Hatta Dolmat (Photo: Aimaness Hairun)
Cover Hatta Dolmat (Photo: Aimaness Hairun)

Here’s how the second runner-up of Project Runway Malaysia Season 1 became the first-ever Malaysian to create an entirely sustainable collection

When it comes to storytelling, we usually stick to the tried-and-tested formula of starting from the beginning. However, for Hatta Dolmat’s prolific journey as a fashion designer who’s recently earned himself a spot in the Malaysia Book of Records last year for being the first local designer to ever create a ‘complete sustainable collection’, let’s start somewhere in the middle.

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Above Hatta Dolmat KLFW 2015 collection
Tatler Asia
Above Hatta Dolmat KLFW 2015 collection

It was 2015 when Hatta was working on his ready-to-wear collection for the annual Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week. At the time, he was one of few designers who designed their own motifs—an expensive investment back then. Not wanting to let the remaining textile (as well as the team's efforts) go to waste, this led to Hatta trying to find ways to reuse the their fabric offcuts. "The more we upcycled our fabric, the more it became a habit. I started to wonder about the role I played in the bigger picture," he explains.

After the show had ended, a discomfiting thought nagged at the back of his head when he saw the mountain of waste left behind in his wake.

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“From mock-ups and samples to a complete collection of over 30 looks, can you imagine how much scrap fabric a single designer produces every season? This doesn’t even include the factories that create the thousands of clothes you see online!”

Related: Meet Paula Miquelis, The Co-Founder Of Green Is The New Black Who Made Sustainability Cool

Above Sustainable HD Monogram 20/21 collection.

Dolmat, 38, started collaborating with Kloth Cares, a fabric-recycling-movement-turned-social organisation, which we featured in the September 2020 issue. The designer was supplied with a unique fabric blend consisted of 60 per cent rPET (recycled polyethene terephthalate, also known as yarn made from plastic bottles) and 40 per cent cotton, which he then used to create the sustainable HD Monogram 20/21 collection.

Juxtaposing between brightly coloured prints and sleek, modern silhouettes, this particular collection gave a whole new meaning to ‘recycled fashion’. Additionally, it proved that a circular economy can indeed be a reality for Malaysia—one that Dolmat hopes to achieve with his newfound, not-for-profit organisation, the Kuala Lumpur Young Designers Association (KLYDA).

Read also: Founders Of Activewear Brand, Terrae, Create Their Clothes From Ethically Sourced Materials & Practise Mindful Shopping

'gallery right' 'gallery right'
'gallery right' 'gallery right'
Photo 1 of 4 A hand-drawn beetle that appeared on the fabric in Hatta's 2015 KLFW collection
Photo 2 of 4 The ‘Blooming Embloom’ Eid 2021, illustrated by the designer himself
Photo 3 of 4 Tassel Eid Adha 2020
Photo 4 of 4 A gown from The Wedding KL 2019

“At the end of the day, every one of us is responsible when it comes to finding greener, ethical solutions in the fashion industry,” Dolmat states. "Establishing KLYDA while working with government agencies as well as professionals in different fields, I aim to instil a sense of responsibility in the next generation of designers to care enough to create conscious, ethical fashion that not only adheres to the United Nations’ sustainable development goals but also the circular economy model.”

Dolmat maintains that there's still “room for improvement”, and doesn’t believe in resting on one’s laurels.

Read more: Sasibai Kimis Of Earth Heir On The Bigger Cause Behind Her Ethical Fashion Business

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Above Hatta Dolmat (Photo: Aimaness Hairun)
Tatler Asia

“I do (fashion design) because I love it, I’ve always liked learning and challenging myself creatively,” he says. “I don’t want to just stick to ‘what works’, I want to evolve, which includes working on both myself as an individual as well as a designer. Take last year’s sustainable collection for example. If I had just stopped there, what difference would it make in the long-run? 

“Highlights like getting my key to my first boutique in Shah Alam 11 years ago, having people wearing and loving my designs, or being awarded by the Malaysian Book of Records—these moments are reminders that I can’t stop now because as long as a person does his very best, someday, someone will recognise your efforts.”

See more: Cover Story: Malaysian Designer Melinda Looi On Fashion, Family And Fortunes

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