Auckland teen Shania Lata says she never intended to join a wearable arts fashion competition.
The 13-year-old told Breakfast her friends were “dragging [her] along” to take part, but she ended up enjoying it.
Shania and her friends created one of the 93 entries to the Auckland-wide Eye on Nature fashion show. The contest invited primary and secondary school students to design and construct environmentally-conscious garments made of upcycled materials, competing for a prize pool of $3500.
The Ormiston Junior College student’s design represents the entire water cycle in one dress.
“I think I enjoyed being able to fail and retake whatever we messed up on and trying it again, making it better,” Shania said.
Once it made it onto the catwalk, Shania said it was a “pretty proud moment” for her and her friends because they felt their hard work after school, on weekends and even on public holidays paid off.
Beautification Trust community manager Dawn Crispe, who organised the competition, said the competition’s theme this year was “water is life”. Students were then encouraged to research a topic and upcycle materials to create their garments.
The trust inspires people to look after the environment.
“Wearable arts is just a creative arm that we get Auckland schools involved with. They use waste that they find in their local places and they create amazing garments out of it,” Crispe said.
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