Sustainability and creativity were at the forefront of the Transition Year Junk Kouture programme in Ramsgrange Community School this year as seven separate groups battled for a coveted spot in the National Finals which will be held in the 3 Arena in Dublin later this year. The competition which has been a long running staple in many Irish post-primary schools as well as in the Ramsgrange Community School TY programme, was formalised in 2010 into the national and now even international event that we are familiar with today.
As part of the competition, students design and create an item of haute couture and this must only be created using recycled materials and the project must have a zero-cost. At the heart of the design and the creation process must be six of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals which include; SDG 4 Quality Education, SDG 5 Gender Equality, SDG 10 Reduced Inequality, SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities, SDG 13 Climate Action, and SDG 12 Responsible Production and Consumption.
The journey for the Ramsgrange students began back in September where the students teamed up in groups of three and began brainstorming. Each team drew on personal experiences from home, school, the local community, the arts, history, as well as their own personal interests in order to come up with their design vision. Work then got underway, under the supervision of their art teachers and SNA of the school, Ms. Sharon McGee who each guided them through the process to allow their visions to become reality. The students worked hard gathering materials and fashioning them into their outfits and accessories. This process lasted until January where the groups, with their completed designs, submitted their entries for judging in the first stage of the finals. This stage required the groups to submit photos and videos of their completed designs as well as a written piece explaining the idea behind the theme of the outfit with a specific reference to the SDGs that are relevant to the design.
The winners of the initial stage were announced in February with Ramsgrange Community School very proud to have three entries chosen to progress to the Regional Finals representing the South East Region. This regional final took place last week in the Helix in Dublin where the three Ramsgrange groups competed against 180 other finalists, each hoping to be one of the 12 groups chosen to represent the South East in the National Final. During the finals, each group had to model their design during a 45 second performance in front of an enthusiastic audience and the Junk Kouture judges.
The three Ramsgrange finalist included Too Cute 2 Boot, Season Sense and Gear Glamour. Too Cute 2 Boot consisted of team members, Kara Hedrick, Roan Kavanagh and Emily McCabe. Their design was created using old football boots and other recycled sporting equipment. Oran Gleeson, Aoibhe Reville and Katie Franklin were the team behind Season Sense and their outfit was crafted from old bin liners, silage wrap and unwanted clothing. Finally, Gear Glamour, whose design creatively made use of old bicycles was led by Ellen Chapman, Anna Murphy and Kayla Butler.
Unfortunately, it was not to be for all of the Ramsgrange groups however, Gear Glamour was chosen by the judges as one of the 12 South East teams who will progress to the National Finals. Speaking to the group after the event they outlined the intricate process of creating their outfit which was formed solely from the parts of two bikes and a bike cover. Their skirt consisted of two bike tyres and wires which also included an underskirt ad train that was crafted by weaving together and old bike cover. The inner rubber tubing of the tyres were plaited and stitched together to form the corset and a headpiece was formed using the remainder of the tyres as well as spokes, chains and brake cable. The outfit was completed by removing the heels of a second-hand pair of heeled sandals which were then cleverly replaced by old gear cogs stacked upon each other.
Gear Glamour now fly the flag solely for Ramsgrange as they progress to the National Final in the 3 Arena taking place on the 7th May. The stakes for the next stage are high as not only do they compete to be crowned National Junk Kouture champions, the top 10 acts will progress to the World Finals which see groups from Abu Dhabi, London, Milan, New York and Paris all compete to be crowned the coveted overall Junk Kouture champion.
