Autumn / Winter 2023 'Wycinanki'

LARA KLAWIKOWSKI AW 2023 ‘Wycinanki’ is a collection inspired by my Polish heritage and Polish folk floral art.

Traditionally, Wycinanki floral patterns were created with natural found objects such as bits of bark, leaves and scraps of leather, and the craft evolved to the use of paper, and later prints.

As with Polish crochet and embroidery, the Wycinanki floral patterns are inspired by the flowers that grow in a particular region, and the textiles tell the story of the flowers and natural environment of the people who live there. You can identify which region of Poland someone is from by looking at the flowers in their traditional costumes.

LARA KLAWIKOWSKI AW 2023 ‘Wycinanki’ is a contemporary interpretation using fabric off-cuts to create zero-waste floral designs and textures inspired by South African flowers and fynbos where I grew up.

A key focus of this collection was zero-waste pattern-cutting, as one of the leading causes of fabric waste in the industry is the use of outdated pattern shapes for clothes and poorly plotted pattern-cutting. Now, more than ever, it is crucial that designers rethink the shape of clothing to minimize unnecessary fabric waste.

The panels of material were created by hand at our studio in Cape Town using fabric waste sourced from Rewoven, a sustainability initiative in Cape Town, combined with recycled plastic, including used mielie meal bags.

This collection was showcased at Week of Fashion / SAMW in Cape Town. 

Image Credit: Simon Deiner / SDR Photo