Dialling in from her West London home following the launch of her latest collaboration with sustainable lingerie brand Stripe and Stare, ELLE UK contributing editor Camille Charrière is beaming. ‘I’m feeling a little worse for wear,’ she says, dressed in a thick grey knit with her hair in a bun. Author, ethical fashion consultant and fellow ELLE UK contributing editor Aja Barber, who is currently on bed rest following surgery, is just as enthusiastic.
The two immediately launch into a conversation about how they met. ‘We were on a panel talk, on the receiving end of some mansplaining!’ Barber recalls laughing. Following a playful exchange on Instagram DMs about the experience, Charrière says she loved Barber’s astute observations and intel about the fashion industry. ‘I remember I subscribed to your Patreon then. Once I had heard you speak, it felt like someone was finally cutting through the noise that I was finding hard to hear regarding sustainability and the industry.’
This came in handy when Charriere came to work on this collection. Pioneers in the sustainable underwear industry, Stripe and Stare garments are 95% biodegradable (made from Tencel) and the company is run by women for women. Charrière’s limited-edition line ranges from floral-laden to neutral pieces in a variety of sizes – think square-neck bras, hipster knickers and bandeaus – from a UK size 6 to a UK 22 and the French-English style star fronts the campaign.
The knickers became a staple in her underwear draw. So much so that when she was in fittings carving out the details of her dream ‘naked’ wedding dress, Charrière was often wearing a brightly coloured pair underneath her dress instead of the nude pants she'd planned to wear ahead of the big day. ‘They sent me a package of their underwear with all different colours of the rainbow. I immediately fell in love with how comfortable they are. There's something about them that feels quite fresh and fun.’
Post-wedding, the multi-hyphenate couldn’t stop thinking about this endearing part of her wedding fittings and she jumped at the opportunity to work with Lopes. ‘Stripe and Stare is a small company, but they’re doing great things. I wanted to create a line that looked beautiful and that was for everyone,’ continues Charrière.
It was a no-brainer that Charrière have Barber join her for a conversation about the capsule collection she’s devoted the best part of her year to. Here, the duo discusses the lack of size diversity in the underwear industry, working with brands that have depth and the importance of feeling sexy, cute and comfortable in your underwear.
ON WHY NOW WAS THE BEST TIME TO COLLABORATE WITH STRIPE AND STARE
BARBER: What is it that drew you to Stripe and Stare?
CHARRIÈRE: I have been hunting for a project that would have a positive impact and legacy; something that I felt really could change our patterns and make a difference. They’re a very small brand. I wanted to be able to give this my all, but I think that good things take time.
The underwear doesn’t feel like it’s made for the male gaze at all, they understand what women are looking for when they're putting their underwear on in the morning, which is comfort above anything else.
ON HOW FASHION AND SUSTAINABILITY COLLIDE
BARBER: What's something that people don't know about you and your background?
CHARRIÈRE: My mum is an environmental engineer. She teaches environmental students and medicine students. So [a concern with the environment] runs in my blood. When I went into fashion, my parents were really upset with me as they saw it almost like I was joining the dark side. The pandemic forced me to examine my spending patterns as a consumer but also because I operate in a fashion industry. It brought me back to how I used to shop when I was a lot younger, which was getting real pleasure from the actual hunt. With this project, it's been nice to kind of lend my platform to a brand that is doing such an amazing job.
ON THE SUSTAINABLE ELEMENT OF THE COLLECTION
BARBER: What was the most interesting fact you found out about the sustainability of underwear?
CHARRIÈRE: I don't know if you know this, but less than 3% of underwear is responsibly sourced.
BARBER: That’s the kind of statistic I was looking for.
CHARRIÈRE: That's a lot that's going to be going to landfill because underwear is not something that you can recycle, it's something that you will have to change. These [Stripe and Stare] knickers are compostable. I think it's really important that we focus on being more conscious of the way we produce things at every stage of the game. But that said, I do think ultimately the best thing we can do is buy less.
BARBER: I agree buy less. You look for the brands that are doing a little bit more for sure and prioritise them. If you're going to buy something, you want it to tick all the boxes and that includes usefulness that includes a lot of different things. I think the way we measure sustainability could also use a bit of an upgrade.
ON THE CAMPAIGN
BARBER: It's very, very sexy and cute. I know that the inspiration was The Virgin Suicides. How did you dream up that look?
CHARRIÈRE: When I realised that I was going to have to be shot in underwear, I freaked out. I've never done an underwear shoot in my whole career. It's not something I'm comfortable with. And I know that to some people it might seem as though I have a great body, but I have my insecurities. Because I was doing IVF my body changed because I wasn’t allowed to exercise for about nine months – I was so petrified of having to do the shoot that we had to move it because I actually couldn't cope doing it in a vulnerable frame of mind. I kind of felt ashamed of myself because I thought ‘How is it that you want to empower women, and you are scared of showing your body?’ and yet your body is what you need to get through this process. It forced me to think about how I wanted this campaign shot and who it was for. It was a real challenge but I'm so proud of it. None of it was retouched and it was all styled using my wardrobe.
ON SIZE INCLUSIVITY
BARBER: Tell me about the importance of size inclusivity. And particularly with this collaboration?
CHARRIÈRE: I've noticed that it's very difficult to get brands to offer garments in a wider range of sizes. And I naively thought that a lot of brands were not doing it because they didn't realise that it was an important thing to do. I’ve since realised that that's not why, the reason why is because they don't want to. It was one of the reasons I picked this brand because they’ve catered to a range of sizes since the start. You should be able to find your underwear size when shopping.
Stripe and Stare X Camille Charrière is available to shop now.
