Sergé de Helsinki

Sergé de Helsinki is a study on denim that aims in making a pair of jeans independently from growing the fiber (hemp) and indigo plants (woad) for the blue dye.

“On any given day, nearly half the world’s population is wearing blue jeans” [1]

I began the process based on these findings:

1. Although my educational background is in fashion design, I do not know in practice how fiber is extracted and made into yarn.
2. In history, everyday commodities like fabrics were often named by the place they were made. Today production chains are scattered around the world making it impossible to name one place of origin.
3. Growing fiber, processing it to yarn, and eventually to a piece of clothing locally on a small-scale with traditional methods is economically inefficient and therefore unnecessary in our society.
4. Blue jeans used to be utilitarian workwear, but today they are the cornerstone of the global wardrobe.

The process examines critically how hemp and woad plants are transformed into a more useful form as jeans, ergo an article of commerce.

At the moment fiber processing continues.