Winning entries from Merton Council’s Style Junkies competition are on display at the National Trust’s Sustainability Centre in Morden Hall Park until 26 July.

Students from Merton’s schools and Wimbledon College of Art designed and crafted costumes from materials that would normally have been thrown away. The competition was designed to showcase beautiful and thought-provoking pieces and to highlight how waste materials can be reused and given new life.

All the designs can be seen on the Mega Recycle Facebook page.

Competition judge and Leader of the council, Councillor Stephen Alambritis said: “Deciding on the winners was such a tough task given the stand-out quality of all the entries. This was a chance to see the fashion designers and innovators of the future at work and I was proud to be a part of the competition. The underlying message has really come through – we need to think twice before we throw things away. Recycling materials can create something new that is beautiful, meaningful and useful.”

Lucy Elton, Head of Textiles Ursuline High School, said: “Ursuline High School has been delighted to work with Merton Council and the Merton Mega Recycle campaign on the Style Junkies competition. It has been an incredibly inspiring and rewarding experience for the Year 10 Textiles students. It has given them an opportunity to develop their creative talents and help build confidence in their design and making capabilities. I am so proud of the beautiful and innovative costumes that they have made out of recycling materials, an experience to remember!”

Katherine Cox, who received merit in the Wimbledon College of Arts, said: “I am really chuffed to be able to see my work exhibited today. I’m proud of my head piece and it goes to show what you can create from scraps and left over fabrics which otherwise would have been thrown away. Recycling is really important and an issue we are all aware of.”

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