Denim’s Upcoming Leaders – Elizabeth Welland
There’s a lot to be excited about when considering the future of denim, as a host of bright young designers are entering the space with their eyes on sustainability. 
Elizabeth Welland is one of them. The young designer who participated in the recent Graduate Fashion Week in the U.K. city, where 10 students entered their designs in Lenzing’s Sustainable Denim Competition. Lenzing partnered with Graduate Fashion Week to create a competition that furthers its vision of driving more sustainability in fashion and design. Participating designers had to consider both the style of their entries and the materials that would make the product.
Elizabeth designed a patchwork overall and a denim jacket to match. The pieces were made up of differently dyed denim pieced together to make a new statement showcasing denim’s depths. To create her designs, Elizabeth used fabric from high-end China denim manufacturer Advance Denim with TENCEL™ branded lyocell fibers.
Judges in the competition said of Elizabeth’s designs, that it was a “great concept mixing panels and scale,” with “good use of washes and shades with the dungarees and shirt jacket.” What’s more, the judges added, “We’re sure the impactful garments will draw a lot of interest.”
“The inspiration for this outfit came from upcycling and the deconstruction and reconstruction of denim,” Elizabeth said. “The idea of taking old, pre-worn and pre-loved denim garments, which have had a good life with heritage and stories to tell and then weaving it into a design with new sustainable fabrics from Lenzing’s TENCEL™ x REFIBRA™ Lyocell Fibers to enhance and prolong life.”
For Elizabeth, who recently won an internship with Debenhams and Henry Holland in the print design department, fashion is an exciting place to be right now.
“I really just thrive off the process of designing a garment, creating the pattern, then seeing it come to life with your own eyes into something unique and creative,” she said.
NOTE: This is one in a series of three stories about the winners of the Lenzing’s Sustainable Denim Competition in partnership with Graduate Fashion Week.