Initiative #7 : Le Carnet de Mimi (Rochefort)
- thesuncyclingodyss
- Jun 2, 2022
- 2 min read
To alert on the pollution caused by surgical masks, this is the challenge that Marion has launched, and she does it in a way that is unique to her.
During my visit to Charente Maritime, I went to meet Marion, who holds the Instagram account @lecarnetdemimi. This native of Lille collects used masks and makes them into fashion creations.
A winding road to account creation
Marion has a particular path, because nothing led her to sewing. She had a real estate degree, worked as a notary clerk for a few years, and finally left everything to work on farms thanks to woofing. There she managed to discover who she was and who she wanted to be. In love with the mountains, Marion then went to live several years in Chamonix where she created a zero waste collective and organized collections.
Marion then decided to come and live in Charente Maritime with her boyfriend, and tried again a notary experience which did not go very well.
During the first confinement, during her outings, Marion found masks and gloves everywhere on the ground. She started to collect these masks but didn't want to throw them away, and didn't yet know the companies that recycled them. She then had the idea to try her hand at sewing a few items, which worked out pretty well. Her goal: to raise awareness about pollution, and also to denounce the textile industry and fast fashion.
Successful collaborations
L'Escargot Anglais (@lescargotanglais on Instagram) and le Sanglier Marseillais walked from Marseille to Paris and collected more than 6000 masks. Marion joined them in Paris to congratulate them, in a dress made from masks. that's when she realized the impact that provocative behavior can have on raising awareness.
She has now made it her main activity and has completely stopped working as a notary.
Creating dresses, tops, bottoms, bags, scrunchies, bobs, Mimi diversifies her catalog and improves her sewing skills.
She was able to participate in fashion shows, notably in Lille or Paris. She was also present at the Paris Fashion Week in September 2021 with the Escargot Anglais to raise awareness.
Close to Clément Chapel, who practices mask collection in the form of Ploggathon, they organized a Masquathon Week at the beginning of March, during which they realized marathons, creations and exhibitions to raise awareness about pollution. Clément runs and collects masks, and Mimi transforms them into creations.
In total, more than 2200 masks collected in 6 days!
They also organized together the 24h of the mask in Paris on April 2nd and 3rd: 24h of running and sewing, always to raise awareness about pollution. They were followed by a team from Canal+ and Antoine de Caunes, for the show La Gaule d'Antoine.
A lot of new collaborations are waiting for Le carnet de mimi, which realizes a crazy work of sensitization, and gives itself body and soul for the causes it defends.
A beautiful human meeting, and a great initiative!
to learn more about it and follow her new activities: @lecarnetdemimi
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