NIKAIME’S IKIGAI 生き甲斐

KONNICHIWA!

THIS IS LOLA, DESIGNER AND CREATOR OF NIKAIME. I’M SPANISH AND A JAPANESE CULTURE LOVER SINCE I WAS A CHILD. IN JAPANESE, THERE’S A WORD THAT MEANS ITSELF LIFE’S PURPOSE, THAT WORD IS IKIGAI.  IT IS SAID THAT EVERYONE HAS AN IKIGAI BUT SOMETIMES IT TAKES FOREVER TO DISCOVER IT. WHEN YOU KNOW WHAT IS YOUR IKIGAI, LIFE MAKES SENSE AND START WAKING UP IN THE MORNINGS WITH THE MOTIVATION YOU NEED TO DEAL WITH ANYTHING.

WHEN LOOKING FOR A NAME THAT DESCRIBED THIS PROJECT’S IKIGAI I CHOSE NIKAIME (二回目 ) BECAUSE IT MEANS LITERALLY ‘SECOND TIME’ IN JAPANESE AND I LIKE SAYING OUR ARTICLES HAVE BEEN GIVEN A SECOND LIFE.

NIKAIME IS A PROJECT BORN RIGHT AFTER I STARTED TO WORK FOR A FAST FASHION BRAND AND FACED WITH THE TRUE STORY BEHIND  ONE OF THE MOST USED FABRIC IN THE WORLD: DENIM.

 

TO PRODUCE DENIM GARMENTS, FACTORIES WASTE TONNES OF WATER EVERY DAY AND USE NOCIVE CHEMICALS THAT POISON RIVERS.  BUT  ABOVE ALL, THOUSAND OF LIFES INVOLVED IN THIS PRODUCTION CHAIN ARE EXPOSED TO TRULY BAD WORK CONDITIONS.

THE NIKAIME PROJECT AIMS TO TAKE A STEP FORWARD THE RIGHT DIRECTION TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE FASHION SYSTEM WITH THE CREATION OF NEW ARTICLES USING THE FABRIC OF UNSOLD JEANS COLLECTED FROM FAST-FASHION RETAILERS TO GIVE THEM A SECOND LIFE

NIKAIME’S SLOW LIVING PHILOSOPHY MOVES AWAY FROM THE EPHEMERAL TRENDS OF THE FAST-FASHION SYSTEM AND HANDCRAFTING PERMANENT COLLECTIONS OF ONE OF-A-KIND KIMONO JACKETS

BECAUSE WE DON’T BUY NEW RAW FABRIC NOR WASH IT. WE MANUFACTURATE OUR ARTICLES TAKING THE FABRIC FROM UNUSED JEANS AND COMBINE THE DIFFERENT SHADES OF INDIGO TO CREATE OUR KIMONO JACKETS,

BY MAKING THE MOST OF BIG RETAILERS’ REMNANTS TO CREATE OUR ARTICLES. BY THIS WAY WE AVOID A  LARGE AMOUNT OF GARMENTS BEING THROWN AWAY WITHOUT A SINGLE TRY.

BECAUSE GETTING RID OF DENIM IS NOT THAT EASY. BY BURNING IT, TOXIC CHEMICALS ARE RELEASED TO THE AIR AND NOT ALL DENIM FIBERS ARE SUITABLE OF BEING RECYCLED. WE PURSUE TO EXTEND THE USABLE LIFE OF THIS FABRIC THROUGHOUT THE CREATION OF ONE-OF-A-KIND AND TIMELESS GOODS.