“When I was 6 years old, I helped baby turtles get to the sea and swim away. I wondered what would happen to them among all the trash in the sea. I have always had a special connection to the ocean and I was waiting for the opportunity to do something more.” –Naomi
“I recently visited the ocean for the first time and saw the trash on the beach. It made me very sad to see how much we are polluting our planet. Together we visited the exhibition about marine litter at the “Haus Des Meeres” in Vienna and saw that people are trying to create cleaner oceans. We decided to help those we love – by making fashion accessories together.” –Maria
"Our mission is to reduce marine litter and save marine life by turning plastic waste into fashion accessories."
During project week at school, we decided to create a portable drink bottle with a strap made of recycled plastic, and from this idea, H2O Fashion was born.
After searching for similar projects online, we came across the work of Marieke Meijs and her ocean waste bracelets, which are made from recycled fishing nets, discarded and abandoned on the beaches of the Dutch coast.
We visited her in her studio and saw firsthand on the beaches the damage plastic fishing nets cause to seals and birds.
Inspired by the art and work of Marieke Meijs, we join her efforts to transform ocean waste into limited edition fashion accessories. For example, fishing net parts are given a second life and become bracelets, cans are transformed into necklaces, and plastic waste is transformed into earrings and dresses. As our inspiration and artistic mentor, we hope to create a wave of change together.
Turning waste into treasure
Here you can see how we strive to clean beaches and turn trash into treasure that not only creates great bracelets, but also positively impacts marine life.