Tabii Just F/W 2014: Zero Square at New York Fashion Week
We are huge fans of Tabii Just over here! We covered her last season, and she’s back with more colorful, pattern-wonderful pieces in her Fall/Winter 2014 collection, shown over the weekend at New York Fashion Week. Love!
“The inspiration for Zero Squared is the square. Concepts and patterns return to the restrictions of this basic shape. The challenge was embraced as a guideline, rather than a limitation. This is echoed in the prints and shapes of the garments.”
“Complete in itself, whether large or small, the square leads the design process, both in its beginning stage and in its suggestion of the garment cycle. The design process aspires to complete its own circle of existence, with the aim of zero waste. Fabrics used are from the excess stock of fabric mills. The excess fabric from each look is on display at the front of the runway. These scraps will be taken to a Grow NYC green market to be recycled (for more information on this program, go to grownyc.org/clothing). This aims to inspire conversations surrounding textile and clothing waste and ways in which it can be reduced. ”
About Tabii Just:
Tabii Just was born out of a desire to create vibrant clothing for the eco-conscious woman. Designer Tabitha St. Bernard experienced a greater awareness of the role of clothing in the world when she learned that 15% of the fabric used to make clothing is usually discarded. “Instead of looking for a fashion house that was in line with my ideals, I decided to create one from the ground up,” Tabitha says.
The result is a clothing line that seeks to waste absolutely no fabric and is made in New York City. Tabii Just clothing is manufactured in facilities that uphold fair labor practices in Brooklyn and the Garment District, with labels and tags, among other things, manufactured in the Garment District. Unconventional pattern-making techniques and upcycled pieces ensure that none of the fabric used to make the clothing is discarded. S
craps are used in stuffed animals or recycled. Drawing on Tabitha’s rich Trinidadian heritage, the aesthetic of Tabii Just is a marriage of Caribbean flair and Brooklyn edge, resulting in strong prints done in stream-lined silhouettes. Tabitha is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology. She has interned for Vivienne Tam and designed for Tahari ASL.
Starre Vartan
Starre Vartan is founder and editor-in-chief of Eco-Chick.com and the author of the Eco-Chick Guide to Life. She's also a freelance science and environment writer who has published in National Geographic, CNN, Scientific American, Mental Floss, Pacific Standard, the NRDC, and many more. She lives on an island in Puget Sound with her partner and black cat. She was a geologist in her first career, and still picks up rocks wherever she goes.
