While they have been an iconic piece of womenswear for the holiday season, sequins may soon disappear from fashion.
Boden is the middle-class brand Kate Middleton loves. It has dropped the glittery plastic embellishments from its latest collection of partywear. Other fashion brands are expected to do the same.
The company, founded by Johnnie Boden in 1991, this week revealed it would no longer use sequins because of fears that the petroleum-based plastic discs could end up polluting the world’s oceans.
Fashion industry is still looking for sustainable fashion. Plant-based and biodegradable sequins may be an option.
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Boden, the brand founded by Johnnie Boden in 1991 has ditched sequins from its party season collections this year, saying the decision was made ‘to keep our oceans happy’ Pictured: A fit and flare dress by Boden in bronze lurex
It is well-known for its luxury fabrics, including velvet and chiffon. The brand also uses glittering yarns in embroidery to create glamour.
Sequins, tiny discs made of petroleum-based plastic that sparkle in the sunlight, are a concern. (Pictured is an embroidered dress by Boden’s partywear line.
The brand told The Sunday Times that the decision was made ‘to keep our oceans happy’, fearing that production could see some of the tiny, shiny discs finding their way into the oceans and rivers.
Boden has made it a point to look for other glamourous ways to add glamour to his partywear line. This season’s collection will feature decadent fabrics such as lurex and silk chiffon along with glittering embroidery.
Dresses and jumpsuits from the partywear range typically retail at around £130.
Scientists are currently looking for alternatives to plastic fashion details. They have been in use since 1920s when Flappers wore them with tiered and tassled gowns.
Science News published last month that a plant-based dye made of cellulose, which is more readily broken down than plastic, could produce shimmering colors without the negative environmental impacts.
Kate Middleton is a long-time fan of Boden. She wore a Boden gown on her family’s 2019 Christmas card
Johnnie Boden founded the upmarket brand in 1991. It is also the first high-street retailer to oppose sequins.
Kate Middleton remains a fan of sequins; the Duchess of Cambridge wore a sequinned gown by Jenny Packham at the No Time To Die premiere at the Royal Albert Hall on September 28
Silvia Vignolini from the University of Cambridge stated that the shiny berries of Pollia Condensata in Africa could make fashion eco-friendly.
Vignolini stated that early research suggests the plant’s shimmer could be copied for fashion.
Johnnie Boden founded Boden in his kitchen in 1991. Despite being skeptical that an Old Etonian City banker would ever be successful in fashion, only eight items of menswear were made at first.
Soon Boden expanded into womenswear as well as childrenswear, and Boden’s appeal among middle-class moms skyrocketed. The brand’s popularity has spread to the USA, where a third are sold.