Junk Kouture is a sustainable fashion competition that challenges young people to design, upcycle and create high end couture from recycled junk, before showcasing their design and representing their school on stages across the world.
Stephanie O’Connor and Sienna Howe were one of ten finalists announced to represent the country with their intricate design. Their dress is made out of Ugandan Mutaba tree along with 2,500 beads hand quilled from old books. Stephanie’s mother Margaret brought it over to Ireland as it is often used for artwork, but they were not even initially sure if the bark material could be fashioned into an outfit.
Frances Kervick, the teacher who oversaw the school’s designs this year, said that the material was suitable for the competition because it is 100 per cent sustainable and, to their knowledge, has never been done before.
“We were not sure, but the girls were highly determined. As well as that, this could possibly open up a new market for the material . We may not have the technologies here, but the girl’s effort and success can highlight the fact that it is possible to sew with and others could take it further in the future,” she said.
Creating a dress with simple fabric and design is a difficult feat enough, but the innovative headpiece posed a new challenge to the pair.
“It was challenging to get the headpiece to fit because of its shape. We ultimately had to cable tie the headpiece to her hair,” Sienna laughed.
Ms Kendrick then added that the judges themselves had commented on how the headpiece seemed to “defy gravity.” And while Stephanie admitted that the piece was heavy, she assured everyone that it did not hurt, especially since the team had made the conscious decision to make the rest of the dress light to balance the weight.
Despite the eyes of thousands of people in the audience, as well as the countless viewers watching from home thanks to RTÉ, Stephanie had no qualms about walking the runway.
“I had walked in the school show before so I wasn’t that nervous,” she said.
The fashion show is great event for the girls to socialise with other students and the pair got to know and chat to other teams from across the South East backstage.
When asked if the girls had a love for fashion, Ms Kervick sang the pairs talent for construction and detail.
“The girls are very modest. Sienna is very good at intricate details and had a great interest in designing the bracelets and just accessorizing the whole outfit,” she added.
The dress also incudes 2,500 beads.
Modest as they are, despite all the evident hard work that went into the ensemble, they said they were shocked to hear their names called.
“We couldn’t believe it – and we were the last people to be called so it was nerve wrecking,” they said.
“I think we all also felt relief that they had secured a place, besides the obvious great excitement,” Ms Kervick added.
The girls are now excited for the next stage of the competition which will see them fly off to one of the fashion capitals of the world.
“We are excited, especially because of the locations the final could be held in; New York, Milan, Paris etc,” they said.
Besides the obvious stellar achievement by the pair, Ms Kendrick said the standard of the school’s entries and the dedication of this year’s students were extremely high.
“They are just a really committed group. They took the theme and ran with, taking ownership of everything. About 39 dresses were designed in total and the parents were just blown away by the girls at the school fashion show earlier in the year,” she said.
“I also don’t think that people really appreciate the work and the hours gone into each dress. Unless you have done Junk Kouture yourself and been through the process you would not know. Some of the girls may be disappointed that not more dresses were chosen, but the competition has just grown into such a huge global competition. But we are so proud of them,” she concluded.