UPCYCLING: CREATIVE RECYCLING

UPCYCLING: CREATIVE RECYCLING

Upcycling according to the Cambridge  dictionary: the activity of making new furniture, objects etc. out of old or used things or waste material.
This is not recycling, it’s upcycling.

A broad concept that includes many areas and various all-round products.
However, initially I would like to focus in particular on fashion: also to continue the discussion a little in the wake of the considerations on reuse that I was pleased to read in the comments on Looop.

Starting as always with King Giorgio and with his “I’m saying yes to recycling” it must be said that in this case we are dealing with recovered or recycled materials, while upcycling represents a next step, it is not “simple” recycling.

Many stylists are in fact creating clothes, capsules, or real collections, reusing vintage garments which, skilfully revisited, give life to new expressions of their art.

In this regard we can take a look at Upcycled by Miu Miu: an exclusive and special collection of recycled and reworked vintage pieces, built around unsigned period pieces dating back to the period between the thirties and the eighties, which includes 80 unique and numbered dresses.

Another example is Recicla by John Galliano for Maison Margiela term that derives from the fusion of recycle and replica: a series of limited edition garments included in the collection, which bear the characteristic white label on which, however, the origin and the period are now indicated.
I especially like Wicker bags.

After all, Martin Margiela can perhaps be defined as a precursor of the deconstruction that has always been his prerogative, and, quoting him, the association of ideas with Jean Paul Gaultier is immediate.

I have been following JPG with particular attention since he designed the costumes for Luc Besson’s The Fifth Element: Leeloo is iconic to me.
And I would say that his show… bordello laughing as he himself defined it, as well as absolutely spectacular, was an upcycling roundup of the 50 years of fashion he went through.

The grief is for his goodbye to his career, but I would say that more than a abandonment it is a great ending.
could also launch a contest: how many names and quotes can you count? As long as you can really list everything …

Since we are in France, the Renaissance project, supported among others by the Kéring group, is also worth mentioning. 

The founder and president is Philippe Guilet, who has worked with many stylists such as Jean Paul Gaultier, but also Thierry Mugler, Karl Lagerfeld and Donna Karan.

This project implies a true and proper upcycling couture, and, in addition to the reuse of the garments, it also provides for the reintegration of people excluded from work, according to the idea of offering them a new life too.

The garments are donated by individuals who become ambassadors and ambassadors of the brand.
Renaissance also bets on the outskirts of Paris precisely to integrate and provide opportunities.

What do you think about it? Have you ever reused or recovered some old outfit that came out of a trunk?

I confess that I fell in love with some dresses that my mom had kept in the wardrobe for years, and that I wore them on special occasions.
Above all I would remember a similar sleeveless black velvet sheath dress with a slightly trapezoidal cut and a semigloss thread of black trimmings around the round and very closed neckline.

I thought it could be fun, in view of this particular New Year’s Eve (although it is an anniversary that I do not celebrate) to reinvent a dress with something recovered in the house. What do you say?

KEFIR

KEFIR

I received a particular gift: a family of lactic ferments that I am very happy to adopt: the Kefir.

The Treccani describes Kefir as a frothy, creamy and slightly alcoholic drink obtained by lactic-butyric fermentation of milk.

This exotic name comes from the Caucasus and is very popular especially in Russia. It consists of granules: the Kefiran, composed of bacterial polysaccharides that contain live microorganisms.

Kefir can be considered a probiotic that is, a microorganism that once ingested exercises beneficial functions for the body.
Here you can find the nutritional properties and the main benefits.

Have you ever tried to keep lactic ferments?
The procedure is simple:

  • the granules are placed in a glass jug with a wide opening and covered with milk

  • a sheet of kitchen paper must be placed on the opening of the jug and secured with a rubber band

  • they must be stored in a place at room temperature and not exposed to direct light for 24 hours

  • after which it is necessary to pour the granules into a colander

  • in case the product is not drunk immediately, it can also be kept in the refrigerator for the following day

  • the granules should not be rinsed, simply cover them again with the milk in a clean jug

After a few days the little family will increase in volume, in fact during my previous adoption I had started to periodically give a part of it to my friends #kefirsharing laughing

IL TRENO DEI BAMBINI – CHILDREN’S TRAIN

IL TRENO DEI BAMBINI – CHILDREN’S TRAIN

To intertwine two different strands: Monica’s books and ideas for gifts, I propose The Children’s Train that I received as a gift from Monica last Christmas, because this book took my heart, giving me a thousand food for thought.

Viola Ardone opens a door on the Neapolitan homes, but once you cross the threshold you are inside the world of a child, who absorbs, who learns, who knows people and things within the limits he can reach, and who at the same goes further, bringing the reader with him.

The flow of thoughts that are unleashed is inexhaustible.
Childhood is a topic that is particularly dear to me for many reasons, not least the fact that children teach us, but too often we forget it.

The dilemma is inexorable.
Personally I was not aware of the existence of these trains, or rather of these transfers in the specific narrated context, even if the children of Chernobyl who after the disaster were hosted by many families even in my country of origin immediately came to mind.

Inevitable the wave of cascading considerations, from the general sphere to the depth of the personal level, on the subject of incommunicability and barriers.

The admiration for strength is essential. Intrinsic, light yet disruptive.

The ensuing analysis and the face to face with the reactions and personal emotions about death are relentless.

I cried.

I was also catapulted on that train but not only that, in short, I don’t know if it’s clear: I liked this book and I recommend it.

A RIVEDER LE STELLE

A RIVEDER LE STELLE

This time I continue the previous post and I really hope you haven’t missed such an amazing show

I had already seen Tosca last year, and in general I find that the opportunity to follow these events really has a relevant value.

This year the rehearsals of the planned Lucia di Lammermore had been interrupted as our lives continue to be interrupted in this period that we hope will end very soon, but the union of the work of various and prestigious excellences has meant that as in a magical blend what was created for me was a perfect alchemy. 

I think about the Elective Affinities, I don’t know if you pass me this comparison that comes from my enthusiasm for the crescendo of citations that has composed a series of artistic sequences to leave you breathless.

For example, I found a moment that I would define perfect with Bizet’s Carmen when the music that I simply adore was combined with images to create a pictorial and suggestive effect with the added value of King Giorgio‘s dress. 

Another very strong surprise: Davide Boosta Di Leo, who oversaw the part with the performance of Roberto Bolle.
I very much appreciate the contaminations in this sense.

And, as it turns out laughing I have a particular weakness for quotes, characteristics for which while I was watching I felt like a child who finds many packages under the Christmas tree.

Ballet

Cinema

Art

Fashion

Symbolic frames and literature

Listing everything would be an understatement and I would end up forgetting something anyway, so I rather ask what struck you most.

MILAN Sant’Ambrœs

MILAN Sant’Ambrœs

Today is a day of celebration for many people who live and work in Milan, but in general Sant’Ambrogio is an important event for everyone, arriving the day before the Immaculate Conception: both dates that officially kick off the Christmas season.

If you have not yet had the opportunity to visit the basilica of Sant’Ambrogio, I suggest you to mark it for the first useful occasion, for me among other things it represents the memory of the prelude to work, right in the immediate neighborough: in those same streets where until 2006 the Oh bej oh bej fair took place.

A particular name, a Milanese expression that, in addition to representing the dialect that is the roots, to which I always care, recalls the cries of joy of children: what could be more beautiful?

Oh beautiful! Oh beautiful! Were the games and sweets that Giannetto Castiglione distributed to children in 1510 to obtain benevolence from the Milanese fearing not to be welcomed in view of the assignment received from the Pope, towards which the Milanese had shown discontent.

Have you ever had the opportunity to visit this market?
I would say that it is really fun to browse among the stalls that offer curiosities and out of the ordinary objects.
These are some of Elisa‘s pictures from last year:

I was there once in the glorious 80s and a few years ago also in the new location in the Castello Sforzesco area again thanks to Elisa who then guided us to the Christmas Village, after a visit to the Natural History Museum which I also recommend, in particular to make children spend an unforgettable day.

After all, Milan is an inexhaustible source of interesting things to do, of beautiful things to see, and also of good things to eat, why not?
Since we are in the Christmas theme, for example, we cannot fail to mention the panettone which, among other things, always goes well with a good cup of coffee.

The official site of the consortium reports three different legends related to its origin. Which would you choose?
I choose the second, ça va sans dire… laughing

But let’s not get lost in romance: it’s almost time!
The appointment with the premiere of the Teatro alla Scala, which is one of the most worldly events ever, this year will be broadcast. 

A riveder le stelle.

It means to see the stars again, and let’s hope not only them.

 

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