October is known as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and to commemorate it, a leading lingerie brand, Storm in A-G Cup has created a beautiful bra made almost entirely of used Rooibos tea bags.
The whole idea which has been in the works for months was put together by SA Rooibos Council (SARC), Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA) and lingerie retailer, Storm in A-G Cup.
“While only 450 Rooibos tea bags were used in the final design, the bulk of the donated tea bags were used to trial various styles. Rooibos tea was specifically chosen as it contains powerful antioxidants that help fight inflammation – a leading cause of cancer.
“An added benefit is that Rooibos tea, naturally stains the tea bags red, which created the depth in colour we were aiming for, while creating awareness of Rooibos’ cancer-fighting properties,” said Adele du Toit, spokesperson for the SA Rooibos Council.
Isla Lovell, owner of Storm in A-G Cup says they’ve never shied away from a challenge and creatively it was a very rewarding project to work on.
Model Sarah-Jane Thomas stuns in a bra made almost entirely of Rooibos tea bags. Picture:Supplied
“We were immediately drawn to the idea as we often use Rooibos tea to dye our undergarments and have always flown the flag high for breast cancer survivors – our extensive mastectomy bra range is a testament to this.
“Our primary challenge came with using Rooibos tea bags for a garment that inherently relies on stretch to fit, so we had to adapt the material to the final product. We were surprised at how versatile a product Rooibos is – we experimented with the leaves, tea bags and even made beads from the packaging. Pretty much all the detail, including the delicate rose, have been fashioned from Rooibos tea bags.
“The colouring process was the trickiest part as the final look was very much reliant on how the tea bags took to the dye. We used both Rooibos tea leaves and natural pigment powders to dye the tea bags. It took us several months and four prototypes until we settled on a design,” notes Lovell.
The masterpiece which was revealed on October 1 will be auctioned in a few weeks at a high-profile fundraising dinner in aid of CANSA’s women’s education programmes.