ReStyled
Gaia's upcycling project
Hi Gaia and welcome to Easy Travel Hosting. Restyled.it, your project for Slow Fashion more sustainable. Would you like to introduce your company to us, telling us about your vision and where this comes from project?
It's a pleasure to be here, thank you for this interview. To tell how my project was born, I could start from the name, ReStyled by G", which summarizes the brand's starting point in three words: restyling on existing garments and my initial.
In fact I identify a lot with what I design and design for ReStyled and the values underlying the creations are mine too. In the fashion world I am born a fashion stylist and in fact the idea was born during a styling session for a client and friend who entrusted herself to me. One of the products that I had designed and then had made represented a lot of my style and was close to the trend of vintage and of thrifting but also to simple but effective tailoring with an excellent quality/price ratio.
Working in such a glossy industry but being a lot sensitive to environmental causes I have always felt torn, almost divided in two. Then when I started studying again, delving into the themes of sustainability, fabrics and obviously branding, I understood that from that idea I had that day I could create something of my own that no longer made me feel “split” but proud to be able to create a different fashion model.
The first fundamental characteristic is the creative process: instead of setting it with the classic dynamics of design I set everything on styling, precisely to respect my identity, starting from existing products, researching fabrics, finding creative solutions, interpreting different styles, thinking about the final product according to a starting briefing that was not abstract but technical: reuse, restyling, materials and the need to create a more conscious fashion.
I started from denim, one of the most impactful fabrics in terms of workmanship, and then created one “styling” with excellent quality Italian fabrics from end of series or remnants. Each product has been designed unique, without gender, without seasonality and created by independent seamstresses according to a Slow Fashion model, that is slow fashion respecting normal production times and manual work.
By creating unique products I knew that we would certainly generate waste and leftovers, a problem that would obviously affect the basic mission which also includes the reduction of waste and textile waste. We have thus allocated all the leftovers to the most loved hair accessories, the scrunchies.
Our mission Zero Waste it is based precisely on this: generating the least possible amount of waste from our production. Today we do this also thanks to the SCRAP capsule which allows us to collect almost all the leftovers (excluding damaged parts of the fabric for example) and reuse them for applications on jeans and denim jackets. For this capsule we have produced the first 3 items in recent months. In addition to reducing the quantity of rubbish generated, this methodology allows us to reduce some costs by being able to offer competitive prices compared to the average.
What are the reasons behind the choice not to adhere to the seasonal pattern of fashion and what you think about climate change?
We have given up seasonality for various reasons, some of which still have to do with environmental issues. The first reason that pushed me to think about non-seasonal fashion is that, having chosen a purely online sale, if we limited ourselves to selling seasonally we would necessarily have to devalue seasonal products precedent inevitably contributing to the dynamics of waste and overproduction of fashion. By paying attention to environmental causes, we realize that climate change is transforming the seasons and it will probably be increasingly difficult to define them, thus having to opt for a multifunctional wardrobe made up of reworked garments, with a much longer life cycle that do not require wild exploitation of the Earth's resources.
By offering different garments and accessories in different fabrics, studying them to be timeless, we can guarantee a variety of products at any time of the year, without season and without trend. In this way we make purchasing more aware and thought out based on the needs of each individual, taking into account the planet that hosts us. In general, we aim to reduce purchases by thinking of solutions that last over time and that can satisfy more needs in stylistic terms.
However, I believe that real change can only take place if those who produce fashion in a more conscious way are able to find solutions that bring these products closer to the public, also thanks to accessible prices that respect every profession. Let's think about young people GenZ very sensitive to environmental causes who at the moment, according to recent surveys, seem unable to buy the sustainable products they crave.
It is an almost impossible challenge but in our small way we are looking for solutions. For example, diversifying our offer as much as possible in terms of prices. This is why we try to keep scrunchies, our best seller, at economical prices while gradually expanding into other accessories and garments. Soon we will be able to diversify the products even more and therefore also the price range, reaching both the ready-to-wear and the more economical ranges.
We also started by offering garments with applications and customizations because we can work them in a simple way (even if they require knowledge of fabrics and a lot of attention). We can therefore guarantee an optimal result in technical and qualitative terms but also economically sustainable.
However, let's focus on technique dell’upcycling (we will dismantle existing garments to create new ones) and we are about to add to our collections a first tailored garment made according to our values.
Small spoiler: thanks to two examples of this item we will be able to give new life to what were previously two upholstery elements.
We found your philosophy very interesting regarding the choice of your team. Could you tell us about it?
As for the team, I strongly wanted to collaborate with from the beginning independent seamstresses, artists who were once part of the very strong identity of Made In Italy and who today are difficult to find. Inevitably, my production is affected by the work schedules of these professionals, who can therefore maintain their autonomy and their clientele based on their agenda and their needs. On the other hand, however, I can guarantee a more humanly sustainable supply chain’attention to product and quality, customizations and services related to the brand, more sustainable costs and above all truly slow fashion.
In this sense, in the coming months we will try to expand the team by including seamstresses and tailors above all young who often, as soon as they leave professional schools and academies, struggle to find a first job that isn't also limiting if they want to continue training.
Even as regards the creative team that supports me in the creation of social content, campaigns and the website, I have surrounded myself with ambitious and capable people who every day, in their own small way, challenge the world. All team members are artists in general, complex and multifaceted personalities from whom I can always expect inspiration.
They too are autonomous and independent creatives who work on different projects, and for this reason they are a continuous source of ideas.
What personalized services do you offer and how they fit into your focused business model about sustainability?
All the services related to our collections have been designed for two main reasons:
- Fighting fashion consumerism by offering a concrete alternative to buying new clothes.
- Raise awareness of the value of tailor-made and hand-made garments made to measure with a design studied for the customer.
Adding services to simple sales allows us to give even more emphasis to our values, to have a more human and direct relationship with customers and to create products that are not at risk of being unsold, precisely because they are made to order. I present to you the three main services that we offer and which can also be booked via the site:
Restyling: starting from an item in the customer's wardrobe, we carry out customizations or modifications to ensure that product is not thrown away, but acquires new charm and has a new life. We want to give those who follow us the opportunity to have unique products that protect the environment, but also the customer, proposing an economically strategic solution.
Custom-made: in this case, the service includes complete consultancy, from the search for the vintage garment to the choice of fabric and details, to the choice of customisation. This service always refers to denim garments. Custom-made requires the garment to be “accomplished” from scratch, but the principles of the research we carry out are always the same: vintage, second-hand, recovery, remnants, end of series, etc. For both this service and the restyling we offer a small catalog of fabrics already present in the archive.
Tailoring: this is a real atelier service which, through consultancy aimed at identifying the style based on the occasion and the customer, allows you to create a tailor-made garment or an entire outfit. Generally, this service is requested for formal dresses and the like. Thanks to Sartoria, we can raise awareness of the importance of manual work, the incredible skills of seamstresses and the value of a garment made to order and tailor-made, which in terms of quality and performance will always be unparalleled. Also in this case, fabrics and materials are selected according to our values.
As you know, Easy Travel Hosting uses energy renewable and eco-sustainable to power their servers. Furthermore, a tree is planted for each new hosting, actively helping reforestation and the absorption of CO2. What do you think of this project and in general of young businesses with a sustainable approach?
Easy Travel Hosting's mission and the solution it offers are truly remarkable. It is an immense pleasure to be here to tell you about myself on your blog because I strongly believe in collaboration between young companies, whether they are innovative or oriented towards conscious thinking.
The importance of sustainable accessory tools for companies that aim for sustainability is immense, because often one of the first difficulties encountered is finding the right solutions to make each element in line with one's values. I really appreciate those who can develop innovation and sustainability at the same time, especially in the technological field, because only through conscious technology can we progress in sustainable business.
I would like to add that although the Italian entrepreneurial and working system is not experiencing a positive moment, in fact it is quite the opposite efforts that young people they're doing are amazing. I really hope that the new ethics we are building on are the future. We are committed to offering sustainable services and giving back to the planet, as in your case, to rethink dynamics and products, to question ourselves, to take a different direction in social, environmental and ethical terms. Even work and the way of doing business must necessarily change with us and follow our new needs.
We will often make mistakes, we will encounter obstacles, but the tenacity we are showing is already a symptom of the fact that we will not be able to give up easily. I truly hope that these realities are the future of the market, the planet and humanity.
Easy Travel Hosting thanks Gaia so much for taking part in our interview for the column dedicated to Small Business for Women.
If you want more information, you can follow her on her website by clicking here.
And on social media too!
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