E. Tautz's Mended Collection

Degree Students from the Royal School of Needlework (RSN) have joined forces with menswear label E. Tautz to encourage mending and longevity in clothing. RSN Degree Students worked collectively to create hand embroidered patches from upcycled materials which were then darned and mended for the latest E. Tautz Collection. Visiting lecturer and textile artist, Celia Pym, led darning workshops with the students to inspire their creativity for this project.

Speaking at the London Fashion Week show where the collection was launched, Patrick Grant, Creative Director at E. Tautz said: “Our version of Fashion creates clothes that have meaning, clothes that are loved and cherished. Every piece is made to last. If you love your clothes, wear them until they wear out, and when they do, fix them. And when your clothes can no longer be fixed, recycle them. We are very grateful to the Royal School of Needlework whose students have resurrected and elevated the skills of needlework to give extra life to our garments.”

Many pieces in the show were made using textiles recovered from unwanted clothes that were placed in clothing recycling banks across the country. Astco, one of the UK’s largest clothing recyclers, provided second-hand white cotton shirts, cotton bed linen and denim jeans.

Angie Wyman, Course Leader at the Royal School of Needlework said: “This is our fourth collaboration with Patrick Grant and E. Tautz and is particularly poignant for us. Our mission is to ensure that hand embroidery skills are not only passed onto new generations, but also remain relevant in the world of fashion today. This project enables us to showcase our students’ skills, encourages people to pick up a needle and thread and moreover, conveys a hard hitting, important message about the environment.”

For more information on the RSN Hand Embroidery Degree Course, please visit rsndegree.uk.