Something fishy is going on.
First, we got teenagers in Australia pranking McDonald’s workers with dead fish and then a fashion student has gone viral for creating clothes out of fish skin .
Yeah, I’m not sure how to feel about that — and I might not be alone in this. I can’t say for sure yet that she’s struck gold~~fish~~ with this idea.
I’m all for fashion repurposing. This is when you take an item and give it a new purpose.
Like taking an old pair of jeans and turning them into a skirt or making a produce bag out of an old t-shirt.
Then there’s “trashion,” a concept that’s been made popular by designers like New York-based designer, Nicole McLaughlin.
This is a term that’s gone viral on social media. It involves people making the most out of their trash and turning them into outfits and fashion projects.
Waste not, want not!
Here she is wearing orange juice jugs and string as a bikini of sorts.
It’s hard to imagine going to the grocery store with these juice jugs, though. In another creative design, she made a top out of two croissants and string.
The best part about trashion is that it encourages people to be more eco-friendly.
It helps people get thrifty with their clothes and rethink the items they’re throwing out. For example, Temasek Shophouse Renew Earth Sweat Shop initiative holds workshops to teach people how to make everyday items out of fashion waste.
Some fashion repurposing, however, may take things too far.
Isabella is a fashion student who makes clothes out of discarded fish skin for her graduate collection.
The unconventional designs and the process of making them are displayed on her TikTok account, @fishtokisfab .
In an interview with Tyla, Isbella explained that creating the clothes is a long process.
It’s also not for the squimish, as it involves scraping the fish skins to ensure that all the pieces of flesh have been removed.
Then, she washes the fish skins in washing-up liquid and water.
When she begins the treatment process, she mixes the fish skin with olive oil, witch hazel, egg yolk and washing-up liquid. If she wants the skin to be pinker, she’ll add beetroot to the mixture.
The skin takes two weeks to dry from there.
After that, it’s ready to be cut and shaped.
““The skin is actually really tough and the skins are quite big,” Isabella said. “Fish skin has the fibres which go across, so it’s actually more strong than a cow leather or something like that where the fibres are just going in one direction.”
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Some of her elaborate designs are crafted with zips sewn in so that you can take them on and off easily.
Although her designs are quite out there, it’s not entirely that unheard of. If you think about it, people use alligator skin to make things like alligator-skin shoes and purses.
One of her most creative designs is her fish skin nipples.
“I’m gonna put Swarovski crystals on them and embellish it onto a skirt and stuff like that, and I think those are the kinds of things that people will wear,” she said.
“Even if I were to design T-shirts and they had a fish skin nipple on it, it’s something that’s quite accessible and I can see it as quite a successful brand idea.”
Lady Gaga already wore a meat dress, so maybe a fish skin dress isn’t that far behind?
