Thanks to all the designers who entered the Plastics Make it Possible^SM Design Competition, and to those of you who submitted the 15,000+ reviews that helped us choose our winner! More than 160 designers from all over the country submitted their creations, which were posted online and open for review from the fashion community and general public. While WesFeld, the Plastics Make it Possible^SM winners work to finish their line, here is a selection of looks from the submitted designs:

The Plastics Make it Possible^SM design competition began on October 29th and the deadline for submissions was Friday, December 11th.

We’re counting the days until WesFeld debuts the line at Gen Art’s “New Garde” show at New York Fashion Week on February 10. Since we got a sneak peek, we thought we’d share some of the photos we took at WesFeld’s studio:

We’ll be adding photos, video and guest blog posts from the pair as the line develops, so check back often!

Hi, We’re Daniel Feld and Wesley Nault, also known as WesFeld, the design team that won the Plastics Make It Possible^SM designer competition. The response we’ve been getting over the first few weeks, since winning, has been so wonderful! We are so excited to be part of this and begin our journey to New York Fashion Week. So, we thought we’d give everyone some insight as to how we got involved with Plastics Make it Possible^SM, and answer a few of the most popular questions we’ve been asked….

How’s the collection going?
Actually, great. We’re about halfway through designing and finishing the collection we are showing at the New Garde show during New York Fashion Week. It’s very whimsical and fun. The challenge is that we want to design complete looks: accessories, shoes… so we’re working pretty much around-the-clock to realize the vision.

How did you get involved in the competition?
We have been dreaming up this collection for a while. When we saw the Gen Art announcement, we thought it was a perfect fit. We had the two dresses almost done, and because we like working with innovative materials in ways people don’t expect, we thought that we had a good chance.

What does winning the competition mean to you?
To get this grant is just incredible. The funding means that now we have the time to immerse ourselves in our design work, to pay for studio time and rent. We’re just really grateful for the opportunity. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance, and we’re lucky that our current employers were nice enough to let us out of our day jobs to do this collection.

Especially in today’s economy, it’s really difficult to showcase your art as a young, unestablished designer. We’ve been given a really rare opportunity, and we are putting our hearts and souls into this collection.

Plastic? Fashion?
Oh yes. Plastic-based fabrics are allowing us to realize our vision and innovate in ways no other fabric can compete with. They allow us to be really creative. For example we found this amazing nylon mesh that is just so easy to work with: incredible texture and we can even dye it. It’s great. What many people don’t realize is, nylon is actually made with plastic fiber.

Especially in drape and structure, these plastic-based fabrics give us a really clean look and finish. Fabrics like duchess satin and linen, two commonly used fabrics, leave terrible creases as soon as you wear them. The plastic-based versions are more resilient and don’t do that, which make them incredibly easy to work with.

That’s it for now… back to stitching! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below.

Thanks so much!

Dan & Wes

ARLINGTON, VA (January 12, 2010) – Plastics and plastic-based materials continue to rule the runways as the hottest trend in fashion with top designers featuring sky-high Lucite® shoes, lots of sequins and plastic minis in their latest collections. Plastics Make it Possible^SM, an initiative sponsored by the plastics industries of the American Chemistry Council, celebrates emerging designers inspired by this trend and is excited to announce WesFeld, a team comprised of two up-and-coming designers, Daniel Feld and Wesley Nault, each of whom was featured on season 5 of the hit television show “Project Runway,” as the grand prize winner of its national design competition in partnership with Gen Art.  The team will receive $10,000 to create and showcase their new collection during 2010 New York Fashion Week.

Announced in October at Gen Art’s “Fresh Faces in Fashion” show in Los Angeles, the nationwide design competition challenged fashion designers to create two dynamic womenswear looks made from plastic and plastic-based fabrics. More than 160 designers from all over the country submitted their creations, which were posted online and open for review from the fashion community and general public. More than 15,000 votes, comments and reviews were generated during the competition, leading to the selection of WesFeld as this year’s winner.

“Designers frequently use plastic-based materials such as nylon, chiffon and sequins in their collections because they allow for extreme versatility and creativity, while also being durable and cost-effective,” said Steve Russell, vice president, Plastics Division of the American Chemistry Council. “It’s been inspiring to see the creations and different ways plastics were used to produce such dynamic pieces throughout this competition. WesFeld’s designs demonstrate the true heart of the contest and showcase just how beautiful plastic-based fabrics and accessories can be. We can’t wait to see the full collection debut at 2010 New York Fashion Week!”

WesFeld’s winning designs are whimsical and romantic creations inspired by elements of water and nature. The pale pink evening dress features poly-organza, poly-taffeta and plastic boning to create a shape that resembles a conch sea shell with a pearl inside. The designer’s second look is a more structured and textured dove gray gown made of poly-organza, plastic woven interfacing and plastic boning, with poly-satin piping detail. This gown was inspired by a fossilized exoskeleton of an ancient sea creature and a seahorse’s paneled body.

Both Feld and Nault were formally educated at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York and in their early careers have collectively apprenticed and worked alongside such designers as Donna Karan, Melinda Eng, Heatherette, Nicholas Patrou, Marc Jacobs and Zac Posen. The two met when both were contestants on season 5 of “Project Runway” and formed a partnership after discovering that they share similar aesthetics and influences from nature that are evident in their work. The duo strives to push the boundaries of fashion to design their own interpretation of beauty, innovation and fantasy.

“We think it’s interesting that plastic-based materials are fairly common in fashion, yet most people don’t realize that plastic is in many of the garments and accessories they wear on a daily basis,” said Wesley Nault, winner of the national Plastics Make it Possible^SM design competition. “You don’t tend to think about plastic in high-end couture, but plastic-based fabrics are very easy to work with because of their durability and versatility. We were excited to showcase what’s innovative and beautiful about using plastics in fashion through this competition.  We’d like to thank Gen Art and Plastics Make it Possible^SM for helping us fulfill our dream to show our pieces at New York Fashion Week.”

WesFeld’s looks will be showcased alongside some of the industry’s hottest rising talent at Gen Art’s “New Garde” show sponsored by Plastics Make it Possible^SM during 2010 New York Fashion Week on February 10. The collection will be part of live model installations in a dynamic, non-traditional fashion presentation featuring elaborate set-designs enabling designers to create a cohesive mood and environment for their work. Gen Art’s show traditionally attracts over 1,000 attendees; past designers include Project Runway winner Jeffrey Sebelia, Geren Ford, Society for Rational Dress, FORM and Kit Pistol.

To view WesFeld’s submitted designs, as well as selected submissions from other designers, please visit www.plasticsmakeitpossible.com.

About Plastics Make it Possible^SM

Plastics Make it Possible^SM highlights the many ways plastics inspire innovations that improve our lives, solve big problems and help us design a safer, more promising future. This initiative is sponsored by the plastics industries of the American Chemistry Council.  For more information, visit www.plasticsmakeitpossible.com.

About Gen Art

Gen Art is the nation’s leading arts and entertainment organization dedicated to showcasing emerging fashion designers, filmmakers, musicians and visual artists. Gen Art produces over 100 events annually, ranging from weeklong film festivals to massive star-studded fashion shows, live music performances, art exhibitions, multimedia events and more. Since 1993 Gen Art has been championing the arts by creating and producing events and exhibits that have helped accelerate the careers of hundreds of young artists.

Innovative uses of recycled plastics are multiplying. In the not-too-distant future, the plastic water bottle you recycle one day may show up in your next car. One of Hyundai’s latest concept cars is a crossover coup vehicle called the QarmaQ. A key feature in the QarmaQ is its innovative use of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles to create a large portion of the vehicle’s skin. According to GE, the use of plastics, instead of more traditional metal and glass, reduces the weight of the vehicle by 130 pounds. That weight loss translates to 20 gallons in annual fuel savings.

Car seat upholstery also can be made from recycled plastic. And a lot more of the plastics used in today’s cars are being recovered and recycled at the end of the vehicle’s useful life.

Less obvious uses of recycled plastics include the materials that make our homes comfortable and attractive. Mohawk, a leading U.S. carpet manufacturer, recycles nearly three billion plastic bottles each year. Plastic bottles are sorted, ground into fine chips, and then cleaned. These chips are then melted and extruded into fiber and spun into carpet yarn.

If recycled plastic is not on your floor, it may be in your back yard. Composite lumber made from recycled plastic and sawdust is extremely durable and requires very little maintenance. For these reasons and its design capabilities, composite lumber is often a favorite for building decks and fences.

For example, Trex® decking, railing and fencing has all the natural beauty of wood, but doesn’t rot or splinter the way wood can. Trex® composite lumber helps keep about 300,000 tons of plastic and wood scrap out of landfills every year – that results in approximately 600,000,000 pounds annually. And no trees have to be cut to make this innovative decking material. Trex® wood is reclaimed from woodworking operations, used pallets and sawdust to the tune of 300 million pounds a year.

More surprising still, you may be wearing recycled plastic. From high fashion runways to bargain basement stores, “Plastic is the new Black”. Warm fleece jackets, trendy shoes and everyday t-shirts are now being made from fibers spun from recycled plastics. H&M is featuring recycled plastics as part of its line of environmentally friendly fashions. Sears is offering men’s suits made from recycled plastic bottles and faux fur, sequins and sky-high heels made possible by plastics are gracing the runways at fashion events from Los Angeles to New York. (To see more cutting-edge concepts plastics fashions, be sure to check out entries to the Plastics Make it PossibleSM and Gen Art design contest.

Remember that it’s easy to be part recycling movement year round. For tips on how to recycle more of the plastics you use, see Plastics Make it Possible’s How to Guide for Recycling Plastics.

What made this show unique was its focus on sustainability and mentorship of fashion designers who were involved.