How Self-Awareness Can Usher In a More Sustainable Wardrobe
CFC Member Spotlight: Biek Speijk
Author and interviewer: Stella Hertantyo
Originally from the Netherlands, and based in Singapore, Biek Speijk is a seasoned fashion designer turned upcycling artist and wardrobe curator. Before Biek pivoted to start her own business as a wardrobe curator — under the name Biekaleidoscope — she worked as a designer for international brands and gained experience in retail, buying, styling, and design.
Now, inspired by her strong vision of quality in design, she works as a teacher for consumers through Biekaleidoscope. She teaches women one-on-one to re-own their wardrobe and headspace for more confidence and mindful style.
Biek focuses on working with garments that already exist — both in her wardrobe curation and art — to help her clients avoid unnecessary waste, appreciate quality, and become more informed consumers.
I interviewed Biek in the Conscious Fashion Collective Membership as part of our Member Spotlight interview series.
Below are some of the highlights from the conversation, including:
The biggest misconceptions when it comes to developing personal style,
How to shift mindsets toward more sustainable ways of engaging with fashion, and
How self-awareness and personal wellness are key elements in creating a more sustainable wardrobe.
What led you to work at the intersection of fashion and sustainability?
I have a 20-year-long history with fashion. I knew from a young age that I wanted to work in fashion and used to make clothes for my Barbie dolls. I also knew that I wanted to go to art school — and I ended up going to two art schools to study fashion design.
On the weekends and during holidays, I’d work in fast fashion retail at the likes of H&M. Towards the end of my art school years, I worked at high-end boutiques with beautiful brands. I got to see how nice their fabrics and finishes were in comparison to fast fashion.
But the most important takeaway was that I noticed how women changed when they looked in the mirror and had new garments on their bodies. I saw their body language change and the spark in their eyes.
I remember one time when there was a plus-size woman who wanted to try on one of our popular styles. I gave her the biggest size and it barely fitted her. I almost suggested that she try another style, but she looked so happy when she saw herself in the mirror. That was an important moment in my career. It showed me that other people’s style has nothing to do with me.
Style isn’t about how I — or anyone else — think things should fit. It's about how you choose to see yourself and what makes you feel most comfortable. Nothing else matters. This defined the course of my career.
After that, I went on to become an international fashion designer for over 10 years. My focus was always on how to make high-quality garments. I started in high-end fashion with Haider Ackermann. I then ended up working in fast fashion in Beijing, which was the other end of the spectrum. I enjoyed the job and there were great opportunities, but I couldn’t overlook how the clothes were treated.
The clothing racks were overflowing. There was too much clothing to know what to do with. I thought. “These clothes are made by real people. How can we treat the garments like they aren’t of value?”
Then I met my husband in Singapore and moved there. That’s when I decided to pivot my career. Based on my senior design skills, the obvious choice was to do better at a design level and make better quality clothes. But my main fixation was trying to tackle the fashion problem from a consumer perspective.
On the streets, I noticed people fiddling with their necklines and wearing ill-fitting clothing made from horrendous fabric. I realized that I needed to focus on helping people make better choices for themselves. These are the stepping stones that led me to Biekaleidoscope.
Now I help women curate their wardrobes by working with what they already have, making better choices, buying less but better, and creating artwork from clothes that hold memories.
What’s the biggest misconception when it comes to developing personal style?
Often women look at others and think that’s what they need to wear. Or they look at a garment on someone else’s body and think that’s how they need to wear it. Or they see others wearing a certain style of clothing and think they need to do the same, even when they don’t feel good in it.
This isn’t our fault. It’s the fault of our consumerist culture. We think we need to buy certain garments to live up to a certain image, role, or status.
This happens when you don’t fully understand how you want to feel when you get dressed. That’s what I’m trying to change.
Sustainable fashion requires a shift in mindset. How do you approach shifting the way people think about fashion?
The blessing and the curse of a mindset shift are that it’s about behavior. Changing behavioral patterns first isn’t easy. It takes time and there’s no shortcut. So not everyone is up for it, on top of all the hats they already have to wear. This is the challenging part.
But the beautiful part is that what I’m trying to do with Biekaleidoscope is show that this journey is much easier if you have support and someone to guide you. Every week we can check in, you can send me pictures, and we can create a new behavior of how you feel rather than how you look.
I try to get people to understand that a mindset change can happen in small steps. Start by trying your clothes on without a mirror. Reflect on how this feels instead of judging how you look. How does the neckline feel? How do your shoulders feel? Do you like your bare arms? Or do you like long sleeves? Is it too tight or too wide?
Your clothes are your second skin, so I’m trying to show people that the way you feel is more important than the way you look.
How are self-awareness and personal wellness a key element of creating a more sustainable wardrobe?
Being in tune with who you are and how you live your life allows you to take care of yourself better. This extends to your clothing choices.
Buying with intention and not wasting money on unnecessary purchases is an act of self-care. Buying a garment because you saw it on Instagram and it was on sale isn’t taking care of yourself or your finances.
Even if you are buying conscious brands, mindless shopping is still a way of trying to fill some sort of gap. I work with people to try to identify those gaps and rethink the way they consume clothing.
We have to work with what we have first. This is the most sustainable option, but it also helps us develop a sense of trust in our clothing choices and self-awareness.
The first step is to be self-aware. Then you start trusting your choices more. From that comes confidence. And then this positive cycle of care reinforces itself.
I always tell my clients that it’s not about stopping shopping entirely. It’s about knowing exactly what brings you joy and adds value to your life, so that when you shop you are shopping with intention.
What inspired you to begin creating art from clothing waste?
There were two turning points. First of all, I have a thing for white T-shirts. I bought a white T-shirt in Tokyo when I was working in Beijing, and my credit card didn’t work as it was maxed out. I had to borrow money from a colleague. So it took me a lot of effort to buy this beautiful white T-shirt.
At some point, I had worn this t-shirt to a thread. I couldn’t donate it or repair it, because it was so worn out. I realized that I wanted to hang it on the mall and keep the story of how I got this well-loved t-shirt alive. I put it in a box and promised to think about it later.
When I started Biekaleidoscope, I encouraged people to only have clothes that they wear visible in their closets. But this also meant that many special garments that held memories needed a new function.
Also when I’m going through people’s wardrobes, there are often fast fashion pieces that can’t be resold, donated, or repaired, because of how low-quality they are. Yet I didn’t want this waste to go to landfill.
That’s when I realized I needed to help clients re-imagine their clothes. The possibilities were endless. We could stretch them out like a canvas or use them as a textile painting. Or I can make them into a mobile or a sculpture for their homes.
They no longer had the guilt of not wearing the garment, but they could keep the memories and use it as a conversation starter.
For other designers who are interested in pivoting out of design work, what are the most transferable skills that you suggest they focus on developing?
If you’re creative, you will always bring that along and you’ll be able to create creativity in whatever you do.
When I worked for big brands, marketing, sales, admin, and finance were all separate departments and I didn’t have to think about any of that. But when you run your own business, you need to know how to do it all. Raw creativity is a much smaller portion of your job. You need to develop these skills if you want to run a business.
Marketing is one of the most important skills to develop. I would recommend doing courses in marketing and sales strategies. I’m an expert in fits, fabric, and quality. But what matters now is how I use my marketing skills to share what my expertise is and grow my business.
This also means that when you are promoting your new business, you have to become the face of it. This is tricky when you are used to working behind the scenes and allowing someone else to handle the marketing. It takes some time to get comfortable. You need to get used to sharing authentically, especially on social media where everything feels contrived.
I recently shared when I was in tears, because I thought people need to see that this is also happening. I want people to know this is as much a part of the journey as the successes.
You may feel like others are much better at marketing themselves than you, but we need to remember that sometimes we look at somebody's 20th chapter when we're at our first chapter. Everyone is on their own journey.
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To connect with Biek and get featured in one of our Member Spotlights join the Conscious Fashion Collective Membership, the online community for sustainable fashion professionals. You'll also get access to live events, workshop recordings, career resources, and more.