Sür Lokal Association is at The Circle Space! Sustainability and Locality Together
The launch of Sür Lokal Association, which creates a network with sustainable Turkish brands that produce value, took place at The Circle Space. Following the launch, the products of 19 local brands that prioritize sustainability and the works of artists will be exhibited between December 3 - 14, 2022. In the exhibition, brands addressing a wide range of categories from fashion to personal care, from home decoration to food, coexist with artists who produce upcycled works.
Bringing together sustainability and localism, Sür Local brings brands with beautiful productions together in its event held at The Circle Space. From production techniques to recycling and upcycling processes, let's get to know the brands that attract the attention of both the visitors of the exhibition and The Circle team:
Anadolive, which produces spices from olive powder, does not use any additives or preservatives during production. Anadolive answers the question "Why olive powder?" as follows: "While fresh olives lose some of their carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals during the fermentation process they undergo while turning into table olives, Powdered Olive preserves almost all of these nutritional values as it is produced from fresh olives that do not undergo any processing."
With its traditional weaving and ceramic designs, Ani Studio brings together the "authentic" and the "modern". The brand, which sets out to preserve and develop Turkish craft techniques, provides job opportunities for women who want to work in villages.
With his designs made from fruit and vegetable waste, Alakok sets out with the philosophy of loving the imperfect and the beauty of seeing it as it is. These products, which are self-soluble in nature and every part of which is handcrafted, consist of upcycled coffee pulp, tea pulp, fruit and vegetable peels.
Cen Cam, which produces glass straws and design products, was founded by Ceren, a mechatronics engineering graduate, with the motto "slow life, slow production". Ceren, who started living in a quaint village in the Aegean after university, started a glass art workshop and then opened her own workshop in Istanbul.
Chu Studio, which produces hand-knitted organic baby toys, is founded by two sisters, Aybike and Kardelen. With toys made from 100% cotton, a certified organic material, Chu Studio is committed to the principles of slow, fair and ethical production. With materials that encourage open-ended play, these toys are handmade by housewives.
Zilhice Tanrıseven, a chemical engineer, is the founder of Colorz, which produces natural paints and pastes with beeswax. Her journey with colors began when she noticed that a geranium leaf left a mark on the floor after she stepped on it, and she turned her hobby into a business by producing natural dyes at home. As she briefly talks about her paint-making technique, she first pulverizes the stones to obtain pigment and then mixes resin, honey and water into the pigment she obtains and crushes it thoroughly with a muller. In this way, he obtains watercolors, and when he mixes beeswax instead of honey, he obtains pastels.
Darwin's Botanics, which designs from waste fabrics, produces eco-friendly products that are dyed only with colors obtained from the flowers, fruits, leaves, seeds and roots of plants without using any chemicals. It aims to contribute to upcycling and circular fashion.
With its traditional Sile cloth designs, Ferah combines the traditions that women from Şile have been carrying on for years with modern designs. While adopting a slower and more meaningful way of life, she promises not to produce more than necessary and not to produce waste.
Producing accessories from unused sails, Hüner focuses on giving raw materials the chance to tell their stories more than once, based on the belief that things develop stories. The products, which are produced entirely by hand, continue their journey with new forms and meet the user.
Lindos Naturals, which produces cleaning and personal care products with natural ingredients, is the continuation of a journey that dates back to the awareness of its founder Deniz Akdemir on garbage separation in Barcelona in 2009. Circular economy, clean cleaning and sea turtles stand out as the three issues that Lindos Naturals cares about.
OMYAS, which produces dried healthy vegetable chips, dries the vegetables to remove moisture and preserve their nutritional value without the growth of microorganisms. Thus, delicious and healthy snacks are ready for consumption without any additives.Mah-roc
Mah-roc, which produces bags and accessories from waste fabrics, was born when Roksan, who has 7 years of experience in the fast fashion world from designer to brand manager, started collecting waste fabrics during her travels and transforming them into bags. Each bag is completely unique and inspired by nomadic societies. For those who are interested, Mah-roc's website has a nice article on how it was founded.
Natumora, whose mission is to produce Natural, Organic and Good Food, produces olive oil, vinegar, tahini and tomato sauces. The brand, which started life as a family business in Akhisar, pays attention to meeting directly with the producers in the village and making sure that the seeds are heirloom seeds when choosing its products.
The collections of Lida Studio, which produces clothes made of peace silk, consist entirely of handmade and original pieces designed by its founder Zeynep Çakmak. The reason why the brand uses especially peace silk is the method of obtaining silk. In the fashion industry, the caterpillar does not wait for the caterpillar to emerge from the cocoon in order to make uninterrupted yarn without damaging the cocoons. In India, on the other hand, after the caterpillar pierces the cocoon, yarn is made from the remaining cocoon. The fabric full of knots obtained by splicing the pieces together in this way is called "Ahimsa (Peace) Silk". Lida Studio produces its products with this method.
Oldnew.ds, which produces kitchen and bathroom supplies as living utensils with natural ingredients, emerged as a result of founder Damla Şenli's search for the products she needed in her daily life. Oldnew.ds, which first started production with family friends, currently works with different artisans to produce various "good living utensils".
Pure Project, which produces skin care products with natural ingredients, is brought to life by Cansın and her mother Gözde. The mother-daughter team started their journey together with baby-children products and continued by producing adult products on demand. They have a shop in Kuzguncuk for those who want to stop by.
Soapy, a vegan and waste-free personal care brand, carries out its shipping processes within the scope of zero waste. It produces customized products by combining natural antioxidants with innovative formulas specially developed for various skin types.
Studio Potato, founded by two sisters who produce home decoration designs with traditional weaving, takes its name from the term 'Couch Potato'. Combining modern designs with traditional production, the brand designs and produces recycling and upcycling products.
With home decoration designs made of waste marble, Yasu Living designs functional objects by reusing marble and natural stones left over from different productions. YASU, which means smooth, peaceful and calm, aims to bring a piece of the earth into your home by emphasizing the beauty in the irregularity of nature and the value of marble.
Yasemin Sabuncu, the founder of Yasu Living, and Ömer Gökçek, one of the founders of Sür Local, developed new relationships with each other and their users under different stories, similar emotions and values in the exhibition they organized together. Among all this diversity, "slow production" stood out as the common motto of most of the brands. One of the most prominent patterns in their foundation stories was that each brand emerged from the needs of its founders. It has been a very enjoyable process for us as The Circle team.