Paper Trend S/S 07

[Whitelinen]

I am not sure if this belongs here, but I couldn't find any more appropriate place for it.

I am fascinated by paper as a material for clothes. I thought to create a thread for clothes made out of paper if anyone else would be interested too. I would like to get to know designers who use paper in their collections.


The yellow dress is from the 60's, I don't know the designer. The white ones are by Sandra Backlund.

From papersites, cameralink and sandrabacklund.

 

[couturex]

I think it's used more as an art than a wearable garment. I imagine it would be hard to wear, you would have to be super careful not to rip it.

 

[Whitelinen]

Well, I guess it depends on what kind of paper is used. I would love to try wearing a garment made out of paper But you are probably right, most of them are not made to be worn.

 

[mkfan]

Wow, those links are awesome, thanks for sharing! Paper clothes don't sound particularly comfortable but they look amazing! This is an interesting topic though and those pics posted above remind me of the origami inspired pieces from Dior Couture.

 

[marylauda]

do you know what the process is to make the paper enough like fabric so that it can be made into clothing? i am very interested in learning more about these interesting garments.

 

[outdoorminer]

Is this like edible underwear?

 

[Inaya]

Is this different than the origami-like pieces we've seen lately? I love it personally, I think it's beautiful!!!

 

[ETROsexualJ]

2 other "paper" subsets are that Fed-Ex envelope material that they are making packable jackets out of.
There is also the Jil Sander "graph paper" polyester.

 

[kikidior]

^^ indeed. thanks whitelinen & etrosexualj

 

[gius]

Paper clothes were all the rage in the 60s--I remember my teachers and classmates (of older generation ) telling me that. It was part of the 'disposable lifestyle' then.

It is possible to make durable clothes out of paper. Paper made from mulberry trees is very strong. There are ways to make it impervious to water too--I think they say to mix it with a certain oil and bake it in the oven.

Björk here wears the 'Airmail dress' by Hussein Chalayan. It's weight and drape is just like paper, only that it is very strong and waterproof. You can draw pictures easily on it too. It's probably used as paper as well--I remember feeling packages made of this. The fabric is called tyvek.

universalmusic.pl

 

[kikidior]

^ i was wondering when you'd show up ... thanks gius! and bjork!

 

[gius]

^I'm touched that you were expecting me
You're welcome, kikidior

 

[visconti]

There are also some cotton/paper blends in the current Jil Sander collection. They're around 1/4 to 1/3 paper. Without touching or hearing it you wouldn't necessarily be able to tell that the jackets have paper, but it makes them very light weight, adds a slight crinkling sound when you walk and gives it a little texture.

 

[couturex]

It seems very "Project Runway" to me. While I think they are very interesting to look at, I can't imagine this trend taking off. But, I may be wrong.

 

[fourboltmain]

I've worn Tyvek suits in industrial jobs. I looked like one of the NASA guys in ET at one point in my life. Anyway, Tyvek is what makes you angry when you can't open those seemingly 'paper' envelopes.

Gius, I remember seeing something a while back about 1960's paper clothes. Somebody had a collection of them, still in their wrappers or something. I guess hemp would be considered paper to an extent, right? Papyrus is just smashed up plants, hemp is woven plants. Wait, so is cotton! Hmm... where is the line drawn? I'm confused now.

http://personalprotection.dupont.com/

 

[SomethingElse]

^ At least it's more straight forward that 'paper or plastic'!

I was helping my great aunt do a massive spring cleaning last year, and I came across a small drawer full of paper clothing from the 60s that she collected during her early dressmaking adventures. The paper dresses and shirts were not terribly wearable for more than an afternoon, she said - perhaps invented for those who fail to use their bibs at dinner? She was apparently studying pattern making at the time, and her teacher (Japanese) used paper clothing to teach pattern making through deconstruction. Also, instead of using muslin to premake a complicated piece, she used all kinds of paper, doilies, all sorts of readily degradable materials, and glue and tape and god knows what else.

In our world of limited resources, perhaps there should be a new trend for such materials in the fashion industry. I wonder if the papercloth materials can be made in a healthy manner, vegetable dyes, green manufacturing....

 

[Rosie]

In UK April 07 Vogue there is a photo shoot styled by Charlotte Stockdale of accessories, all the clothes in it are made from paper. I don't have any scans but I'll try find some images. Its a beautiful shoot.

 

[Rosie]

Designs by Polly Verity
credit - pollyscene.com

 

[PerfectPerfect]

Yes, the paper clothes from before were a backlash to the wars, to rations etc. To buy an outfit you would have to throw away the next day, ran borderline with the zoot suit movement I guess.

Although I fancy the idea because of the great shapes you could possibly get and the different texture and construction, I dont think it could be practical not even for just a day, but a few hours! If you could even sit that is. Going into a paper or crafting store, you will find many different types of papers there. They will have different weights and textures, some will even feel "fuzzy" like fabric. When I was young I used to watch a show called Reading Rainbow. One time a lady showed how to make paper out of blue jeans. She liquified them into a sort of watery pulp until she could get it fine enough to sift through a mesh. Once she had enough to make it paper thick, she pressed it. Once dry, voila! Denim paper. I doubt that it was strong enough to be anything but paper though.

Didnt Campbell's soup offer a paper dress too back in the60s?

 

[janginhwa]

funny but very briliant!