SfilataFrasso: 9 ecological fashion dresses on the catwalk

A magical evening in the charming village of Frasso Sabino (RI). After the absence in 2020, SfilataFrasso Moda e Riciclo is back in a special version: with a limited number of spectators, in compliance with the Covid-19 legislation, during a dinner within the walls of the Castle the models paraded along the streets of the town.

Sfilata Frasso is an eco-fashion event, created to raise awareness in the local community on the theme of separate waste collection. Creative designers participate by proposing clothes made by recovering materials to be thrown away. Not just a more sustainable fashion show, but in the squares and streets of the town the local community creates a green work of art every time with reused materials. This year colored plastic fragments, recovered in the previous months also from neighboring municipalities happy to contribute, have embellished the village.

When Serena Benedetti and Simona Maresca, communication managers of the event, invited me, I accepted immediately. “The clothes will be, as per regulation, made exclusively with waste materials, ready more than ever to launch the message #NonSonoDaButtare! – Serena and Simona say – The pandemic has raised more than ever the issue of the difficulty of waste disposal. (Also) our handling of disposable materials has changed”.

On July 31st I took part as a juror in the best of edition of the show we love so much, with the nine artists of the recovery of first classified materials of the last seven editions competing. With me, four other jurors shared the rather difficult task of choosing this year’s winners, in the setting of a village full of charm. During the show, we enjoyed a delicious dinner with a menu created specifically for the occasion, made in a cooking pot, with the utmost attention to sustainability.

Conducted by Viviana Rapisarda, the evening was pleasantly full of clothes, interspersed with performances by the Terni jazz Orchestra. The town was laid out in cheerful and curious tables. Between courses we voted on clothes. It was not easy: the creativity and commitment of the participants in recovering the materials is remarkable. You can see here a short video that I created as a souvenir.

I show you all the clothes: creating clothes and at the same time reducing the ecological footprint is possible!

Entangled in the Net, by Eugenia Benedetti and Graziella Cestari. First place

Made with plastic bottles, mosquito nets, car sunshades, ribbons and old rhinestones. “The dress is intended to be a hymn of protest against the pollution of the seas due to micro-plastics – explain Eugenia and Graziella – It is an invitation to take care of the treasures that nature offers us”. For years, the artists have shared with SfilataFrasso the message of respect and care for the environment, and attention to proper waste disposal.

Worn by Giada Franceschi.

Pss!, by Gregorio Maria Mattei. Second place

Made with PVC inflatables with holes, assembled through real hand and machine stitching and heat melting points. An ironic and fun dress that recalls summer, the joy of living, smiles, but hides a very important message: the desire to return to a society “inflated” with positive values. Doesn’t it make you happy just looking at it?

Worn by Francesca Fortuna.

Crystal Bride, by Erica Petrozzi. Third place

Made with syringe caps, paper and plastic of tubes for drip, antibiotic vial caps, and decorated with recycled pearls and crystals, sewn with fishing line. A lively dress for a sustainable bride consisting of skirt and bustier. “The dress recalls the pain we all learned about during the Covid-19 epidemic,” explains Erica. At the same time, the dress brings back the image of a luminous bride, who comes proudly to the altar, crowning a dream. Erica is a nurse and by telling about her dress together with Silvia, the model, she has transmitted to us the emotions of an experience that she has marked her.

Worn by Silvia De Tommaso.

Sunshine, by Silvia Rossi

Made with surgical masks, plastic wrap from cigarette packs, gold plastic scraps. Silvia involved friends, colleagues, relatives asking not to throw away the masks, collecting about a hundred. Sanitized with water, sewn, woven and finished, they compose a dress inspired by Star Wars, which warms and protects a warrior woman ready to face the challenges of everyday life.

Worn by Beatrice Fiorillo.

A butterfly on flowers, by Vita Masi

Made with nylon mesh bag for seasoning cured meats, plastic sticks, aluminum can tabs, shoe laces, wallpaper, napkin scraps, tubular for electric wires. A romantic dress, with which Vita tells that a flower can be born in the midst of waste, never lose hope.

Worn by Arianna Cicolani.

REbirth, by ASD DMB Danza Movimento Benessere

Made with mesh bags for potatoes, clear plastic scraps, floral packaging, cardboard from the lids of disposable aluminum containers, plastic sticks to support balloons, wire made from crutches. The dress was born from a reflection on the difficult period we are experiencing. It is inspired by the 1980s film MAD MAX, in which a lone warrior is exiled from his city and rescued by a tribe of wild children. The warrior is the woman who in everyday life “fights with the weapons of creativity and passion against the pandemic”. “We have chosen to use a poor material – say the artists – to show that a woman can be chic even dressed with a sack of potatoes, be simple without giving up being beautiful”.

The dress received the Sustainable Passion award from the Legambiente Bassa Sabina Club.

Worn by Lavinia Luglio.

Carpe Diem, by Simona Toma

Made with recycled paper, TNT placemats, metal bottle caps collected by relatives and friends, worn cotton rags, used surgical masks, mismatched shoe laces. “A street style dress, a little rock, a little Madonna in ‘Desperately Seeking Susan’ revisited with today’s eyes – says Simona – The short top is made with old used rags sanitized by the condominium cleaning company from which they were. The macrame technique was chosen and applied for the back of the top. Carpe diem is the sound of laughter between friends who find themselves at the table together after a long time, the tinkling as you uncork the bottle of iced beer on hot days summer, the sweat of work that has never stopped, got lost, we search and search… we dream”.

Worn by Serena Perpignani.

Lines of shadow,  by Nadia Assogna

Made with an old garden net, two-tone shading, PVC from advertising billboards, a rain cover umbrella, bags of dog food. A colorful dress that fully represents recovery. “All waste materials, if not fully exploited, always have a second chance”, explains Nadia. “We must always be ready to look beyond, especially when it comes to preserving the environment and building a bright future together. To infinity and beyond!”.

Worn by Marzia Assogna.

Black and white weaves, by Donata Claps

Made with plastic twine, black garbage bags, TNT tablecloths, silver paper, 2 CDs, plastic bottles. Each braid was assembled and sewn by hand by the artist with the help of his father. Inspired during a lunch in the countryside, on the occasion of the hay harvest, it is embellished with a belt with floral decorations. “Nature knows how to give itself to man without reserve”, says Donata. “We all enjoy the benefits of him. But not all of us respect it. Hence the idea of recovering the twine for hay bales and everything that could be reused after harvesting to give life to a creation with materials that would have been discarded”. From Basilicata to Frasso to remind respect for nature.

Worn by Veronica Sinibaldi.

More info are in the following pages of the event:
SfilataFrasso Facebook
SfilataFrasso Instagram

Photos: Leonardo Priolo