Oh dear, is that a little rip on your red bardot dress that got you 98 likes on Instagram? What do you do next? Discard the outfit? Give it away? Keep it in your cupboard and feel mournful everytime you look at it? Or as designer Karishma Sehgal suggests, you could fix it with embroidery.
Her upcoming Mending with Embroidery workshop encourages people to build a lasting relationship with their garments. “I don’t want them to break ties just because of a minor tear or stain. Embroidery is a wonderful medium through which you can add personal touches to a garment, mend, as well as spruce them up,” says Karishma, who launched The Baksa Project earlier this year. “For me, mending doesn’t always mean hiding the damage. It also means highlighting the flaw in an aesthetic way. There is beauty in imperfection, too,” she adds.
Karishma, along with Sruthi Ashok of the leather label Inai, are now organising a charity event called The Relove Closet, as part of the ongoing Fashion Revolution Week (a global movement that celebrates fashion as a positive influence, while also raising awareness about the industry’s most pressing issues, scrutinising its practices).
This is the first edition of The Relove Closet, and will feature workshops, popup stores displaying sustainable homeware, personal care products and jewellery, as well as a second-hand clothing sale. Scrap to Fab, hosted by Sruthi, will teach participants how to make small leather accessories — coin pouches and card cases, among others — from upcycled leather.
While Karishma and Sruthi say they are pleased to see a lot of conversation around sustainability in Chennai, what they are curious to find out is how people will respond to the pre-loved clothes sale. “People increasingly need to understand and embrace the concept of circularity, when it comes to fashion,” says Karishma. All the clothes on display have been curated by the duo, with most of the clothes also belonging to them. “All the garments are in good condition, and even though some of them are well-worn, they aren’t torn or spoiled. We have some unique artisanal pieces, some designer finds, and even fast fashion and high street brands like Zara, Vero Moda, and Topshop,” she adds.
The event is on April 28 at Backyard, Adyar. Call 8778311510. The Mending with Embroidery workshop is priced at ₹1,000 and the Scrap to Fab workshop at ₹1,500. Both are inclusive of material. The link to register for the workshops: bit.ly/Relove ClosetRegisteration
