Fashion Roundtable Book Club - Eleanor Houghton, author of 'Charlotte Brontë’s Life Through Clothes’
Front Row to Front Bench
Today, was joined by an historian, writer, and illustrator specialising in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century dress, literature, and material culture. Eleanor has an interesting career trajectory, after reading English at Oxford, Eleanor went on to become a couture milliner, specialising in archival research. Eleanor holds a doctorate in History and is an historical costume consultant for film and television productions such as Emily and Gentleman Jack. Eleanor is the author and illustrator of ‘Charlotte Brontë’s Life Through Clothes’, based on nine years of research into Charlotte...
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Q & A with Zakia Sewell, Author of ‘Finding Albion: Myth, folklore and the quest for a hidden Britain’
Front Row to Front Bench
Fashion Roundtable Book Club - Zakia Sewell, with Tamara Cincik and Meg Pirie Today’s conversation with Zakia Sewell took us from the sacred springs of Glastonbury to the history of ‘Albion’ as a place of refuge. Buy the Book ‘Finding Albion: Myth, folklore and the quest for a hidden Britain’ by Zakia Sewell Listen My Albion (BBC Radio 4): The four-part series that sparked Zakia’s quest Dream Time (BBC Radio 6 Music): Catch Zakia’s latest broadcasts exploring music and myth Folklore & Activism Right to Roam: Learn more about the campaign for land access in England and...
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Q & A with Rob Hopkins, co-founder of Transition Network with Meg Pirie
Front Row to Front Bench
Welcome to Fashion Roundtable’s second book club! is the co-founder of Transition Network. Rob holds a PhD from the University of Plymouth, and is author of several books. Starting in lockdown Rob created the highly successful ‘From What If to What Next’ podcast, where he time travelled with guests to explore practical, imaginative solutions to the climate and ecological crisis. The interview delves deeper into Rob’s latest book, ‘How to Fall in Love with the Future: A time traveller’s guide to changing the world.’ Through the power of Rob’s book, and Rob...
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Q&A with Daisy Fancourt, author of Art Cure with Meg Pirie
Front Row to Front Bench
First Episode of The Fashion Roundtable Book Club featuring a Q & Q with Daisy Fancourt, author of "Art Cure - The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health" published by
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ALIX COOMBS in conversation #25 AMELIA TWINE
Front Row to Front Bench
For this episode of the Front Row to Front Bench podcast, Alix Coombs speaks with , Founder of Following a decade working in sustainability in food systems and hospitality, Amelia now works in campaigning for a just transition to an equitable, regenerative fashion industry. Amelia ran a sustainable womenswear platform before founding Sustainable Fashion Week (SFW) in 2020. SFW works in creative community engagement to inspire consumer behaviour change, highlighting the different entry points to sustainability in fashion to make it more relevant and accessible to people from all...
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HARRIET FLETCHER-GILHUYS in conversation with #24 KATE TURNBULL
Front Row to Front Bench
For this episode of the Front Row to Front Bench podcast, speaks with from where they discuss the world of natural dyes and how they can be incorporated into supply chains and regenerative practices. Kate Turnbull is natural dyeing practitioner, educator and advocate. She divides her time between Headington School, Oxford as Eco Lead and in her dye house in Oxfordshire, working either on her own projects or collaborations. Recent collaborations have included suspending naturally-dyed plant based fibres above the Chelsea Flower Show ‘Dye Garden for Fashion Revolution’, producing a unique...
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TAMARA CINCIK in conversation with #23 BARONESS LOLA YOUNG OF HORNSEY
Front Row to Front Bench
For this episode of the Front Row to Front Bench podcast, speaks with , a crossbench peer in the about the release of her memoir '', published by Penguin. Eight Weeks is a deeply moving and inspiring memoir that tells the remarkable life story of Baroness Young of Hornsey, from her childhood in foster care, to becoming one of the first Black women in the House of Lords. Lola Young has been an actress, an academic, an activist and campaigner for social justice, and a crossbench peer. But from the age of eight weeks to eighteen years, she was moved between foster care placements and...
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TAMARA CINCIK in conversation with #22 GREAT BRITISH WOOL REVIVAL
Front Row to Front Bench
For this episode of the Front Row to Front Bench podcast, speaks with , and , the team behind our collaboration with and for the , the . This October marks , which celebrates British Wool. This discussion includes the background into how the team got together and why there is a need for a Great British Wool Revival.
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TAMARA CINCIK in conversation with #21 WAYNE HEMINGWAY
Front Row to Front Bench
For this episode of the Front Row to Front Bench podcast, speaks with designer about his bi-annual event the , which returns to Kings Cross, London on 27th & 28th April 2024. The weekend will give the public a last chance to see Paul McCartney's iconic before it is auctioned to find a new home as well as celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Ford Mustang. The popular festival also includes quality sustainable shopping, entertainment, street food and DJ’s. Wayne founded the hugely successful British fashion brand Red or Dead in the 80’s, which went on to win the British Fashion...
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TAMARA CINCIK in conversation with #20 CHARLIE PORTER
Front Row to Front Bench
For this episode of the Front Row to Front Bench podcast, speaks with writer, fashion critic and curator about his new book, ‘Bring No Clothes: Bloomsbury and the Philosophy of Fashion' published by . Charlie is one of the most influential fashion journalists of his time, and has written for the likes of the Guardian and iD magazine, as well as co-running the London queer rave . The book, rather wonderfully, uses clothing as a way to look at six iconic Bloomsbury figures, while seamlessly addressing the evolution of how we dress today. This leads on to the fact that clothing...
info_outlineIn 2019, Alden Wicker was asked to comment on a lawsuit that was being filed by a Delta flight attendant against Lands’ End, because the newly introduced uniform had caused a myriad of health issues, such as skin rashes, shortness of breath, hair loss, anaphylaxis and in one instance death.
In her book, ‘To Dye For’, award-winning journalist and sustainability expert, Alden Wicker, decided to break the story of unregulated toxic chemicals in fashion and their impacts on health and wellbeing.
Historically, in The Victorian era, women garment workers dyed fabrics using arsenic green dyes, and the blame lay on the women for consuming this fashion and not the men who owned the factories or dye houses. Skip forward to this century and the issue remains the same. In her research, Alden discovered the patriarchal issue that almost all of the experts and consultants were male, when it is the women who are far more likely to be affected by the toxins that are in fashion in every way.
What follows is a candid conversation about how dyes can affect our immune systems; how this affects women far more – from those working in fashion, to those consuming fashion, and those in caretaking roles of children with ailments such as asthma. In the US, endocrine disruptors were found in school uniforms, and so Alden talks in detail about ways in which we can reduce our exposure, including staying away from items with productivity promises such as ‘easy care’ or ultra fast-fashion with drop shipping.
The conversation leads to how we can better legislate against these issues. Particularly with new trade deals in the pipeline, deregulation on textiles and dyes could result in a saturation of fast fashion.
To buy Alden Wicker’s book:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dye-Toxic-Fashion-Making-Fight/dp/0593422619
Hive books:
Read our 'in conversation' interview with Alden here: https://www.fashionroundtable.co.uk/news/in-converstion-with-alden-wicker
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Website: EcoCult
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aldenwicker/
Instagram: EcoCult