13 Black and Brown Upcycling Designers you NEED to Know
“Make it work!” This iconic Tim Gunn quote likely brings up core memories for those of us who were fashion-obsessed from the very beginning. Gunn’s classic line instructed each Project Runway season's contestants to make something amazing out of the unusual, the unconventional, and sometimes out of nothing at all. In the world of sustainable fashion, designers are making it work every single day with the resources that are already in circulation.
Black and Brown sustainable designers in particular are experts at disrupting the status quo. All over the world, these designers are turning fashion on its head. Disrupting norms of minimalism, colorlessness, and of course, challenging the classic “Is it fashion? Or is she just skinny…” question, these susty Black and Brown designers came to slay.
1. Tega Akinola
Tega Akinola screams “It girl.” She literally renders USB cables into accessories. She sources her cables from companies that manage electrical waste. She thrifts socks to make shoes and turns upcycled fleece jackets into mini bags. DIY baddies: if you’re looking for inspo, Akinola’s work will push you to think outside your comfort zone.
2. Samantha Vo
Samantha Vo is a Mexican-Vietnamese sustainable designer who fuses her culture into her work. She started by working with textiles as a multidisciplinary artist and taught herself design skills. Her pieces range from patchwork dresses to hand-dyed tote bags. Designing became a form of storytelling for Vo, as she grew up thrifting with her mom. Her pieces are steeped in nostalgia; extra pockets in a certain garment, for example, might reflect her reminiscences of her grandma in an apron.
3. Asata Maisé
Asata Maisé’s brand started in 2016. Prior to her solo endeavor, the designer refined her technique under couturier Michael Costello. She stands for slow fashion and uses unloved fabrics to create pieces that can last you a lifetime. The prices can vary depending on how much time goes into each garment, but the attention to detail makes each one worth every penny. Her pieces include tops, corsets, and mini duffle bags.
4. Amy Denet Deal of 4Kinship
Diné (Navajo)-owned brand 4KINSHIP is based in New Mexico and was founded in 2015 by Amy Denet Deal (formerly Yeung). Their ethos centers community and our connection to the earth. Each piece is upcycled, sustainably sourced, and made to be wearable art. Deal wanted to reconnect to her Indigenous roots, in part through the founding of her brand.
Pennsylvania-born Jobi Angel is a multi-media artist and designer based in New York. Cloudie Jobi is a wearable art brand featuring handmade, upcycled, reworked, and curated designs by Angel. Angel specializes in making pieces that are unique and intentionally gender-neutral to be loved and worn by all. Inspired by their childhood nostalgia, their designs are intended to be worn with play in mind. Angel has shown their pieces at multiple NYFW shows and looks forward to expanding their designs in high fashion handmade and upcycled work.
6. Jachuku Howard of Bandit Studioz
Maryland-born, Brooklyn-based designer Jachuku Howard is the founder and designer behind Bandit Studioz. Jachuku is known for his bright and vibrant knit and crochet garments. His most recent collection from Fall of ‘22, Returning to Eden, evokes elements of Afrofuturism blended with designs inspired by nature. The collection, and much of Jachuku’s work is rooted in this idea of the future with the reminder that being present, and taking care of our planet now, is essential to the future of fashion.
7. LaMicah Hughbanks of urbn rewrrk
LaMicah Hughbanks is the brain behind the reworked apparel brand, urbn rewrrk, a Brooklyn-based sustainable fashion brand. Urbn rewrrk’s designs are all made using reclaimed materials, are meant to be classic pieces that fit an array of style aesthetics, and are intentionally size-inclusive. Hughbanks is entirely self-taught; through teaching herself to sew and watching upcycling fashion tutorials online, she grew an entire fashion label on her own.
Utilizing recycled blankets and knits, Serger boy is designing one-of-a-kind upcycled streetwear for every style. On Instagram, you can watch as Serger boy takes secondhand crocheted blankets, quilts, and comforters, and turns them into pants, jackets, tops, hats, sets, and more. Serger boys' design work is accessible and intended to be inclusive by offering access to patterns, sewing products, and other tutorial-based resources so that others can recreate similar susty designs on their own.
Brielle is the designer behind Femlord. Brielle is a multi-media artist from Florida who is now based in New York. Femlord designs are majority airbrush artwork on upcycled clothing, including t-shirts, jackets, denim, and more. Previously, Femlord has been featured in a Berriez collection of thrifted pieces individually airbrushed by Brielle.
10. Syd Brisco
Syd Brisco is an omni talented multidisciplinary artist based in Chicago. One of her mediums is upcycling clothing through dyeing and reconstruction to make one of a kind wearable art from flipped pieces. Her pieces are unique in their patchwork style and many are acid washed to create an unrepeatable look. In addition to designing, Brisco is also a musician and visual artist.
Utilizing vintage denim and natural dye, Inperfect Denim reinvents denim as we know it. Brandon Hosley is a New York transplant from Chicago who started upcycling denim in his apartment. Over time, the project grew into a full-scale brand that upcycles recycled denim jeans, recycled denim bags, and recycled denim hats.
Marsh Delcid is the brains and eye behind Pantano Clothing, a brand making sustainable fashion from recycled blankets and other textiles. Delcid sews and designs each piece by hand. Most items are made to order or made in small batch collections in order to minimize the brand's carbon footprint. All textiles are thrifted either by Delcid himself or donated/gifted by others. Additionally, Delcid uses 100% natural dyes and organic cotton canvas for each original upcycled piece.
13. Need Things
Need Things is a Seattle-based clothing brand making unique and one-of-a-kind pieces from recycled materials. Latinx-Bolivian-owned, Need Things designs everything from shirts, and dresses, to accessories using leftover scrap fabrics. Many of their pieces are in patchwork style and utilize various textiles to create pieces that are zero-waste and like no other.