These creative fashion labels go against the mainstream

These 7 brands show the many facets of creative and sustainable fashion

Sustainable women's fashion
Source by Bethany Williams, Photographer: Christina Ebenezer

Author: Vivien Vollmer

Sometimes you get the feeling that fashion has nothing new to offer and is going in circles. But sustainable fashion opens up many new ways to change the fashion industry. With innovative ideas and creative concepts, some brands are bucking fast fashion and the mainstream. Sustainability provides the "it" factor that enables designers to stand out from old conventions. Ethical fashion has many facets: be it gender fluidity, age-equality, minimalism, size-inclusivity or material innovation. Designers with values no longer have to go with the flow, but can relax and enjoy the water at their own pace.

The facets of sustainable fashion

Fashion is dynamic and constantly produces new designers and brands that do not use ethics as decoration, but rather as an opportunity to improve the world in an inventive way. The attempt to integrate sustainability into a company can lead to new business models or innovative material developments. Here are our favourite brands that are creatively incorporating sustainability into their brand DNA.

7 best brands for creative sustainable fashion

  1. Julien de Libran
  2. Collina Strada
  3. Elsien Gringhuis
  4. Shipsheip
  5. Bethany Williams
  6. Misha Nonoo
  7. Sheep Inc.

1. Julie de Libran

Julie de Libran proves that fashion can be more than just clothes. The brand carefully and conscientiously seeks out small artisan workshops where the garments and jewellery are made. By producing a limited quantity of the collections, the brand avoids wasteful overproduction.

For this reason, the focus is on individual and unique designs. The brand thus stands for the still rare mix of haute couture and sustainability. High quality and timeless elegance are intended to create favourite pieces that break the cycle of fast fashion trends through their longevity.

Brand origin: France
Uniqueness: Haute couture meets sustainability
Style: Elegant, high quality, feminine
Available here: Julie de Libran

creative and ethical fashion coat

Source & Copyright Julie de Libran - Collection January 2022

2. Collina Strada

Collina Strada shows that creative and sustainable fashion can also be colourful, loud and shrill. With bright colours, large patterns and exciting styling, designer Hillary Taymour proves how much fun fashion can be. Ageless and unexpected, the brand playfully leads us to self-reflection and sees itself as a platform for awareness. With this clothing, statements are worn without taking oneself too seriously.

Brand origin: USA
Uniqueness: Loud fashion
Style: Pattern mix, bold and inventive
Available here: Collina Strada

creative and ethical fashion

Source & Copyright by Collina Strada

3. Elsien Gringhuis

Books are not only for reading, but also for wearing at Elsien Gringhuis. Why? The brand's innovative concept breaks away from typical seasonal collections and is instead dedicated to a compilation in "book form". These can be expanded with different chapters as desired. In this way, the brand sets its own pace.

There is a strong emphasis on locality in the selection of materials. The regional community is also supported by the studio in the Netherlands, where the designs are 100% produced as soon as an order is received. In order to avoid overproduction and thus waste, the company works with a made-to-order concept.

Brand origin: Netherlands
Uniqueness: Fashion in chapters
Style: Simple, straightforward, timeless
Available here: Elsien Gringhuis

Source Elsien Gringhuis, Photo by Tse Kao

4. Shipsheip

At Shipsheip, aesthetics is not only about elegant design from the outside, but also about wearing the right attitude from the inside. For the German brand, sustainability is not just another detail, but an all-encompassing way of thinking. That's why every step of the production chain is scrutinised. This results in simple, casual and high-quality designs. In addition to the ready-to-wear collection, the brand also offers a made-to-wear collection, where consumers can contribute with their own preferences.

Brand origin: Germany
Uniqueness: Sustainable ready-to-wear or made-to-wear
Style: Modern, minimalist and urban
Available here: Shipsheip

creative fashion by ship sheip

Source & Copyright by Shipship

5. Bethany Williams

English designer Bethany Williams has a vision to use the power of fashion to do good. Through collaborations with social projects, the brand strengthens communities and draws the attention of its customers to important issues inside and outside the fashion industry. For the brand's pattern- and colour-rich clothing, new ways are constantly being sought to give fabrics a second life, reduce waste and make production more sustainable.

Brand origin: England
Uniqueness: Social commitment through fashion
Style: Bright, colorful and modern
Available here: Bethany Williams at Farfetch

modern floor by Bethany Williams

Source & Copyright by Bethany Williams - Mensware 2022

6. Misha Nonoo

She is a British-Bahran fashion designer and her label has made the capsule wardrobe for modern women its trademark. Misha Nonoo's creative "Husband Shirt" transforms the secret evergreen into an official fashion item. In the process, the label is setting a groundbreaking course for a radically changing fashion industry.

How exactly? By investing in innovative on-demand manufacturing, empowering women and harnessing the power of community and personal connection. Values around trust, respect and purpose are in the spotlight here. A MN Network Reward Programme also offers personalised extras for customers.

Brand origin: USA
Uniqueness: Capsule wardrobe & female empowerment
Style: Versatile, feminine and innovative
Available here: Misha Nonoo

minimalist fashion by MN

Source & Copyright by Misha Nonoo - Vitamin A x MN

7. Sheep Inc.

Sheep Inc. is about making fashion make us feel reconnected to nature instead of working against it. The knitwear is made in New Zealand from 100% ZQ certified merino wool and is carbon negative in production. As the knitwear is biodegradable, the concept of zero waste can be passed on from the company to the consumer.

Brand origin: New Zealand
Uniqueness: Biophilic fashion design
Style: Simple, timeless, monochromatic
Available here: Sheep Inc.

sustainable fashion by sheep inc

Source & Copyright by Sheep Inc.

Creative and sustainable fashion forms individual styles

Fashion can generally be fun and is a form of personality expression. That's why trends and fashion brands constantly provide new opportunities to play around with it. However, creative and sustainable fashion offers the opportunity to experiment without having to sacrifice the right values.

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