Petra Nemcova takes The Green Carpet Challenge in Cannes

The Green Carpet Challenge (GCC) enters its eighth year bringing dynamic change in the fashion industry to life by showcasing the best looks at The Cannes Film Festival.

Model and philanthropist Petra Nemcova took on The Green Carpet Challenge for the entire festival. Working with Eco-Age, Chopard and a number of independent designers Petra’s looks featured beautiful organic silks, upcycled Swarovski crystals, natural dyes and made use of deadstock fabrics that may have otherwise been discarded.

The fashion industry generates a huge amount of hidden waste. This includes ‘spare’ fabric that is held as an insurance during production in case anything goes wrong. This ‘deadstock’ fabric often has no useful life and can end up being downgraded, and recycled into stuffing for mattresses.

‘All of our GCC looks in Cannes this year, highlight the strides that designers and stylists are taking. Each look moves us further down the road towards a sustainable industry. It is no longer far-fetchedto imagine that we will soon have mainstream red carpet events entirely featuring sustainable looks. I believe that day is around the corner.’, Livia Firth, Founder and Creative Director, Eco-Age.

Petra Nemcova wears a Celia Kritharioti gown for the Green Carpet Challenge and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury. Handcrafted in the brand’s atelier in the historic plaka area of Athens, the gown is made from GOTS certified organic silk crepe sourced from Taroni. Founded in 1880 in Como and chosen for its commitment to sustainability and responsible production, Taroni was recognised at The Green Carpet Fashion Awards Italia 2017, winning the coveted Sustainable Producer award. The gown features a traditional gold Soutaz embellishment technique which has been used by the Celia Kritharioti Couture House for 30 years. The Tyler Ellis clutch bag has been crafted from mulberry silk satin and embellished with Swarovski Advanced Elements lead-free crystals. It has been designed without fastenings or additional components to reduce the use of materials.

Petra Nemcova wearing Cristina Ottaviano for the Green Carpet Challenge and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury. This look has been made from organic silk crepe satin, featuring recycled glass bugle beads which were carefully removed from a former piece and repurposed as new. The dress is lined with remnant fabric and fastened with a zipper made with recycled materials. Cristina Ottaviano Collections are proudly produced in New York City at her West Village Atelier in support of the city and its garment district.

Petra Nemcova wearing an Elie Saab gown, borrowed from the wonderful Elie Saab archive and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury.

Petra Nemcova wearing Laura Strambi for the Green Carpet Challenge and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury.  All pieces by Laura Strambi are locally Made in Italy and made using natural dyes.

Petra Nemcova wearing Ronald Van Der Kemp for the Green Carpet Challenge and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury. This demi-couture piece has been crafted using a vintage re-embroidered lace that Ronald found at a flea market in Paris a few years ago. The dress was then cut and sewn by hand in the RVDK Atelier in Amsterdam.

Petra Nemcova wearing Andres Acosta for the Green Carpet Challenge and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury. This gown has been crafted from GOTS organic certified silk from Italy, sewn using GOTS certified organic thread. GOTS is the worldwide leading textile processing standard for organic fibres, including ecological and social criteria, backed up by independent certification of the entire textile supply chain. As a wrap dress, it does not require a zip, and is instead fastened using lead free Swarovski Advanced buttons, which have also been used as embellishments across the gown. Also wearing custom made Giuseppe Zanotti shoes for the Green Carpet Challenge. The shoes have been created by repurposing components such as the heel and inner sole from old prototypes.

Petra Nemcova wearing Georges Chakra for the Green Carpet Challenge and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury. This gown has been crafted using silk chiffon and silk tulle repurposed from the archived couture collections (originally sourced from Taroni). The dress has been embellished with silk velvet leaf motifs which have been created with fabric offcuts. Also wearing bespoke Alevi shoes for the Green Carpet Challenge, all elements for these shoes have been made from fabric offcuts that may have otherwise been discarded and have been hand-made in a factory powered by solar energy.

 Petra Nemcova wears a Celia Kritharioti gown for the Green Carpet Challenge and Chopard jewellery as part of The Journey to Sustainable Luxury. Handcrafted in the brand’s atelier in Athens, the gown is made from GOTS certified organic organza sourced from Taroni. The dress also features a zipper lifted from a previous collection and buttons covered with organic cotton.