Lara's other look

When we asked our style councillor Lara Masters to kit herself out for 50 quid from the high street she almost, in desperation and protest, submitted a photo of herself naked. Will she fare any better with “alternative fashion”

I‘m sceptical of the word “alternative”. If you have a disability, you look and live in noncomformist ways and, in this respect, “alternative” is an enpowering word, encapsulating individuality.

On the other hand, we live in a world where we often have to take the “alternative” option, which can just be a euphemism for “we couldn’t really be bothered” – like when a restaurant has no ramp at the entrance and customers with mobility problems get escorted to the “alternative” entrance, through a maze of dimly-lit corridors and over an assault course of Rentokil boxes and bags of rotting food.

So I went to see if “alternative” in Alternative Fashion Week (AFW), held in London’s vibrant Spitalfields Market, stood for positively different, like all disabled people are.

I slinked past the battallion of paparazzi and settled into my centre-front-row catwalk seat (reserved for Disability Now’s Style Section aficionada) and was demanding my PA fetch me an extra-skinny-double-mocca-latte before I remembered I was neither a coffee drinker nor Anna Wintour.

Watching the show, I was captivated by Wilfried pletzinger's vivid, jewel-coloured collection made entirely from vintage sports clothes (www.w-pletzinger.se). The Swedish ingénue explained: “Working with recycling is challenging. Sometimes it seems limiting because you don’t have as much material as you might like. Then you have to find smart solutions or change your plans. Every piece I make is different. There are no rules to follow. I always have to find new ways to work things out. This challenges my skills, my creativity and my intelligence.”

“It’s very much like being disabled,” I interject and Wil nods, hesitantly.

Next, my eyes feasted on a recycled collection by Hayley Trezise whose label, “Raggedy” (www.raggedyrags.co.uk), features rich, vibrant hues and a strong Victorian influence with voluminous shapes, corsetry, bustles, lacing and button details.

Hayley commented; “I design and create recycled clothes using charity shop orphans, and I really enjoy twisting and turning them into something new. It’s great buying clothes from charity shops because I’m recycling and a percentage of my work goes to where it’s greatly needed. It’s eco, ethics and fun, all sewed up together.”

Continuing the theme of conscientious consumerism was a collection by Holly Dutton (http://www.bobbiesboutique.co.uk), who is passion­ate about using sustainable fabrics, after an African holiday led her to question the effects of globalisation on the textile and fashion trades. Organic cottons, hemp and bamboo mixed with vintage prints create Holly’s wistful collection, in soft colours inspired by child­hood, dreams, nostalgia and innocence.

Holly is concerned about our irresponsible buying habits. “Alternative Fashion Week is an opportunity to break the stigma that eco and ethical clothing can’t be fashionable. When I tell friends I make clothes from hemp, they usually think of scratchy sacks! But my designs show how an eco-friendly garment can still be wearable and creative and not cost the earth.”

My question was answered. “Alternative” in the case of AFW stood for innovation and integrity. Seeing these newby designers’ collections gave me hope not only for the future of fashion but for the future of our planet. I also felt there was a kinship between living with a disability and the ethos of AFW. As Wil said: “We aren’t working with main­stream trends but inspiring others to live and express their own identity.” Out of the mouths of Swedes, eh? Perfect!