Vega Hertel

The Three Pillers  

Textiles and Materials 

Community and Networks

Education and Knowledge Exchange

This collection is built on “The Three Pillars” of a Fibershed. Fibersheds are focused around communities, they connect farmers to mills to craft artisans that are all within a local radius with one another, promoting the creation of garments that can be worn in the same region as both the fibres, textiles and dyes came from. 

It also looks to the not-too-long-ago past, my great grandmother, a farmer who grew and made everything from her small village, Ernsthausen in central rural Germany. She still wore the traditional German Tracht till her passing in 2006, made from handwoven linens, cottons and wool, sewn by her sister. Referencing the craft in her clothing in combination with sustainable textiles techniques, it is the melding of new and old. An environmentally conscious collection that appreciates the tactility of the handmade whilst updating the form and function to fit a modern elegant style. Her evangelical faith inspires the monochrome tones of the white and purple collection, naturally dyed using logwood. 

From patch worked bridal silk scraps to hand washed and felted alpaca wool, there is a refined handwork and labour of love that entangles each fibre, reminding us of the journey they have undergone to arrive at this very moment. Hours and hours, hands and fingers, the garments are understated artworks, hidden beauty in every moulded unique pleat or naturally dyed garb.