Young British fashion designer, Isab Taylor, has created her own couture brand, Skinned Potential, which repurposes discarded fish skin from fish farms into works of high fashion. Taylor began the process of transforming fish skin into durable leather after learning that 35 per cent of all seafood harvested from oceans, lakes and fish farms is wasted before they ever reaches a plate. Many people use only fillets, creating more waste out of fish parts that actually can have a longer consumption life.
Taylor’s designs and creations help people to better manage their fish waste, all while giving them access to couture creations, reflecting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Responsible Consumption and Production.
Globally, fish populations are already threatened by overfishing, pollution and the climate crisis. In the US alone, retailers’ marketing strategy, which prioritizes fresh fish, accounts for up to 16 per cent of wasted seafood; meanwhile, consumer behaviour, which prioritizes the use of fish fillets over any other parts of the fish, accounts for up to 63 per cent of wasted seafood. This makes initiatives like Skinned Potential all the more crucial in terms of utilizing wasted fish.
Taylor begins her process by first cleaning, descaling and then tanning the fish skins. She then dyes and moulds them to her desire to achieve a particular garment pattern in her design. In a recent interview with iTVNews, Taylor shared that people have a lot of negative prejudice when it comes to her work; they presume that fish skin creates foul-smelling leather.
However, making leather out of fish skin is hardly an innovation. Traditional Icelandic tanneries have been working with the medium since the 12th century, creating sturdy, long-lasting and quality products. Here, what Taylor has done with Skinned Potential puts it directly in the public eye: putting the pieces on runways and making them ready for celebrity wear.
In sourcing her fish skins, Taylor works directly with Goldstein Smoked Salmon, a London-based family-run smoked salmon business, which has generously donated their salmon skins to be used in Taylor’s designs.
With a background in fashion design, Isab Taylor creates mesmerizing high-fashion designs with her brand. Some designs are even inspired directly by marine life, such as a bright turquoise dress with dorsal fin accessories designed to run down the wearer’s spine, effectively transforming them into a siren.
Taylor’s designs give wearers and viewers a glimpse into a future where sustainability is prioritized in fashion. By transforming fish waste into fashion statements, she also helps to prompt larger conversations around sustainability and innovations in the fashion industry.
You can find out more about Skinned Potential by Isab Taylor by checking their Instagram on @skinnedpotential.