Fashion student makes clothes from single-use plastics

A fashion student from Northampton has been turning heads with her new collection - which is quite literally a load of rubbish.

Radka Blazickova, 22, makes clothes entirely from plastic bottles and lids, in an attempt to highlight how much we throw away.

• Click below for a report from Liz Summers

"It came from single use plastics,” said Radka. “I just felt really bad seeing it everywhere, not just in the UK but everywhere in the world and nobody was really taking care of it.

"So I thought I would really like to use this stuff rather than making more pollution for the world."

Textiles for Fashion third year, Radka Blazickova, used bottle tops, labels and even shredded bottles to create her plastic waste-inspired collection, which includes full-length coats, a jacket, a gilet, a waistcoat and a couple of bags.

Radka’s collection made its catwalk debut at Graduate Fashion Week - the annual showcase of UK university fashion talent.

“I couldn’t believe the reaction to my collection, I never thought this would happen to me,” said Radka, who is originally from Prague.

Radka hopes her collection will help to raise awareness of plastic waste and waste in general.

She said: “As everybody knows, it’s a big issue and it’s one that is also a problem the fashion industry needs to address.

“Too many high street brands have been selling cheap clothing, that consumers see as disposable. This idea of something being made to be thrown away after a few times of being worn then got me thinking about the things people put in the bin every day.

“So many people use a plastic bottle just once before throwing it away and I wanted to show that every single part can have a second use, by making something creative from a ‘waste product’.”

The 22-year-old is set to graduate in July and is now pursuing internship opportunities and considering embarking on a Master’s in fashion.

Radka was one of 12 Fashion students from the University of Northampton who had their work selected for the catwalk show at Graduate Fashion Week, which was held at the The Old Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, London, between Sunday 2 and Wednesday 5 June.