- Title: Aubergine-based leather in Jordan makes sustainable face masks
- Date: 23rd June 2020
- Summary: AMMAN, JORDAN (JUNE 17, 2020) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF MODELS WEARING FACE MASKS MADE USING AUBERGINE 'LEATHER' AMMAN, JORDAN (JUNE 8, 2020) (REUTERS) JORDANIAN CHEF, OMAR SARTAWI, SHARPENING HIS KNIFE AUBERGINES / SARTAWI SLICING AUBERGINE VARIOUS OF SARTAWI PEELING, SLICING THE AUBERGINE SLOW MOTION OF SARTAWI ADDING SALT TO THE AUBERGINE PEELS AUBERGINE PEELS ON THE CUTTING BOARD (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) JORDANIAN CHEF, OMAR SARTAWI, SAYING: "There's an ongoing trend towards sustainable luxury, so I thought why not create leather using the aubergine peel, preserving the aubergine - instead of throwing out these peels, we can recycle them and use them for fashion, for several things. So, I started developing it." VARIOUS OF SARTAWI PLACING PEELS IN A DEHYDRATOR TICKING CLOCK SARTAWI ORGANISING 'LEATHER' SARTAWI ROLLING SMALL PIECES OF 'LEATHER' INTO EACH OTHER (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) JORDANIAN CHEF, OMAR SARTAWI, SAYING: "We are living with the coronavirus, we're being creative, we're working, we're living our lives, we're being productive. So, I thought, why not take the face mask - which does not really have a positive connotation - and add beauty to it, give it a positive spin." VARIOUS OF JORDANIAN DESIGNER, SALAM DAJANI, SEWING THE AUBERGINE INTO A MASK JORDANIAN DESIGNER ON THE MACHINE / JORDANIAN JEWELLERY DESIGNER PRINCESS NEJLA ASEM, LOOKING ON (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) JORDANIAN FASHION DESIGNER AND FOUNDER OF THE WENIN CLOTHING LINE, SALAM DAJANI, SAYING: "When Omar called me, I immediately opened my sketchbook and thought of things I can add to the face mask, the basic mask that everybody does, what are the things that might add creativity to it. I started sketching, and kept staring at the material, I was sitting at the desk next to my machine, so I started working on the machine. I added different kinds of stitches, and I felt this added character to it." VARIOUS OF DAJANI WORKING WITH THE MATERIAL MIRROR REFLECTION OF JORDANIAN JEWELLERY DESIGNER, PRINCESS NEJLA ASEM, HOLDING UP THE MASK ASEM TRYING ON THE MASK (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) JORDANIAN JEWELLERY DESIGNER, PRINCESS NEJLA ASEM, SAYING: "When I received the piece, it already felt complete. It was a beautiful piece - the aubergine with the stitching added by Salam, I felt like it was complete. I just wanted to add a few brass rings, we also experimented with silver and ropes and other things in order to finalise it. Of course, this is a group effort, so we all agreed on how to design it." AMMAN, JORDAN (JUNE 17, 2020) (REUTERS) MODEL WEARING THE AUBERGINE 'LEATHER' FACE MASK MODELS WEARING THE MASK WALKING THROUGH A GALLERY FACE MASKS / MODELS WEARING FACE MASKS
- Embargoed: 7th July 2020 12:26
- Keywords: Aubergine COVID-19 Designers Face Mask Innovation Jordan Sustainability
- Location: AMMAN, JORDAN
- City: AMMAN, JORDAN
- Country: Jordan
- Topics: Environment,Editors' Choice
- Reuters ID: LVA001CJLCQ51
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Instead of tossing his vegetable peels in the garbage, Jordanian chef Omar Sartawi has transformed aubergine peels into richly textured 'leather', which he's using to create sustainable face masks.
In order to achieve the texture and durability he wanted, Sartawi said he used a combination of ancient and modern cooking techniques.
He drew inspiration from the 13th century Inca cuisine, that relied on salting and dehydration. He also incorporated the modern French style of sous-vide, or cooking underwater, which produced material that looked and felt like leather.
A single peel can take up to 2 weeks of work to complete, depending on its size.
At first, the chef's plan was to use the 'leather' to create a runway look for Jordan Fashion week. But with the outbreak of the coronavirus, all public events across the kingdom were halted. So, he came up with another idea.
"We are living with the coronavirus, we're being creative, we're working. I thought, why not take the face mask - which does not really have a positive connotation - and add beauty to it, give it a positive spin," he said.
He joined forces with two Jordanian designers who help transform his creation into a face mask.
Salam Dajani, a Jordanian designer who founded a Milan-based clothing line, sewed the mask together, adding different stitches to give it its final look.
Meanwhile, jewellery designer, Princess Nejla Asem, added brass rings and chains to pull the mask together.
While it is still not clear if the aubergine leather is suitable for long term-use, Sartawi said his main goal is to challenge people to think out of the box, and find creative ways to become more sustainable and environmentally friendly.
(Production: Bushra Shakhshir, Mohammed Ramahi) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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