Gray’s takes inspiration from Braemar Castle for sustainable fashion show

Gray’s Fashion Show, the first to be held at Aberdeen Art Gallery since Covid, will feature forty-two students from the Fashion & Textiles course at Gray’s including first year students involved in the unique Braemar Castle Project. 

The Braemar Castle Project students, have created garments that relate to the castle, using preloved garments donations fromRGU’s Kaim Co-operative, a second-hand shop run by RGU’s Go Green Society.

As part of the project, the first-year students have created an ethical and sustainable fashion range, based on the theme ‘Braemar Castle past and present’. With no limit to what could be created, the students have deconstructed and re-designed garments to reflect Braemar Castle. The only requirements were that everything created had to be wearable and all of the material repurposed, had to be used. 

Elaine Gowans, Head of Fashion & Textiles at Gray’s School of Art said: “We have been working with Braemar Castle to create a fashion collection that addresses issues of landfill and over-consumerism by re-purposing and upcycling existing garments.

“The saying ‘one man’s rubbish is another man’s treasure’ has been the perfect incentive for this project. Understanding the sourcing of and working with, a variety of different materials has provided real opportunities for innovation and inventions amongst our Design students. By creating cutting edge designs, which spread the word about sustainability in the carbon heavy fashion and textile industries, we are helping to encourage our students to be ethical designers.

“It has been great to work with the team from Braemar Castle to create a sustainable fashion range and we are looking forward to displaying the fashion collection at the Braemar Castle reopening this autumn. We are also delighted to be working in partnership with Aberdeen Art Gallery to host the Fashion Show in Aberdeen city centre.”

Angus Lallah, a first-year Fashion and Textile student involved in the project explains more: “For my project, I set about repurposing a kid’s raincoat and a slip dress, which were two complete opposites of each other. Using these, I took the approach of using materials from the jacket to create rigid structures, much like the ones seen in the castle. I combined them with drapes and pleats commonly found in Jacobite Dress. 

“The aim of the work was to work with pieces of clothing as they are rather than cut away and waste them. I was able to use all 59 pieces of my second-hand clothing to create my Braemar Castle Garment.”

Another Fashion and Textile student, Kimberley Duval, highlights how sustainability is at heart of the project. She said: “The Braemar Castle Project is exciting and very challenging in the best possible way. I especially appreciated the zero-waste component; it made me appreciate my materials in a whole new way and I plan to incorporate that sustainability into my future work.”

As part of the project, the students met with a team from Braemar Castle who brought the castle to live by means of a 3D interactive model from which they gathered inspiration and learnt about its ever-changing history. This includes the castle’s most famous occupants including Frances Farquharson and her relationship to fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli, former editor of Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar magazines, who is understood to have visited the castle on many occasions.

Rosie Jones, Community Engagement Coordinator Braemar Castle, said: “The Castle is run by the small but energetic Community of Braemar who are always eager to widen the Castle’s welcome. Hence, we are delighted, through the Raising the Standard Project and National Lottery Heritage Funding, to be able to partner with Gray’s School of Art first year fashion & textile students in this inaugural Sustainable Fashion Project.

“The Castle’s setting, fascinating history, and links to the world of fashion are all great sources of inspiration which can be seen in the designs produced by these wonderfully creative students. We are excited that we will be able to bring the Fashion Collection ‘home’ to the Castle and into the Community of Braemar when we reopen in the Summer, following an extensive renovation project. Viewing the repurposed fashion within the restored Castle surrounded by the history that inspired it seems fitting and will be a special experience for all”.

Image 1 shows designs by Angus Lallah, Fashion and Textile student, image 2 shows students involved in Braemar Castle Project, Image 3 & 4 show sketchbook and designs by Fashion & Textile student, Kimberley Duval, and image of Braemar Castle.