ABOUT
Growing up in California, Rayah has built a relationship with the ocean. Spending every weekend at the beach, she has seen the influx of pollutants making their way into the ocean every year. Through the visual changes of man-made objects cluttering the environment, Rayah feels the need to help mitigate the stress on our planet through design. The ocean extends throughout all of her work as a form of activism by representing the changes nature has endured, as well as natures’ beauty in which she uses color, shape, and texture for inspiration.
Focusing directly on swimwear, Rayah feels that this garment is a turning point for the fashion industry to integrate and expand the idea of environmentally conscious garments. By having a garment directly come in contact with the ocean, she looks at how the environment and the garment can associate as one. Through her designs, Rayah hopes to promote a change in the way consumers think of clothing in relation to nature, and how garments impact our environment. As the environment endures more stress, it is imperative to relate swimwear to nature, before both fashion and the environment move away from nature completely as man-made products overpower both niches.
Rayah is a recent graduate from Parsons, The New School, where she majored in Fashion Design. Her love for environmental science and want to create a business, has led her to minor in Alternative Fashion Strategies: a mixture of environmental studies and business. Initially wanting to go into the scientific field in relation to the ocean, Rayah changed paths, but has maintained her love for science and the ocean by creating garments that integrate both topics.
Looking at the current health of the ocean, it is apparent that the consumption of textile fibers and clothing have impacted the environment negatively. Using methods of mitigation within textile creation and construction, Rayah aims to reduce the amount of new plastic and pollutants from entering our environment. Ultimately, generating zero waste and creating a circular fashion system by slowing down production and looking towards nature for textile development.
