Opening footage shows fashion designer Amy Powney, the creative director of Mother of Pearl (MOP) in London, receiving the coveted UK’s top designer award from the British Fashion Council and British Vogue magazine in 2017. This engrossing program follows Powney and her business associate Chloe Marks traveling far and wide to find suitable products that fit into their plan of designing and selling a totally sustainable fashion line called No Frills. The goal is to make a collection based on organic materials (no synthetics) that are produced locally with no pesticides and in consideration of animal welfare.
While most of us realize that many clothes are made in Asia, this program shows that it is not unusual for materials and garments to travel through five countries before reaching customers. The program counts down to the launch of No Frills beginning at 12 months when the women begin their search, traveling to such countries as Turkey, Austria, Uruguay, and Peru. In Uruguay, they meet with the owner of a fabric mill and visit the family farm and while this seems like a viable option, initially it does not work out.
With 10 months to go before the launch, they visit a yarn supplier in Peru and seek out a denim mill and cotton fields in Turkey. Definitions of various terms are captioned onscreen, such as scouring which is a process that removes dirt and grease from the sheared wool. Other factoids tell us that 2.5 million children are employed at low wages to pick cotton, 62% of consumers’ clothing is made of synthetics, and most cotton garments contain dangerous pesticides.
At three months to launch, the mission is still incomplete, but finally, the goal is met and Powney successfully designs a totally sustainable luxury brand collection for London Fashion Week 2018. Emotional and sometimes nerve-wracking behind-the-scenes footage shows Powney meeting with stylists and buyers and working with the runway models. Because of Powney’s vision, the number of sustainable clothes has quadrupled with more thought put into supply chain issues and the origin of materials.
An original music score backs up live-action footage and photographs in this revealing journey that brings awareness regarding clothing, sustainability, and the fashion industry. Recommended for college design classes and consumers who will find much to ponder and may change their buying habits. The college and university price is $375. Recommended.