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Deep Cove designer puts clothes on vegan diet

Jessica Redditt’s favourite memory was visiting the public library and wandering into the history of fashion section.

Jessica Redditt’s favourite memory was visiting the public library and wandering into the history of fashion section.

“I found real inspiration looking back in time with these books, and imagining clothing of the future inspired by the past,” says the Deep Cove resident.

Redditt started getting serious about fashion in high school and set her sights on Ryerson University.

“I wanted to stay in Canada and they had a great reputation for their fashion design program,” explains Redditt. 

She opened her first shop in Ottawa when she was 21 years old, carrying local sustainable designers, vintage, and her own designs.

Redditt says she has always designed with environmental sustainability in mind.

“Yes, I’ve always looked at fashion through an environmental lens. I’m continuously inspired by nature and believe we need to work with it, not against it,” she says.

Recently, Redditt launched a sustainably chic clothing line that is hand-dyed with natural colours from plants such as marigolds and hibiscuses.

Using natural and reclaimed textiles to construct timeless and romantic silhouettes, each garment is piece-dyed in natural botanical colours.

The collection consists of pieces including button-down dresses, floral wraps and palazzo pants.

Redditt’s styles are inspired by what she considers to be timeless and elegant silhouettes, rather than fast-fashion trends.

“Customers love the easy-to-wear styles, comfortable natural fabric, and elegant silhouettes,” says Redditt. “I’ve had so many people interested in the natural dye aspect … the colours from nature can be so stunning. The orange hue has been particularly popular.”  

Redditt is on a mission to create beautiful clothing without creating more pollution or waste.

“The world doesn’t need more of that,” she says. “Chemical dyes that are used to make our everyday clothing are so harmful to people and the planet.”

There’s a quote Redditt has saved and refers to often, from the documentary, River Blue: “In China they say you can predict the next ‘it’ colour of the season by looking at the colour of the river.”

There are many flowers, plants, and roots that can produce natural, colourfast dyes, says Redditt. 

“It’s surprising what you can find in your own kitchen to dye with, too: onion skins produce a beautiful golden colour, and avocado skins and pits create a soft pink,” she explains.

Redditt’s latest collection, In Bloom, was inspired by flowers and new beginnings, “like we experience each new year in spring.”

Redditt launched a Kickstarter for the new collection and raised nearly $6,000 in pre-sales.She will be selling the clothes through her website and in local markets this summer.

In Bloom is available for pre-sales on Redditt’s website, jessicareddittdesign.com