Lexus Unveils The Lexus Fashion Workshop

In an artistic twist on recycling, Lexus challenged four of today's most exciting designers to create innovative fashion items using parts from the Lexus CT 200h (a car that is 90 percent recyclable). The designers created jewelry, clothing, shoes and a very dramatic and Gaga-esque headpiece from gaskets, floor mats and hose clamps.

The Lexus Fashion Workshop will appear in the January 2012 issue of Vogue, on newsstands this week.

Elevating the notion of recycling to an art form, Lexus challenged four of fashion’s most inventive designers to rethink their notions of automotive design for an advertising campaign to appear in Vogue. Using some of the more than 2,000 individual parts of a completely dismantled Lexus CT hybrid, a vehicle that is 90 percent recyclable*, the designers created fashionable works of art as part of The Lexus Fashion Workshop.


From crank bearings to exhaust gaskets, the designers took on the challenge with verve, turning some of the best engineered auto parts into innovative fashion accessories – all while driving home the beauty of recycling.

·“Environmental Crown of Virtue”—A truly head-turning piece designed by Moss Lipow using a transmission starter and exhaust manifold gasket.
·“The Valve Collection”—Designed by jewelry creator Eddie Borgo using valve lifters, crank bearings and hose clamps.
·“Nomadic Sanctuary”—A sleek trench coat, shorts and clutch designed by John Patrick, featuring floor mats made from plant-based plastic, sustainable sound-dampening material, wire harness, leather seat covers and cargo covers
· “The Luna Shoe”—Created by Alejandro Ingelmo using armrest leather trim and clear plastic tubing.

“Merging the worlds of luxury automobiles, art and fashion is another example of how Lexus is 'Engineering Amazing' or maybe more appropriately, 'Engineering Unexpected',” said Brian Smith, vice president of marketing for Lexus. “We were able to challenge four designers to turn one of our most progressive hybrid vehicles into innovative fashion pieces, inspiring the designers, and the world, to see things differently.”

The four pieces will be highlighted in a six-page advertisement in the January 2012 issue of Vogue.Behind-the-scenes videos of the Lexus CT hybrid being dismantled piece-by-piece are available at Vogue.com/Promotions/Lexus. Additionally, a series of exclusive interviews with the four designers will be posted throughout December.
More here.