Eric Beauduin
Eric Beauduin
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Eric Beauduin started working with second hand materials ten years ago.
This decision was more instinctively than from an ecological conviction and he dissected old clothes to make bags.
The details and secrets of clothes and accessories such as pockets, buttonholes, lining and reinforcements have always caught his interest more than the overall aspect of clothes.
Initially he used clothes in fabric, men’s suit, shirts, coats, but quickly moved on to leather clothes.
The patina of a used leather trench, bomber or jacket gives the soul of his accessories.
Season after season he invents hand made bags with techniques coming from clothes tailoring and leather goods traditions.
Each piece is an experiment. The original clothes pockets, seams and details, the different leathers,
the colors of the passed fashion are transposed into the bags.
The shapes and the use of the bags change following the demands and desires, but the concept is always the same.
Everything is made in the designer’s house in Brussels.
Impossible to duplicate a piece.
A limited production of by number labeled pieces.
Few sofisticated selling points in Belgium, France, Japan, USA.
Should this be named slow fashion?
THINGS
All bags are cut in second hand leather jackets, trenches, bombers, skirts.
The handles, slings, straps, piping are made in the same leather.
The material is all kinds of soft and smooth leather such as lamb’s leather, calfskin, goat’s leather used in manufacturing leather clothes.
The leather is usually lined with fabric.
Some of the models are reinforced with felt inside.
The inside is made with the same leather and a black “pocketting” fabric so that keys or sharp metal
objects don’t cause any damage.
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Made & More is a Belgium based online store dedicated to sustainable fashion and transparency on who, and how was made your garment. Through the brands we choose, we want to offer an alternative to fast-fashion for conscious consumers.
WE BELIEVE…
Fashion being one of the biggest industries, we believe that changing the way we consume can bring big changes. Made & More was born because we strongly believe in a proper and sustainable way to consume fashion. We want to give you the opportunity to wear amazing and special fashion apparel. We believe the key is to think about how we buy and what we buy.
Do you know where your clothes come from?
The fashion industry is glamour and fascinating, but also one of the most polluting. Tons of pesticides used, water polluted and wasted and thousands of workers exploited everyday to produced more, faster, at lower cost. Talented worker, artisans, designers are though making every day fashion. We shouldn’t stop buying clothes, but we can ask ourselves how we buy and what we buy.
Sustainable & transparent
There are several ways to bring fashion sustainable. Through the fabrics (organic cotton, reclaimed fabrics, recycled wool, …), through the place of production, through the savoir-faire, through the choice. Made & More carefully choose every brand. Each of them decided to keep their production close, in Europe and to be honest, proud and fully transparent on the way they produce.
“MADE IN” HERE
Because we think transparency goes with honesty, you will find on each brand and article its origin, where it was produced, who is the designer.
There are names, faces and stories.
Each brand we choose has this little something: fine jewels design, recycled fabrics (recycled wool, recycled denim, organic cotton, …) apparel made of reclaimed materials, small production. They all in their way have this ethic twist, making the brand different. At the end, being a conscious consumer, the relation you will build with the garment becomes much more rich than with any other!
Hasseltsesteenweg 105, Kortessem 3720
Valérie Berckmans
Valérie BerckmansMore Info
In her boutique-atelier at rue Van Artevelde, Brussels, Valérie Berckmans designs a women’s ready-to-wear line since 2006. Under her eponymous brand, she creates a collection in a graphic and minimalist style, evoking an airy femininity often brightened up with particular details.
Each piece that leaves her workshop is meticulously crafted with fair trade, organic or alternative raw materials (deadstock of fabrics, upcycled vintage pieces).
She is having her collection produced exclusively in Belgian and French workshops to maintain the local know-how and reduce the ecological footprint of her project.
Since April 2021, she works in duo with the fashion designer Théo Auquière on the design of the collection.
In the “boutique-atelier”, nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed into ethical & ecological creations!
From this philosophy was born their zero-waste project. The fabric leftovers from the women’s production are offering new stylistic, practical and circular perspectives, translating into a children collection, ladies underwear & cotton pads, among others.
Valérie Berckmans also sells in the shop creations of other Belgian designers who share the same sustainable philosophy : Atelier Content (shoes), Géraldine Bertrand (knitwear), Aymara (knitwear), O’Leary (leather accessories).
Rue Van Arteveldestraat, 8 Brussels 1000 Belgium
Woody
WoodyMore Info
Wie zijn we?
Woody ken je vast wel van de kleurige pyjama’s en slaapkleedjes. Het merk pakt elk seizoen uit met pyjama’s en homewear in drie dierenthema’s. De drie dieren komen tot leven op de pyjama’s, slaapkleedjes, het bedlinnen, de zwemkledij en de pantoffels.
Het Belgische pyjamamerk, met hoofdzetel in Gent, viert in 2019 reeds zijn 25e verjaardag. Sinds de oprichting van Woody in 1993 zijn originaliteit en kwaliteit de stokpaardjes geweest in het ontwerp- en productieproces. Uitmuntende kwaliteit is reeds sinds het prille begin ons stokpaardje.
Vandaag is dit niet anders. We ontwerpen en produceren bij Woody nog steeds met dezelfde mindset. Natuurlijk zijn de ontwerpen door de jaren heen veranderd maar bij Woody kan je vandaag nog steeds rekenen op dezelfde vaste waarden: dierenthema’s, strepen in alle vormen en maten en natuurlijk glow-in-the-dark!
Woody is erin geslaagd om met haar collecties ieder lid van de familie te kleden in originele en kwalitatieve night- en homewear. Met Woody Original, Woody Boyzzz en Woody Girlzzz biedt het merk verschillende stijlen voor verschillende smaken, maar wel voor àlle leeftijden. Bovendien beperkt Woody zich niet enkel in night- en homewear. Ook ondergoed, zwemkledij, leisurewear en accessoires vind je terug in ons aanbod.
Naast fysieke winkels in België, heeft Woody ook een eigen webshop waar collecties online kunnen gekocht worden.
The Woody Group, een bedrijf met een hart voor mens, dier én planeet
Bij Woody hechten we enorm veel belang aan de kwaliteit en duurzaamheid van onze pyjama’s. We vinden het dan ook super om te zien hoe onze Woody-pyjama’s jarenlang worden gedragen, en zelfs worden doorgegeven aan zusjes, broers, neefjes en nichtjes. Tegelijkertijd zijn we ons bewust van de negatieve impact van de modeindustrie op onze samenleving.
Duurzaamheid reikt voor ons dan ook veel verder dan enkel de kwaliteit van onze kledingstukken. We kiezen ervoor om de Woody-collecties te produceren en te distribueren met respect voor mens en milieu.
Dulle Grietlaan 1 Gent 9050 Belgium
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Aymara is the result of the love story between a Belgian engineer, Sven Van Gucht, who met Yannina Esquivias, a young Peruvian travel agent, during a sabbatical year and fell in love. Yannina and Sven quit their jobs and started a knitting factory in Peru together with Yannina’s family. In 2007, the knitwear label Aymara was born. The name Aymara refers to a native ethnic group in the Andes of South America.
Concept
The magic of Aymara lies in the combination of Belgian design and Peru’s extraordinary fibers and textile craftmenship. Aymara’s knitwear is produced in our own knitting factory in Arequipa, in the south of Peru, managed by Yannina’s family. Thank’s to our strong relationship with them and their unconditional commitment, this incredible intercontinental project could be achieved. We believe that in today’s world of fast fashion and mass consumption, people are looking for authentic products with a soul. When buying Aymara, you are sure to get longlasting, sustainable products with an extraordinary story.
Design
Excellent natural fibers play a key role and are the starting point of each Aymara design. This is why Aymara chooses to offer pure styles available in a wide colour palette of bright and soft colours. Our designers take into account the fashion trends but at the same time, we make sure that each Aymara product is timeless and longlasting. A lot of attention has been paid for the perfect fitting form and discrete refined details. The kids collection, designed by Yannina has a playful character whereas the women’s collection, designed by Saskia Van Herzeele is very feminine.
Fiber
Peru manufactures some of the world’s finest quality fibers. For our summer collections, Aymara uses Peruvian pima cotton which is considered to be one of the softest and finest cottons in existence. In winter, garments made of precious alpaca blends are always an important part of our collection. Alpaca is a cousin of the llama and is prized for it’s thermal properties, silkiness and durability. Alpaca is a fiber which does not come at the expense of the environment. In today’s world, dominated by artificial materials, alpaca is the natural option. Alpacas graze at elevations of 3500 to 5000 meters in the Peruvian Andes. This precious fibre is used by top designers world wide. Aymara only uses the finest alpaca fibers, called baby alpaca. In our winter collections we also offer garments made of fine merino wool from Argentina.
Production
Aymara’s knitting plant is fully integrated and employs about 60 persons on the pay roll. This assures us to be in complete control of the production process and the quality of the garments. Although the knitting process itself has been industrialized, the production process is labour intensive and still requires a lot of manual operations. A lot of attention is been paid to the linking and finishing processes. Aymara garments are fully fashioned ; this means that the cutting and overlocking process is avoided as much as possible. By doing so, Aymara’s customers are getting a high quality product with one of the finest linking and finishing standards on the market. Turn your Aymara garment inside out and you will see what we mean !
Although most of the collection is produced on industrial knitting machines, each winter season Aymara offers a small theme of hand knit accessories. This enables women to generate an income by hand knitting at their home while taking care of their children. For a lot of these women it would be impossible to work inside a company because of their family situation and the lack of childcare. You can recognize these products by the “Aymara hand knit” hang tag. We are currently investigating how this could be integrated into a wider social project.
Head office & International Sales Aymara bvba Bornem 2880 Belgium
Showroom Aymara Antwerp Kielsevest 70 Antwerpen 2018 Belgium
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About Us
Our story is one about great things. About handy things. About beautiful things.
But above all, about friendship. About four childhood friends who found each other in an unbridled passion for quality and craftsmanship. At Comme Quatre there are therefore few restrictions. We just make what feels true to us. No extravagant fuss, but unarticulated simplicity. With the feeling of being a bit special.
We like to design everyday objects such as a stylish handbag, spectacle box, key ring, wallet, wallet or handkerchief with a few striking features such as the graceful cowhides. A creative trait that we like to mix with our insatiable hunger for adventure, variety and entrepreneurship. Talent is present as well. Each in his or her own way. And love. Lots of love. For each other and for the products we create, and that’s a fact.
Our Story
exquisite & honestly handmade
Not only a brand, Comme Quatre is a creative, playful and human project. All our products are handmade by traditional craftsmen whom we admire for their knowhow, entrepreneurship and courage. Together we create a sustainable product.
#nowaste
A Comme Quatre handbag, just like a pair of glasses, key ring, wallet, wallet or pouch is a nice example of upcycling. Say again? Upcycling goes just a little further than recycling: transforming old and allegedly unusable materials into something valuable and often more beautiful than before. In this way, our cowhides are upcycled from meat waste into a sustainable material that lasts for years and can be broken down by nature after use. The hides are also tanned plant-based, i.e. without the addition of harmful substances.
timeless class
Six collections a year? Not for us. By designing our cowhide accessories to look beyond the latest trends, they are wearable every season. Slow fashion it is. Quality leather products are handmade by traditional craftsmen. For example, a handbag, spectacle case, key ring, wallet or pouch by Comme Quatre is not only fashionable, but also durable.
unique
Each accessory guarantees 100% supple leather and natural cowhide. Each with their own unique print and ditto character. The pattern of the cowhides are different for each accessory, due to the colour differences in the coat of the cow. So every handbag, spectacle case, key ring, wallet or pouch from Comme Quatre is slightly different and always gives a distinctive touch to your outfit.
Our Team
Miloud, chief workshop
“Working with natural products is what I have done all my life. More than 15 years have I been working in this atelier. I am in charge of overseeing the production process, creation of the malls, cutting the hides and leather, and the final inspection of the finished goods.”
Fatima, artisan
“I am the youngest of our team and still in ‘training’, learning how to prepare the different components of our products for the knitting team. I love the fact that we start with a cowhide and finish with a bag or accessory which will be cherished by someone for many years. ”
Mbark, artisan
“I have been working in this workshop for more than 15 years. I am mainly in charge of the different knitting machines which we use on leather, cowhide and tissues. I love this variation in my job, and like the fact that we can participate in the creation process of the products.”
Belaid, artisan
“I have been working for more than 10 years in this workshop, but I have been in the fashion industry all my life. I am in charge of assembling the products. I like the interaction between the craftmen and the fact we actively participate in the design and creation process ”
Hafida, artisan
“I am assisting Mbark and Belaid in the preparation of the different parts they need to assemble, in between the different stages of the production, I implement the zippers and closures. I like the fact we create beautiful products.”
Our Values
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We love your curiosity,
And we are more than happy to respond to it.
We will explain you who we are, what we do and why.
To make it short, the best way to dress is to wear second hand clothes. However for underwear… it’s more complicated. Our mission is to create a well made and comfortable underwear that lasts.
Our first aim is to produce in a responsible way
Sustainable fabric
MicroModal™ is an eco-friendly fiber made from responsibly sourced wood pulp. The wood pulp is dissolved in a closed-loop process with a non-toxic organic solvent, then the solution is forced through tiny holes in order to create a magical biodegradable fiber that feels softer and lighter than cotton. See our supplier Lenzing.
Traceability
We are proud to have a 100% European product from the raw material sustainably sourced in Austrian forest, to the printing and the final touch in Porto, Portugal. Our suppliers are an inspiration for us to always try to improve ourselves to reach the best product possible for your butt and the planet!
Durability
We are very happy to work with an experienced factory. Together we tested and corrected our underwear to have a product that lasts. Because without that, it wouldn’t be sustainable. That’s why we now propose 3 years of warranty on our products.
Rue de Londres 18 Brussels 1050 Belgium
FIBR
FIBRMore Info
OUR MISSION
MEET FIBR. THE FAIRCHAIN ALPACA SWEATER. SOFT ON YOUR SKIN AS EASY ON YOUR CONSCIENCE. FIBR BRINGS RADICALLY COMFORTABLE BASICS, YOU ARE PROUD TO WEAR.
The fashion industry has some of the most complex and unfair supply chains in the world. FIBR believes that creating transparency is a first step towards fairness. Today, only 7% of fashion brands know where their materials come from.
Some room for change, if you ask us.
THE FIBR SUPPLY CHAIN
FIBR IS FAIRCHAIN KNITWEAR: FAIRNESS TO THE NEXT LEVEL, ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE VALUE CHAIN.
Fairchain knitwear takes it a step further, rethinking the entire value chain from the source of the raw materials right to your closet.
FIBR connects three strong local players in PERU, all doing their part to make the Peruvian alpaca sector more fair. By connecting these dots, we managed to set up our own value chain and bring you a product of which we know exactly who made it, where it has been and of which we can be sure that everyone is treated well.
OUR PRINCIPLES
QUALITY IS WHERE IT STARTS
We bring you a timeless sweater made from 100% alpaca fibre, a natural fibre which is praised for its robustness and warmness. This sweater is made to last! And if not, a repair kit will teach you all the tricks.
TRANSPARENCY TO THE BONE
Discover where your money goes to, and all the steps your FIBR sweater has been through. No need to hide our imperfections. We rather would like to share them with you and show where improvement is still needed.
EVERY SWEATER COUNTS
We know that we won’t change the world (although we would love to). But we do know that big changes are made by many small steps.
Leading by example, we tell the clothing industry to dive into their supply chains and show more ambition. We are convinced the fashion sector needs small disruptive ideas to evolve and innovate. Every sweater sold means that another person is inspired by our story. Which is something huge!
PRE-ORDER
AT FIBR WE WORK WITH A PRE-ORDER SYSTEM. THIS MEANS THAT WE ONLY START PRODUCTION AFTER A MINIMAL AMOUNT OF PIECES IS ORDERED. TO CONTRIBUTE TO YEARROUND WORK STABILITY FOR THE KNITTERS, PRODUCTION IS IN LOW SEASON, FROM FEBRUARY UNTIL EARLY APRIL.
Tarbotstraat 10 Ghent 9000 Belgium
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OUR STORY
From discarded flags to unique and sustainable gadgets
Anyone holding a Flagbag item will immediately see that it is a unique creation. And a sustainable one, because the hip gadgets we make are the result of upcycling and social employment. Whether it’s a bicycle bag, a laptop sleeve or something else, our creations are all living proof that sustainability and design can indeed go hand in hand.
Smart recycling
As an upcycling project, Flagbag is a textbook example of the cradle-to-cradle principle. We use discarded flags, pennants and sails, which would otherwise end up on the waste mountain, and we give them a new life as a hip design object in a smart and unique way. We use the flags and sails as raw materials for unique shoulder bags, bicycle bags or toilet bags. We also try to recover the other raw materials, such as zippers, as much as possible from old textiles. Even the sewing machines we work with are second-hand. In this way we contribute to a better environment and a smaller mountain of waste.
We strive for a 100% local product. We keep the distance from raw material to finished product as small as possible so that the impact on the environment is also as small as possible. The flags and sails come from municipalities and companies in Belgium and are processed in a local workshop by local workers.
Social employment
In addition to an upcycling project, Flagbag is also a training and social employment project: we help people who find it difficult to find work on the regular job market. Our employees, people from disadvantaged groups, use a sewing machine to convert the old flags and sails into bicycle bags, shoulder bags and other unique items. They derive great job satisfaction from the responsibility they are given to us and are justifiably proud of their creations. And who knows, thanks to the work and training they receive at Flagbag, they may grow into the mainstream economy.
Who is behind Flagbag?
Flagbag is an initiative of De Springplank vzw. De Springplank vzw is a tailor-made company: our core task is to offer tailor-made work and support to people who find it difficult to find a job on the regular labor market. In this way they find meaningful daytime activities, financial security and job satisfaction. Thanks to this work experience and the broadening of their competences, they often find a regular job after a few years through a transfer process.
In order to give as many people as possible a tailor-made job, De Springplank vzw is active in various domains: recycling activities “Okazi”, upcycling with Flagbag, recycling with Creazi, assembly of (company) bicycles with Velovisie, rental and maintenance of bicycles via bicycle paradise Limburg. be, operation of bicycle points at the stations of Genk, Hasselt, Sint-Truiden and on the Portavida Welfare Campus in Genk and the concept store with vintage loft Hendrikshuis in the center of Hasselt.
Stadsheide 2 Hasselt 3500 Belgium