ECO-ETHICAL STYLE takes center stage as Rags2Riches/RIIR Designer Line unveiled its Fall/ Holiday collection of signature bags and accessories. Created by premier designer Amina Aranaz-Alunan, the launch of RIIR-Aranaz’s Fall/Holiday collection is the collaboration of Filipino style connoisseurs – RIIR, Aranaz and Rajo Laurel, who graciously lent pieces from his couture collection to the runway muses of the event.
I am particularly impressed how every piece of RIIR-Aranaz collection has been meticulously-woven and comes with a tag that tells who the particular mother in Payatas made it – creating an instant bond between the maker and the bag owner. It also uplifts the mothers of Payatas out of poverty.
the mothers of Payatas with Chin-Chin Gutierrez (RIIR advocacy supporter)
I saw these mothers of Payatas, the co-creators of this designer line during the event and I cannot help but be happy for them. Whoever came up with this advocacy is a genius! I’m trying to upload the video on You Tube and it seems to be taking forever. But I will embed it as soon as it is done. 🙂
Aptly entitled “Spot On,” the black and white-themed affair puts the spotlight on Eco-Ethical Style, a lifestyle and coalescence of fashion, social responsibility and preservation of the environment.
All pieces from the RIIR-Aranaz collection utilize scrap fabric materials that are converted into functional and high-fashion products through a process called ‘upcycling.’ The use of discarded materials is part of an advocacy to help conserve the environment while providing a sustainable source of income for the artisans behind the products.
“Social responsibility should not be separate and different from style. Our partner designer for this fashion season Amina Aranaz has ingeniously created masterpieces that embody RIIR’s advocacy,” shared Jose Mark Pardiňas, Sales and Marketing Manager for Rags2Riches, Inc.
moi at the Rags2Riches/RIIR Designer Line, Fall/ Holiday collection launch
RIIR was initially established as a social business enterprise that aims to uplift the poor community of Payatas in Quezon City. It partnered with famed designer Rajo Laurel who became the first partner-designer of the RIIR Designer Line in 2007. Now a global Filipino brand, RIIR has successfully collaborated with over 400 women who are the artisans behind RIIR’s high-fashion products. To know more about RIIR’s products and social statement, log on to www.rags2riches.ph.