King Charles’ and Vin + Omi Fashion Exhibition
Tiya Antony
Fashion News Editor
The royal family has recently been circulating in the news due to controversies, gossip, and recent family updates. However, there is fashion related news that involves King Charles in a movement towards sustainable and environmental-friendly fashion. Designers Vin Cara and Omi Ong who are commonly known as Vin + Omi are award winning fashion designer duos that are based in London. King Charles teamed up with the designers for the showcase titled “Royal Garden Waste to Fashion’s Future” which has started viewing from March 23rd and is expected to continue until early October.
Although Vin + Omi are not a fashion brand, they are fueled by the idea of creating sustainable collaborations with other brands. King Charles III has repeatedly displayed his commitment to the environment, with his organic garden at Highgrove. Vin and Omi met the King in 2018 at a Positive Fashion Initiative. The King was interested in showing them the estate gardens and discussing the possibilities of making garments with plants like nettles, cow parsley, chestnuts, and mushrooms.
The waste from the gardens of Charles’ private residence, like Sandringham and Highgrove House, was transformed into textiles for the fashion market, as per the King’s advice. New plant preparation methods and fiber bonding techniques have been used by the designer duo for years. These designs were showcased at London Fashion Week at the end of 2023 and STING, the Vin + Omi fashion show, to unveil the collaboration with the King.
Various textiles and garments have been produced by using nettles, bog cotton, yarn from wood, cow parsley, horsehair from stables, and recycled plastic plant pots to make jewelry. The nettles are stripped of leaves and the fibers are used in various ways to create different textural effects and are sometimes dyed with organic plants. The created pieces will be displayed at the Sandringham House ballroom in Norfolk and feature 26 garments and accessories.
The collection includes Vin + Omi’s experimentation with butterbur, an Asian bog plant, that grows near the lakes of Sandringham. Butterbur was used to make a maxi dress, and this marks the first time that Butterbur has been used in garment production.
Vin + Omi are working with a commitment to eco innovations, and having strong support from King Charles III allows new audiences to be aware of the importance of having a sustainable future and understand the movement towards environmentally friendly clothing.
Contact Tiya at antonyti@shu.edu