A commitment to environmental fashion

ONE woman show, Saskia Baur-Schmid designs and creates clothing with the aim of zero waste.

Her design process is inspired by an anti-consumerist mentality and a desire to push the industry towards creating high quality and long lasting products.

Having years ago completed a Bachelor of Fashion at the Whitehouse Institute of Design, she said she decided to make the leap this year.

“After I graduated, I never really got into it because it was a cliquey industry,” she said.

“I took some time off and worked as a fashion stylist in New Zealand and when I came back home, I took the plunge to launch my own label called Hyph_n.

“I’ve been mostly doing made to order clothing for specific clients but I currently in the process of completing my debut collection.”

The last 12 months have saw her collection, Second Life, make the semi-finalist list for the international Redress Design Award

These designs were also selected for the WE THE MAKERS biennial design festival currently on display at Geelong’s National Wool Museum until 27 November.

This showcase includes the work of 21 fashion designers from all around the world who responded to the theme of designing for the future with a strong focus on sustainability.

Suiting Baur-Schmid’s design and production ethos to a tee, she said she was really excited to have been added to the exhibition.

“It’s nice to know that there are other people out there that are trying to tackle the problem of how unsustainable the fashion industry is,” she said.

“For me, sustainability comes down to everything, where you source your fabrics, what the impact is during the production and how it will impact the environment post-consumer life.

“This is mentality is covered across the entirety of what I do.”

All the clothing under the Hyph_n label will be handmade by the designer herself, using deadstock materials with the aim of creating zero waste.

Baur-Schmid said she wants to take her label back to the way that fashion should be, making products to order over than mass production.

“These pieces are all zero waste which means the entirety of the fabric has been used so everything down to the salvages,” she said.

“It’s not about making the loudest print or the newest on trend colour, it’s about sticking with the timeless classics that you will love for years and years.

“The idea behind the label is to consume less and invest in pieces that you are going to love and cherish for years.”

Although creating fashion in favour of the environment is rewarding in a myriad of ways, Baur-Schmid said young designers like her shouldn’t do it any other way.

“As emerging designers, I don’t think you’ve got the option of being sustainable or not,” she said. “It’s just inherently worked into everything you do.