Upcycled: Miu Miu limited edition to denim

In the panorama of companies taking initiatives in sustainable fashion, Miu Miu presented in a limited edition its fourth Upcycled collection for 2024. The Upcycled project, launched in 2020, focuses on vintage clothing to add more value to.

The collection includes Denim, a range of essential jeans garments, characterized by floral embroidery inspired by the haute couture of the 1950s already introduced in the Spring Summer 2022 fashion show. Upcycled wants to establish a connection between past and present by celebrating the stories of those who wore garments, bags or accessories. The new collection features pre-2000 jeans sourced from global denim specialists, with a meticulous hand process to maximize fabric reuse. For the first time in the Upcycled project there are also bags, in particular the Patches made with leather scraps from Miu Miu models of the past.

To commit to transparency, the brand partners with Aura Blockchain Consortium, providing blockchain verification for every item in the collection to ensure authenticity and traceability. Bringing the smartphone close to the NFC tag on the Upcycled product, you can access specific information, exclusive content and the Certificate of Authenticity.

The brand, known for its iconic glasses and richly embellished bags, launched its first Upcycled collection in 2020. It included a capsule of 80 unique items, constructed from non-designer garments spanning the 1930s – 1980s period and selected in boutiques vintage in the world.

What we like:

• the recovery of materials to give greater value (we talked about upcycling here too)
• the connection between past and present
• the message of a positive attitude towards the culture of recovery. The brand, more experimental than the main Prada brand and aimed at young people in contemporary society, can convey the theme of vintage and prolonging the life of what we wear through Upcycled products
• care for durability. The denim creations have been deconstructed and reshaped through a process to preserve the fabric as much as possible
• the precise indication of the composition, including the presence of tissues of animal origin

What can be improved:

• giving indications on the aging and fading process of denim, to evaluate its sustainability
• explaining sustainability and finding alternative materials to silk, beads and crystals or use recycled ones. The floral embroideries that enrich the denim are in fact hand-sewn with silk chiffon petals, faceted beads and black crystals
• the leather details and the label material (leather). Each piece is finished with a leather label featuring the Miu Miu Upcycled logo and an internal white canvas tag. If the label and details also come from scraps, why not indicate this clearly?
• the accessibility of some pieces so as to bring young people even closer together. Loved over time by Millenials, Miu Miu speaks to Gen Z with the Upcycled project

What do you think?