire. She is working on a book on Indian fashion to be published by Random House India in 2011.

Padmaja Krishnan, India's hidden secret now in Melbourne

Every material we see is usually what our memory recalls it as. However, when we add imagination to this memory there lies a possibility of a transformation, the possibility that the same materials be redefined and given an alternative life, form and meaning .

A piece of fabric lying on the floor..is it scrap to be discarded or could it be part of a beautiful textile yet to be created.

2 sleeves with cuffs, a collar and a placket..is that a skirt? a shirt? or could it be flipped over as a bag? Its all of that and more, depending on your imagination.

Born in Kolkata, India in 1976, Padmaja Krishnan studied commerce at Kolkata University and fashion design at India’s National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi. Today, she states three ambitions:

firstly, to observe and reflect in her designs the relationship between human behaviour and clothing;

secondly, to integrate the work of traditionally skilled artisans with modern design practice; thirdly, tocombine sustainability and social responsibility with humour and delight.

The first objective was clear from the outset: her graduating menswear collection from NIFT was a comment on how cultural and gender roles had changed since the industrial revolution. The second and third principles are widely evident in a portfolio of consultancy, research and training assignments to government and privately-funded conservation initiatives. These range from the promotion of the rare indigenous silk weaving and textile techniques of Meghalaya, Assam and Nepal, to workshops with traditional embroiderers and palm-leaf weavers.

Krishnan set up her company Transit Design, in 2005. Transit Studio is a small-scale fashion and textile “laboratory” developing a line of “non-conformative, quirky and peaceful” clothing for men and women, as well as a collection of curious and finely detailed handcrafted products in cotton, silk, leather and other

natural materials.

We particularly loved Padmaja's art- Handcrafted laptops- See it to believe it- http://transitdesign.in/blog/?p=210

Watch out for Krishnan's select quilts and garments at So Ethic, Melbourne- SOON!

mail@soethic.net

Flora and Fauna from Canada now at So Ethic, Melbourne

About the designer:

Pauline started working in the fashion industry in Toronto after studying Fashion Design at Ryerson University. Drawn by BC's beautiful surroundings and the abundance of wildlife, Pauline moved to Vancouver where flora&fauna, the eco-fashion label flora&fauna was born.

Drawing inspiration from beauty in nature, the irresistible cuteness of animals, and the intricacy of the planet's delicate eco-system, all of flora&fauna's pieces reflect Pauline's deep love for the natural beauty in our world. With a blend of clean lines, rich colours, and lasting style, flora&fauna incorporates nature and animal themes into each design, and is proud to support local animal welfare and nature conservation organizations.

All of flora&fauna's pieces are locally, ethically, and sustainably made.

Flora and Fauna range will be available at So Ethic in Melbourne soon! 

mail@soethic.net

Bangladesh's Pride- Bibi Russell comes together with So Ethic, Melbourne

Born into a prominent Bangladeshi family, Bibi spent time in outlying villages in the rural areas of her country, soaking up the strong colours and distinctive patterns that marked out the fabrics made by local craftspeople. This childhood experience sparked an interest in hand-woven textiles that led her to Britain and become the first woman from her country to study at the London College of Fabric in 1972. In 1975 she modeled her own collection at the graduation show, which launched her modeling career. For nearly 20 years her beauty and grace populated the world's fashion magazines and catwalks.

By the early 1990s, Bibi decided that it was time to return home, relocating to the city of Dhaka to establish what she calls her dream and build a worldwide reputation for the hand-woven textiles she remembered from her childhood. A tru humanitarian at heart, Bibi Russell also strives to alleviate the suffering of street children. "Our world, our future lies in the hands of the next generation," says the designer, "Be they poor or well fed, they are tomorrow's leaders. I have taken it upon myself to teach them to be self-sufficient young people and to encourage self-employment."

In 1996 Bibi presented her first ready-to-wear collection at a fashion show entitled Weavers of Bangladesh, held at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris . UNESCO has supported all three of Bibi Russell's major shows in Europe . The second show in August 1997, Colours of Bangladesh, at the Castell de elliver in Palma de Mallorca was launched and supported by HRH The Queen of Spain.

Owing to Bibi's growing popularity, she was made a guest at the cultural event Knitting Together Nations - Fashion and Crafts from Women of Bosnia an Herzegovina , jointly sponsored by UNESCO and UNHCR, held in December 1997. She was also voted Woman of the Year by Elle in 1997. In September 1998, with the support of UNESCO and the British Fashion Council, Bibi staged her third show in London, Stars of Bangladesh, where HRH Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg and Ms. Clare Short, a Member of the British Parliament, were guests of honour.

The following year on 13 May 1999 the Fashion Space Gallery in London exhibited Bibi's work, coinciding with her receiving an Honorary Fellowship of the London Institute in recognition of her outstanding contribution ot the field of fabric and design. UNESCO recognised her unfailing attempt to support human dignity, development and the eradication of poverty with the honorary title of Designer for Development, UNESCO Special Envoy on 4 October 1999 and the title of Artist for Peace on 27 November 2001.

The year of 2003 proved to be another year of success for Bibi in promoting her cause. She was awarded You Can Change the World by the Club of Budapest and played an important role in presenting the Images of Asia fashion show in Denmark, dedicated to the weavers of Bangladesh. The United Nations Association of Spain awarded Bibi the prestigious Peace Prize 2004 for her efforts to fight poverty in Bangladesh and for her dedication in building a bridge between cultures, between modernity and tradition. Bibi Russell held her first show in Germany in 2005, presenting her spring/summer collection at IGEDO.

To this day Bibi Russell continues to pursue her commitment to fighting poverty and improving the social and economic development of weavers in Bangladesh . Fashion for Development seeks to blend the creativity of the local artisans with that of Bibi's professional design and fashion background to secure market outlets for the artisans and thereby preserve and revive the weaving heritage of Bangladesh .

SO Ethic is honored to be associated with a name like Bibi. We welcome her on board.

mail@soethic.net