These days, it’s not uncommon to hear about some of the world’s pluckiest and most resourceful people who refuse to let things go to waste and thus make great things from a whole heap of nothing. Here at Take My Scrap Car, we like to think we sort-of qualify for this rather special bracket as while we’re not what you’d call artists, we do at least make sure scrap cars are put back into the system and then have a chance at greatness once again.
We’re always bowled over to hear about those who dedicate time and effort to taking old scrap cars or the parts thereof and make them into something new and brilliant. We’ve already heard of the guy that built a solar-powered car from scrap parts, more people than ever before are making bicycles from scrap steel and then there was the father-son duo from Japan who built life-size Transformers robots. All pretty brilliant across the board, but now we’re hearing news of a group of designers that are ripping the fabrics and upholstery out of old Ford vehicles and turning them into high-fashion looks. 
That’s right – high-fashion using little more than car seat covers…pure genius!
“Emerging designers from Europe and Asia transformed the covers – and other materials and waste from Ford vehicle production – into dresses, jackets and skirts for The Redress Forum: Ford Design Challenge, an event organised with Hong Kong sustainable fashion charity Redress to highlight sustainable design in fashion and automotive,” read a statement by Ford after the initiative was announced.
“Sustainability is a key element of Ford design and it is tremendously exciting to see material from our cars given a new lease of life on the catwalk.”
For almost 15 years now, Ford has been at the forefront of responsible manufacture and engineering, having established a team of experts in 2001 dedicated to using waste materials in the creation of car parts. From castor oil to soy beans to shredded cotton and even plastic bottles, all this kind of stuff makes it into Ford’s newest vehicles to minimise environmental impact.
As such, it’s hardly surprising that they’re keen to see their already recycled car fabrics being recycled once again!
Manager of Colour and Materials Design for Ford Asia Pacific, Emily Lai said, “Designers have the power to affect environmental waste through their designs and the design process, and can minimise this total impact through the creative use of materials and other innovations.”
“All the creations we have seen are innovative and thought-provoking, and we applaud each participant for rising to the challenge.”
So once again, it just goes to show that there’s really no such thing as waste when it comes to most of the bits and pieces you’ll find in an old car – it’s just a case of knowing how to breathe new life into them. Don’t expect us to begin whipping any masterpieces out anytime soon, but if you’d like to see the bulk of your car put back into the system with responsible recycling, you know who to come to!
