WATCH: Jumping for joy as ball gown created from recycled materials including a trampoline lands Inverness Royal Academy pupil a place in UK final of Junk Kouture
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A ball gown fashioned from recycled materials including a trampoline damaged in a storm, an old bicycle wheel and chocolate wrappers has landed a creative Inverness teenager a place in the finals of a fashion competition.
Órla Ní Eadhra will travel to London next month to take part in the UK final of Junk Kouture, a global youth sustainable fashion competition which challenges emerging designers, engineers, artists and performers to create and model high-end couture from everyday junk.
The top 10 designs will be selected for the world final where they will compete with 50 other designs from Abu Dhabi, London, Paris, Milan and New York.
Órla, an S6 pupil at Inverness Royal Academy, is the northernmost finalist with her eye-catching Jump For Joy creation.
The 17-year-old who lives with her parents, Brian Ó hEadhra and Fionnag NicChoinnich, and sibling, Ró, created the outfit on her sewing machine at home in the Drummond area.
“I decided to do it simply for a challenge and for fun, as most of my classes this year have been online or with just me in them, so I wanted some interesting project to inspire me throughout the year,” she said.
“My outfit is mostly made from my childhood trampoline, as it was completely destroyed in a storm a few months ago, so I thought why not use it to make a large ball gown!
“Off that, I wanted my outfit to be heavily inspired by my childhood, using items that are related to me personally.”
She used the wrappers from Quality Street chocolates – a family favourite at Christmas – to create the corset as well as colour accents in the boots, gloves and dress hem.
“I also used materials that I acquired with the assistance of family and the community,” Órla continued.
“I got some old curtains and a hula hoop from my family, an old bicycle wheel from the Velocity café, and boots from Shelter.
“Every material I used was completely upcycled or previously owned by me.”
Items incorporated into the outfit even included old partially-broken fairy lights to decorate the hem and the trampoline springs which she used with the boots.
“I love sewing and dressmaking so this was a great opportunity to test myself and expand my creativity,” she said.
“It was almost completely made on my home sewing machine, which definitely resulted in my house being an absolute mess!”
Underlying her creative design are various themes and messages.
“Around 90 per cent of toys sold in today’s market are made from plastic,” Órla said.
“With Jump for Joy, I wanted to highlight the waste that is left from children’s toys and items, and how many of them are discarded when we grow up.”
She added: “The dark colours and style of the majority of the outfit contrast with the brightness of the sweet wrapper decoration and the innocence of childhood.
“The repeated wavy paths in the outfit represent the different paths of life one is required to go on once your childhood is over.”
Órla has been supported by Elissa Hunter-Dorans, a Millburn Academy pupil who took part in last year’s Junk Kouture competition with an outfit made from old silage bags and sheep’s wool.
She will take to the stage along with the other finalists at the Hackney Empire Theatre on May 19.
Despite her passion and talent for sewing, Órla revealed she has not considered a career in fashion design.
“I am scared my hobby would then be more of a chore,”she reflected.
Later this year, she will take up a job as an au pair in Germany before doing Scandinavian studies and German at Edinburgh University.
