Regenerated – an inspiring circular fashion project

Wer hätte gedacht, dass ein altes Männerhemd mit einigen wohl überlegten Eingriffen in ein cooles Design-Piece verwandelt werden kann? Meine Schwester Ulli hat mir das Instagram ihrer Bekannten Rebecca Chamberlain gezeigt und ich war „hooked“. Rebecca hat ihr Label Regenerated vor eineinhalb Jahren während der Pandemie gelauncht. Sie zog damals von NYC nach Upstate New York, stieg in ein Vintage Clothing Business ein und entwickelte parallel dazu ihr neues Projekt. Was mir daran so gut gefällt? Bei Regenerated treffen sich Kunstfertigkeit, Stil und Nachhaltigkeit – Vintage- und Secondhandkleidungsstücke werden zu raffinierten neuen Pieces umgearbeitet. Circular Fashion vom Feinsten. Jeder Stoffrest wird wieder verwendet, das Einzige, was sie kaufe, sei der Faden, erzählt mir Rebecca im Zoom-Gespräch, der Footprint sei also sehr klein.Viele Teile sind unisex, es gibt sie in unterschiedlichen Größen und natürlich ist jedes Stück „one of a kind“. Zeitlos, dennoch zeitgenössisch. Die Hemden und anderen Kleidungsstücke findet Rebecca in Vintage- und Secondhandstores oder bekommt sie geschenkt. Die größte Herausforderung sei es, die richtigen Stücke zu finden, in Materialien, die dem Test der Zeit standhielten, erzählt sie.

Die Hemden wirken auf mich wie Skulpturen. Vielleicht kein Wunder, denn Rebecca hat nicht nur einen soliden Fashion-Hintergrund, sondern auch einen Background als Künstlerin. Mode und Kunst sind ihre bestimmenden Ausdrucksweisen, mal ist der eine, mal der andere Bereich wichtiger, aber immer beeinflussen sie sich gegenseitig. Das, was sie besonders interessiert, ist disziplinübergreifendes Arbeiten. Rebecca, what motivated you to start Regenerated?

As the pandemic forced many fashion houses to close down offices, I lost my design clients. I began sewing masks for nurses at a local hospital and was invited to partner with a friends’ vintage clothing shop (both up in Delaware County, Upstate NY). As things opened up a bit and we were able to do large shopping trips for the vintage shop, I noticed racks of men’s shirts sitting in store after store. I was always attracted to striped shirts and I ‘adjusted’ a particularly vibrant blue poplin one for myself that became a sort of uniform.
We toyed around with the idea of re-making great vintage shapes in dead-stock fabrics, but the idea of making new (and more) garments didn’t sit with me. I was more interested in reshaping existing pieces. I have worked as a stylist and that part of my creative drive plays a big role in Regenerated.

You work with garments that are already around. What role does the aspect of sustainability play in your project?

Sustainability provides boundaries for Regenerated. It guides how I make new pieces for the line. For example, when I make the 1/2 & 1/2 Trousers (Men’s suiting trouser front with denim back), I develop styles from the other  half of the remaining pants. It is rare that I will cut any part of a reshaped denim out. Instead, the excess fabric gets folded into the new pant shape, which gives the silhouette a distinct, oversized, unisex manner.You know the fashion industry pretty well; does it need to change?

Systems of production need to change and this will force a change in the design strategy. Designers need to understand and design the production system of a garment. This will slow down the whole design process but will also build connection between manufacturing and design that has not been holistic.

Regenerated is also committed to building opportunities for other women. How do you realize that?

I have worked with a non-for-profit called Custom Collaborative. They train women from no to low income circumstances to grow their own fashion businesses. These women can work with me on every aspect of Regenerated, because of the training they receive during the 15-week comprehensive trying program.Your pieces are stunning and look like sculptures to me. Is each one newly designed or do you already have some kind of “method”?

Every category: The restructured men’s shirts and denim, Merged (1/2 & 1/2) trousers, Quilted surplus pants and jackets each have methods that allow for variation depending on the size and quality of the original garment. 

How would you describe your personal style?

Masculinely Feminine. 

You are a fashion designer and artist – is it perhaps this combination that makes your pieces so interesting?

It is what allows me to work on clothing as I do on art-work—- with a “one-at-a-time” approach. 

You told me that with Regenerated you also want to inspire others to get creative as well. Do people copy your project?

I don’t know whether people copy the work. When you’ve been a designer long enough, you don’t worry about that. It’s sort of open-source once it’s out in the world. People send me images of work that reminds them of Regenerated, but a lot of people work with classic mens shirting, denim and military garb.
What is exciting is that I have been asked to collaborate with other businesses, regenerating over-stock and back-stock of their own product. This forces me to think about and design with garments that I don’t choose, but that needs a solution. I love this kind of challenge and it makes Regenerated work harder, doing the work it’s meant to do. You just opened a shop in Brooklyn. What plans do you have for Regenerated in the near future?

Approaching scaling in a considerate way, giving more opportunity to Custom Collaborative students and graduates. More collaboration with other brands. Growing my customer base through in-store interactions. 

Ulli hat zwei Secondhand-Männerhemden nach Rebeccas „Methode und Design“ für mich umgestaltet. Die Regenerated-Originale werde ich im Juni kennenlernen. Nach Jahren pandemiebedingter Pause steht heuer ein USA-Besuch an.Mehr über Rebecca findet ihr hier, hier, hier und hier.

Fotos: (1–7, 10, 11) © Rebecca Chamberlain/Regenerated; (8, 9) © Adrianna Newell; (12, 13) © Violeta Nevenova.