Visionary Phoebe English and the root-grown lace dress

Rootfull x Phoebe English. Photo by Zena Holloway.

As a slow-fashion advocate, Phoebe English has long been on my radar. Since launching her studio back in 2011, Phoebe has been pushing the boundaries of the conventional luxury fashion model, defining what it is to be a designer in the slow-fashion space and carving out a place where regenerative practices and craftsmanship work in symbiosis.

Phoebe is an industry leader in less-damaging practices and at the centre of Phoebe’s studio are ongoing trials – using the making of each collection as an act to experiment within circular and sustainable practices and inventing systems which are less extractive. Under this, the studio is exploring the many opportunities which arise from working with plant and botanical dyes, looking into the potentials of regional and regenerative growing practices and prioritising relationships with farmers and growers who are working in this way.

Her collections look towards the regenerative framework set up by the Fibreshed movement, who are going some way to creating alternative fibre systems within regenerative practices, building resilient ecosystems. Regenerative fashion in its rawest form focuses on a positive impact towards our biosphere, enriching soil health and biodiversity – from cradle to cradle.

With this in mind, it is then no surprise that Phoebe collaborated with Rootfull to grow a stitch-free dress, “where bouncy root-grown lace is suspended from a ripped cotton strip bodice.” In this interview, Phoebe gives us a glimpse into how she works as a slow-fashion designer, more on the partnership with Rootfull and how she created a dress from root-grown lace.

Can you give us a glimpse into how you work and how you prioritise collaborations as a slow-fashion designer?

Our design starting point is looking at what waste streams are available to us and then after sourcing we begin to experiment with them. What patch working techniques can we use to collate these small fabric scraps together? What kind of garment would work best using this type of fabric we have in? Once we start manipulating fabric we are able to start conjuring silhouettes and the design slowly gets built. In terms of collaborations it is important for us to deepen our networks so we can share methodologies and learn from one another in how best to generate slow fashion.

Image credit: Phoebe English studio.

How did the partnership with Zena Holloway, the founder of Rootfull come about?

Zena got in touch with us as she admired the brand and our ethos and felt there was room for our two brands to collaborate in some way. She wanted to apply for an R&D grant from Innovate UK to develop her root growing process with a fashion designer.

Can you explain the process and why you were interested in working in this way?

Zena explained to us that wheatgrass roots can be cultivated and grown in carved beeswax moulds to create a woven structure and unique textile surface that can then go on to be manipulated. We were so excited to work with a textile that can be grown from scratch and didn’t require huge extractive methods like so many traditionally woven fabrics.

From what I can understand, the dress was made from root-grown lace, the material went through a growing process and didn’t require any stitches, but a series of knots. Were there any challenges with this process?

Yes, it was a new way of crafting a garment for us so we learnt as we went. The dress went through many iterations before we arrived at this piece. The main challenge with this was working out how to bind or join or grow the roots into the fabric we gave to her so it could be strong enough to withstand the movement and weight of an actual garment.

Image credit: Phoebe English studio.

What message does this work convey?

As this piece offers an immediate visual to the source of the fibres it's crafted from, we hope the dress allows people to think about where the fibres come from on the clothes that they wear. Possibly further questioning the sources of how fibres are grown and what processes are taken to turn them into garments.

From a sustainability point of view, this collaboration ticks a lot of boxes and the dress will be able to decompose in a composting environment. As for future plans, Phoebe said there were exciting things coming up in 2025, so definitely a space to watch!

The dress is now available for viewing at the V&A Dundee’s current exhibition: Garden Futures: Designing with Nature.

Creative Wellbeing

This particular work by Phoebe English and Rootfull correlates to the values set out in the relaunch of our Creative Wellbeing Economy report.

The Creative Wellbeing Economy (CWE) is a new systems approach that centres creativity and community as essential drivers of human and planetary wellbeing. Unlike traditional economic models that focus solely on growth and production, CWE prioritises access to creative opportunities as pathways to mental, physical, and social health, and the overall health of our planet. By fostering this interwoven relationship between people, community and the environment, the CWE creates an economy of opportunity that extends from cradle to cradle, ensuring that creativity and its benefits are accessible to all at every stage of life.

It reimagines the economy by integrating nine core pillars into a dynamic, regenerative system where people thrive rather than merely survive, preserving and revaluing cultural and heritage skills; empowering and the overall health and wellbeing of individuals and communities; sustainable supply chains across industries and food and fibre sovereignty.

Of the report Tamara Cincik said:

“Creative leadership will solve the urgent economic, environmental and social issues with critical creative thinking leading to critical creative systems and critical creative education and work. This starts with a paradigm shift to support new frameworks. These frameworks explore the fundamental difference between surviving and thriving.”