Luxury or Rag

Haute couture collection that blends humor and satire to expose the transient nature of luxury brand loyalty.

Referencing reality TV supermodel Heidi Klum's sensationalist quote, "one day you are in, the next you are out," Luxury or Rag playfully exposes how quickly luxury brands can lose their luster, becoming "poussiéreuse" (dusty)—outdated and irrelevant.

Partnering with Italian textile company Punto Seta, I reinterpreted the weaves and textures of everyday household cleaning cloths using premium materials like cashmere, merino wool, and silk. Through experimental draping techniques, I sought to "wring out" the dust from luxury, creating hand-twisted origami skirts, compressed sleeve tops, squeezed-legged jeans, hand-knitted mop-yarn sweaters, and wring-out draped wool chiffon evening dresses.

To bring the concept full circle, I collaborated with luxury stores at Place Vendôme, convincing managers to provide used vacuum bags from their boutiques. In partnership with sculptor Thomasine Giesecke, we affixed this luxury dust onto electrostatic fabric, resulting in the Dust Dress—adorned with bright orange ostrich feather dusters, serving as a poignant reminder: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

Indeed, Luxury or Rag is a collection of handmade rags made out of dirt coming from Parisian luxury houses.

Loop-end mop bags equipped with chastity buckles ironically challenge the very essence of luxury, exposing the impermanence of brand loyalty in an increasingly democratized society.