Osman Yousefzada x Tencel Luxe

Tencel collaboration with designer Osman Yousefzada / Credit: Tencel

AfricaAsiaCelluloseCottonEuropeLyocellNorth AmericaOceaniaSilkSouth AmericaTencel LuxeTextiles

4 MINUTE READ

Mayer Nissim

WHAT WE SAY:

Art is about questioning the status quo, which is why we love this collection from British-Pakistani artist Osman Yousefzada.

Having previously rejected the notion of ‘fashion’ with its sense of ephemerality and manufactured discontent, Osman’s S/S 22 show, 'What Happened to Last Season’s Collection?' forces audiences to consider the full lifespan of their clothes. In collaboration with Tencel Luxe, it showcases the potential for natural, sustainable fabrics to take their place at luxury fashion’s top table. Indeed, in the new era of design, sustainable materials should not be anywhere else.

KEY FACTS:

British multidisciplinary artist and activist Osman Yousefzada partnered with cellulosic fibre producer Lenzing to launch his S/S 22 London Fashion Week (LFW) collection, 'What Happened to Last Season’s Collection?' using Tencel Luxe.
Tencel Luxe is a wood pulp-based Cellulose fibre, produced by a Lyocell process that creates an extremely fine filament yarn. This results in smoother, silkier fabrics than those produced by the conventional lyocell method.
Osman’s collection featured 15 different pieces to demonstrate the range of qualities available using the fabric, from a Crepe Georgette, silk-like jersey feel to hand-loomed organza textiles.

Tencel collaboration with designer Osman Yousefzada / Credit: Tencel

DIVE DEEPER:

Silk is a fashion touchstone, adored for its soft feel and gorgeous drape, but as designers and consumers alike are seeking animal-free alternatives of the same quality, Tencel Luxe is a natural fibre aiming to show it can appear on the biggest stages.
Items in Osman Yousefzada’s S/S 22 collection made using Tencel Luxe elements included gossamer lace jersey sheer jumpsuits, a black party dress with flouncy puffed sleeves, a belted gown in soft baby blue, a blazer and a shimmery organza skirt.
Osman’s Tencel Luxe fabrics were produced by South Korean company Shinjintex, Portuguese brand Sidónios Knitwear and German manufacturer Cocccon Crafts & Loom.
The collection also integrates Osman’s Last Yards concept, where he includes pieces of deadstock fabrics to create limited edition items, as a further effort to highlight overproduction and reduce waste.
In partnership with reforestation charity One Tree Planted, a tree was planted in the Brazilian Amazon forest for every guest who attended the presentation.
Tencel Luxe is naturally breathable and has greater colour fastness than Silk. Its smoothness can be seen under an electron microscope – this can be measured by Tissue Softness Analyser (TSA) tests.
While remaining lightweight, lyocell (1.5 grams per cubic centimetre) weighs more than silk (1.33 grams per cubic centimetre), giving it a better drape effect, which can make it especially desirable by designers for the catwalk.
Lenzing’s lyocell filaments are derived from wood harvested from certified and controlled sources, and fibres are also available with FSC or PEFC certification upon request. The fabric has earned United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) BioPreferred designation.
Lenzing promises full supply chain transparency via its unique identification system that can trace its fibres used in textile end products.
The company’s solvent-spinning process reuses the solvent at a recovery rate of more than 99% and “close to zero emissions.” This closed-loop process has been given a European Award for the Environment from the European Commission.

"We need to let go of an all-or-nothing attitude to sustainability and just try to do better."

Osman Yousefzada

Key Design Considerations:

Premium price points

Tencel Luxe is a premium product, with a price point significantly higher than Cotton and synthetics. It feels churlish to pick at a Fashion Week collection for the exclusivity of its fabric, not least when the word 'Luxe' is right there in the name, but given the scale of the crisis, we always challenge designers to consider how they might drive meaningful change at scale. That said, we agree with Osman that “we need to let go of an all-or-nothing attitude to sustainability and just try to do better.”

Sustainable materials can only go so far

We do not expect a full percentage breakdown for each piece in a Fashion Week capsule collection, but it is always important to remember that using a sustainable primary material means little if it is then blended or finished with plastic-based materials that affect its recyclability or compostability.

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Osman Yousefzada x Tencel Luxe

WHAT WE SAY:

Art is about questioning the status quo, which is why we love this collection from British-Pakistani artist Osman Yousefzada.

KEY FACTS:

DIVE DEEPER:

Silk is a fashion touchstone, adored for its soft feel and gorgeous drape, but as designers and consumers alike are seeking animal-free alternatives of the same quality, Tencel Luxe is a natural fibre aiming to show it can appear on the biggest stages.

Items in Osman Yousefzada’s S/S 22 collection made using Tencel Luxe elements included gossamer lace jersey sheer jumpsuits, a black party dress with flouncy puffed sleeves, a belted gown in soft baby blue, a blazer and a shimmery organza skirt.

Osman’s Tencel Luxe fabrics were produced by South Korean company Shinjintex, Portuguese brand Sidónios Knitwear and German manufacturer Cocccon Crafts & Loom.

The collection also integrates Osman’s Last Yards concept, where he includes pieces of deadstock fabrics to create limited edition items, as a further effort to highlight overproduction and reduce waste.

In partnership with reforestation charity One Tree Planted, a tree was planted in the Brazilian Amazon forest for every guest who attended the presentation.

Tencel Luxe is naturally breathable and has greater colour fastness than Silk. Its smoothness can be seen under an electron microscope – this can be measured by Tissue Softness Analyser (TSA) tests.

While remaining lightweight, lyocell (1.5 grams per cubic centimetre) weighs more than silk (1.33 grams per cubic centimetre), giving it a better drape effect, which can make it especially desirable by designers for the catwalk.

Lenzing’s lyocell filaments are derived from wood harvested from certified and controlled sources, and fibres are also available with FSC or PEFC certification upon request. The fabric has earned United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) BioPreferred designation.

Lenzing promises full supply chain transparency via its unique identification system that can trace its fibres used in textile end products.

The company’s solvent-spinning process reuses the solvent at a recovery rate of more than 99% and “close to zero emissions.” This closed-loop process has been given a European Award for the Environment from the European Commission.

Osman Yousefzada

Key Design Considerations:

Premium price points

Sustainable materials can only go so far

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