The winners of the Mindful Fashion Circular Design Awards have been unveiled, spotlighting Aotearoa’s most innovative fashion creations crafted from upcycled waste materials. Designers and businesses nationwide were tasked with rethinking how to keep materials in use, while embracing circular economy principles and Aotearoa’s unique perspective. Four exceptional entries stood out, with the Supreme Award winners sharing in a $50,000 prize pool.
Creative Excellence Award
Jacqueline Tsang claimed the Creative Excellence in Circular Design Award for her creation, Fabric Has Memory. Tsang’s striking luxury ensemble repurposes coffee sacks, damaged kimonos, and vintage tapestries, showcasing the art of transforming waste into high-fashion statements.
Material Innovation Award
Sue Prescott’s design, Southerly Change, won the Material Innovation Award. Crafted from 95% sailcloth waste sourced in Wellington, Prescott’s look masterfully combines form and function, proving that fabrics at the end of their first life can still inspire joy and protection.
Rising Talent Award
Ella Fidler took home the Rising Talent Award for her piece, Scrap Yarn. Fidler explored the full lifecycle of her materials, using production waste that can be recycled after its new life, setting an impressive example for sustainable fashion practices.
Circular Business Innovation Award
Untouched World secured the first-ever Circular Business Innovation Award for its Rubbish Socks initiative. This initiative stood out for its commitment to circularity, boasting a 99% textile waste recycling rate and diverting over one tonne of textile waste in the last year.
Mindful Fashion Chief Executive, Jacinta FitzGerald, praised the exceptional quality of this year’s finalists. “Our Supreme winners treated their chosen textiles as valuable resources, not limitations.
Their work highlights the creative potential of circular design and shows a bright future for fashion in Aotearoa.” FitzGerald added that the awards are an important step in raising awareness about circular systems, which could significantly reduce emissions in the industry.
Presented in partnership with the Gattung Foundation, the Mindful Fashion Circular Design Awards celebrate the designers and businesses shaping a more sustainable future for fashion. These awards build on the findings from the Threads of Tomorrow report, which revealed that 52,000 tonnes of clothing waste are sent to New Zealand landfills each year—a staggering 143 tonnes daily—emphasising the urgency for industry-wide change.
Images: Supplied
