Junk Kouture challenges young people to design, upcycle and create high end Kouture from recycled Junk, before showcasing their design and representing their school on stages across the world!

Junk Kouture offers schools and students a creative way to become involved in active climate change initiatives, empowering them to lasting behavioural change. It is open to 13-18 year-olds.

A group of three ISN students, Vega, Luisa and Lily, under the guidance of Mrs Curtis, our school Director, took on the challenge of designing a piece for the initiative as part of their Changemakers sessions.

Changemakers is a dynamic enrichment programme that provides expanded opportunities beyond academics for students to explore and develop their talents and abilities, and learn more about the wide range of options available to them for their futures. While the school curriculum currently inspires, supports and nourishes learners to be open-minded, critical thinkers and problem-solvers, Changemakers offers expanded co-curricular opportunities for students to become active, engaged, and visionary change makers.

The students shared with us the design process:

“When we first started brainstorming about our design, we decided to take advantage of our location in the South of France and take inspiration from our surroundings when creating this dress. The colours and textures of the natural surroundings, such as the ocean, heavily influenced our design process. As well as by the French fashion tradition of effortless elegance. We envisioned a wide skirt that would evoke the spirit of the Mediterranean sea and the warmth of the sun. 

Working with different materials collected from self-organized beach clean-ups, and collaborations with local companies, we were able to create a base from extra cardboard and minimal sewing with an old donated zipper from a backpack. The use of soda tabs was originally used to promote sustainability in primary school, however, we did not want them to go to waste and incorporated them into our corset tops. Ultimately, our sustainable top and skirt embodies our commitment to preserving the natural beauty of our surroundings and to promoting a more sustainable future for fashion. We hope that our design will inspire others to embrace recycled fashion and to consider the environmental impact of their clothing choices.”

We are proud to announce that their fantastic design has been selected for the Junk Kouture Paris City Final. This will take place on Monday 8 May at 19h00, live on YouTube.

"It feels amazing to have been recognized for our efforts throughout this project! Regardless of our ups and downs we preserved and finished on a high note! I would highly recommend this as a project for the upcoming Grade 11s" – Vega, student.

"I couldn't be more proud of all of us, I am truly grateful for experiencing this opportunity and having the support that we received.” Luisa, student.