Image: The Red Dress on display at Bath Spa University’s Locksbrook campus for Sustainable Fashion Week 2024 Credit: Alix Coombs

Last week saw lots of exciting Sustainable Fashion Week events take place at Bath Spa University’s Locksbrook campus, which was the Flagship Hub for 2024. Events across the week included a film screening of The Nettle Dress, the display of The Red Dress and a talk from it’s creator, Kirstie Macleod, a panel discussion on history, heritage and sustainability, along with a number of workshops on mending, upcycling and beyond. The week also saw a clothes swap and a number of sellers operating out of Locksbrook.

The star of the week was undoubtedly the stunning Red Dress, which was on display alongside a short film about it’s creation and a 3D digital rendering from BSU academic Dr. Coral Manton. The dress spent 14 years, from 2009 to 2023, travelling between 51 different countries in 87 different pieces to be embellished by 380 embroiders. It is an incredible piece of art that showcases the identity we carry through craft, and the solidarity that can be found in artistic expression. It is a truly incredible piece, and if you happened to miss out you can still check out Dr. Manton’s 3D render of the dress right here.

Image: The panel discussion at SFW on history, heritage and sustainability. L-R: Amelia Twine, Jamilla Ives, Tamara Cincik, Kate Hills, Ruth Rands Credit: Alix Coombs

The panel event on Thursday night was another big success, bringing together experts from different corners of the industry to engage on history, heritage and sustainability in fashion, and how we can learn from the past to change the course of fashion for a better future. The event was Chaired by Tamara Cincik, Founder of Fashion Roundtable and Professor of Sustainable Fashion at Bath Spa University, who was joined on the panel by Kate Hills from Make it British, Jamilla Ives from the King’s Foundation, Ruth Rands from Herdwear, and the one and only Amelia Twine, the incredible woman behind Sustainable Fashion Week. The discussion was rich and centred on the value of preserving and reinvigorating the skills the fashion industry needs to thrive on British soil. Catch a full recording of the discussion on Fashion Roundtable’s Instagram.

SFW took place all around the country, for a successful program of events that engaged communities in the power of local action in reducing the harms of the fashion industry. Congratulations to Amelia for another massively successful year!

Sustainable Fashion Week Empowers Local Solutions