Cris Miranda
Cris Miranda
CHILE
“I’m a sustainable fashion designer because I believe in the power of dressing sustainably and the needed change it represents.”
As a Latino living in Tokyo, Japan, Cris Miranda discovered the beautiful craftsmanship of the kimono and admired its deep cultural meaning and high quality fabric. The designer’s experiences in Japan made them want to share their story through their collection along with a developing manga project.
After returning to Chile, Cris became aware of environmental issues closer to home, such as the illegal clothes landfill in Atacama Desert and severe drought in the central regions. These issues led them to rethink their usual creative processes, motivating them to raise awareness of the dangers of fashion overconsumption. When a drought precipitated water rationing in their hometown of Santiago, Cris shifted from dyeing fabrics with water to textile manipulations in order to lower their environmental impact.
In their collection ‘「RE」COLLECT ’, Cris’ interaction with Japanese culture is imbued through three traditional aesthetic concepts: wabi-sabi, appreciating the beauty of the imperfect and transient; mono-no-aware, a wistfulness for impermanence; and miyabi, an elegance and refinement.
“One of the first expressions I learned in Tokyo is ‘mottainai’ — what a waste!” says Cris, who holds a BA in Fashion Design from Andrés Bello National University, Chile. To increase clothing use and lifespan, they keep sustainable aftercare in mind, equipping consumers with meticulous care instructions. In addition to laundry advice, Cris also offers to repair clothing for customers should they need mending.
Inspired by the craftsmanship, deep cultural meaning, and high quality of traditional kimono patterns and Incan clothing, the designer started learning simple zero-waste patterns and hopes to develop their skills further. The collection upcycles kimono and obi silks, locally sourced premium textile deadstock, and for a personal touch, their mother’s leather jackets.
They also designed the garments to be easily reconstructible for longevity. “Being my most intimate work to date, this collection speaks from the bottom of my heart, and for that reason, I created garments that are durable and easy to use.”
For their collection, Cris generated most of their patterns digitally, allowing them to control the exact quantity of textiles used as well as their surplus. They look forward to learning more about saving resources through digital design.
Cris plans to develop their own brand to revitalise Chile’s fashion, where surplus fabrics from the 1960s and 70s remain from a once-thriving industry.
