On the 24th and 25th of September the “Groot Rotterdams Ateliers Weekend” took place where visitors were able to visit the studios of many different artists and take a look at their art. 

During this weekend I decided to visit “De Wasserij” (translated to The Laundromat), a fashion hub where innovative fashion professionals meet, collaborate, and exchange knowledge.

The increasing knowledge of the destructive impact of the fashion industry is why it is important for these fashion professionals to be focused on creating a better future for our planet. 

While working on a sustainable future is becoming increasingly important for many, there is a lack of focus on the social inequality that the fashion industry creates. In “De Wasserij” the artists are aware of this problem and are actively working on finding new responsible ways to make clothing through the development of new methods.

Examples of methods that artists are working with local manufacturers or using circular and sustainable materials. Other methods include focusing on slow fashion or creating timeless designs. 

Let’s take a look at some of the artists in “De Wasserij”.

Tegendraads

Tegendraads was established in 2008 by designer Thijs van Buuren. He taught himself how to embroider at a young age since he was certain he could do better than what the stores had. 

Tegendraads has its own website where they sell sweaters, shirts, hoodies, and polos with different embroidery designs including the famous “Erasmusbrug” and the “Euromast” in Rotterdam.

It was super cool to walk through the studio of Tegendraads and see the computers and machines working on the designs. 

Thijs was nice enough to tell me a bit more about the brand. The brand uses sustainable materials in its sweaters and even for embroidery. However, he did mention that while there are options for sustainable embroidery thread, there is still a lack of options compared to traditional nylon thread. 

It was fascinating to learn more about embroidery and see the process happen in the studio.

Want to see more of Tegendraads? Take a look at the website or visit their Instagram (@tegendraads).

Studio Lianne Janssen

Lianne Janssen is a fashion designer whose work focuses on material research. Her designs are intended to be minimalistic, functional, and gender-neutral. Next to this, she aims to keep her footprint as low as possible by including zero-waste and sustainability in her working process. All materials she works with are completely natural and environmentally friendly.

Lianne has already created several different projects. 

Her latest project, a Collective Matter, is her graduation work. For this collection, she used raw materials from the Dutch lands. The materials include wool, clay, and natural pigments. The collection tells a story of how in the future humankind will live together with nature instead of fighting it.

Another collection from Lianne Janssen is called the veggie collection. The vegetable leek inspired this collection. For the creation of the garment, 100% hemp and silk were used. The end result looks incredible.

Want to read more about the other collections and projects from Lianne Janssen please visit her website or take a look at her Instagram (@lianne_janssen).

Kukka

Kukka was established by Dutch designer Laura Luchtman. Kukka is a design studio focused on textile and material research. The design studio aspires to change the perception and create opportunities for a more conscious and sustainable fashion industry.

Kukka is aware of the importance of social, ecological, and cultural issues and takes these issues as a starting point for their projects. 

Kukka’s vision for a sustainable future is one that is circular, renewable, and bio-based.

One of the projects the design studio did was for the activewear brand Puma. For this collection, the brand created a material dyed by bacteria. Through this method, the toxic chemicals that are typically used for dying fabrics are eliminated.

Want to learn more about Kukka? Please visit their website or take a look at their Instagram (@kukkadesign).

Fleur Kassels Fine Jewelry

As you can read from the title this is a jewelry brand, which is a bit different from all the fashion brands I normally talk about on this blog. However, this was such a cute studio that I cannot leave it off this list.

Fleur makes all her jewelry by hand; from the sketch, and the creation of the molds to the finished product. To create the jewelry Fleur uses hand tools that have been in her family for years. 

The inspiration for her designs she gets from her own miniature world. which includes the cutest little couches and chairs.

Every single piece of jewelry is unique, because of the molding technique.

The materials used for Fleur’s jewelry is made from recycled 14k gold and silver.

Want to see more of Fleur Kassels Fine Jewelry? Please visit their website or Instagram (@fleurkassels_jewelry).

Most pictures are taken from the internet and contain a link to the sites where I found them. All credits to the rightful owners.