IT was a bustling affair at ethical label Edun today, with A-list guests including Michael Stipe, Helena Christensen, Courtney Love, Sting and wife Trudi, Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, and Bono and wife Ali Hewson – founders of the forward-thinking label – all sitting front row.
SEE WHAT BONO THOUGHT OF THE SHOW
And it’s little wonder Edun attracts such a high-profile crowd when what it stands for is so important – the belief that style should have genuine substance.
Since 2005 when the label launched, Hewson has been committed to making luxury clothing while also promoting trade with developing nations – Edun supports six factories across Africa where 37 per cent of the women's line is made, the label’s ethos being “Trade not Aid”.
For spring/summer 2012, an eclectic collection designed by Sharon Wauchob (the Irish designer’s third season with the label), skillfully mashed up iconic floral patterns with traditional African prints, resulting in a thoroughly modern take on tribal. There were also numerous basic pieces for those that shy away from print, including a sleek black trench, tailored trousers and fatigue-like separates. Overall, the palette was bold and bright, an optimistic outlook on a sombre New York day (September 11), consisting of innovative mixed print dresses hand-made in Kenya, and jackets crafted from hemp recycled poly gabardine.
Striking Indigo dye-patterned pieces strewn throughout were the product of a collaboration with Malian artist Aboubakar Foufana, and gorgeous black crochet dresses and intricate crochet embellishment were rather inspiringly made, it turns out, by a group of Kenyan artisan nuns known as "the crochet sisters".
SEE THE EDUN SHOW ARCHIVE