Sofie Aaldering (1998). Materials and handicraft are the backbone of my projects. I have a fascination for material and the processing of it. It started with natural materials like wool and raphia, but it expanded since I am now experimenting with fiberglass and tulle. To revalue materials, showing the beauty of them and changing the appearance of them so that it is not easy to extract the original shape, is my passion. As a fashion designer I noticed that materials are undervalued. Nowadays, the bigger quantities and fast production are more important than material and handicraft. With this, pieces of clothing lose a part of story and experience. I want to bring back the importance of materials, so that pieces of clothing will tell a more elaborate story. I create collections which consist of labor-intensive pieces around the human body but lately I am also experimenting with other pieces (like a textile sculpture), but materials and handicraft keep playing an important role. I want to astonish the viewer: what am I looking at and what is it made of? With my projects I want to transfer the love of materials to the viewer and inspire them to look differently to materials within the world.