Talent Talks: Valentine Tinchant
Valentine Tinchant is a circular fashion designer based in Antwerp, known for her innovative and sustainable approach to fashion. Using her iconic zig-zag stitch she dares people to wear their waste. She does this by taking on challenging commissions, upcycling from within her clients own closets and educating makers to reuse what is discarded. Valentine’s work is currently on display in the LAB till the 28th of May.
Could you please introduce yourself?
I’m Valentine Tinchant, a circular fashion designer or better said circular centipede based in Antwerp. My focus lies in creating upcycled and circular designs, upcycling people’s already existing closet and transforming those pieces into new fresh upcycled pieces. Besides that I coach and manage a social sewing atelier for people that have a distance to the regular job market. We try to create jobs for them and strengthen their skills to be able to find jobs on the regular job markets. Next to that I work as a freelancer for several companies like Okret, New Order of fashion where I give workshops about circular design and upcycling to companies, schools, etc. I also create the designs for their collections/projects.
Valentine Tinchant - Car Courture - Image by Lineta Liduma
How do you look back on your graduation work and how has it affected the projects you are working on now?
Until this day I’m really proud of my graduation collection, I pushed a lot of boundaries within myself to create that. It has been 6 years and up until this day that collection still gets borrowed a lot by artists and stylists. It was a collection made out materials of recycled windshields, all made by hand using destroyed magazines to create my collages. I think there is something so magical in creating collections at school, because you have a lot of time to focus solely on those pieces, and you’re also doing it for yourself, what makes it magical, there is no pressure to commercialize, or sell or anything like that.
Valentine Tinchant - PACO RANDOMME GRADUATION COLLECTION 2019
Could you please tell us something about your recent work Car Couture?
Actually the people from febelauto a car recycling company borrowed my graduation pieces for their car salon to show what is possible from the waste of cars, one year later I got a call from them that they wanted to do a collaboration with the cars they have. I thought the idea was great and again a nice way to push boundaries and show what is possible with discarded materials no matter what industry. We went to the scrap yard and cut out all the leather from these destroyed cars ourselves.
What for me was really nice is that I was able to bring this project into my social sewing atelier and create it together with my sewers, so I could bring all the elements of my work together. Creating a job for my sewers, and creating a circular collection. We had a lot of fun creating this project together!
Valentine Tinchant - Car Courture - Image by Lineta Liduma
Can you tell us about your collaboration with Werkzaak. What do they do and how do you work together?
Werkzaak is the social sewing company and a social neighborhood enterprise in Antwerp-North that creates opportunities for job seekers with a distance to the regular job markets through sustainable and local textile work. We explore whether local and ecological jobs are possible, and bring that vision to life by building a sewing atelier together with residents and partners where people can develop their talents and strengthen the neighborhood. We have a repair point with social tarifs and normal ones, making it possible for everyone in the neighborhood to repair their clothes. Besides that we do custom upcycling and small productions for local brands like HVDS we make their underwear, for El suit we make their ties and so on. We recently had our first upcycling workshop together where my team upcycled peoples old clothes!
Which materials, techniques, programmes and/or applications are you mostly interested in?
Material wise, since I’m an upcycler I try to work with all the different materials, and see beauty in all of it. For techniques it varies, I love to drape, I love to collage, even with clothes, finding fun ways to combine things, lately I have been loving finding quick easy ways to transform a piece of clothing. For example making a bag from an old shirt with just a few stitches. I love punch needle felting, linking rings, working with the crazy stitch.
Valentine Tinchant - NOOF LAB exhibition, February-May 2025
We believe fashion should be regenerative. What does regenerative fashion mean to you and your work?
I fully agree fashion should be regenerative. For me, that means going beyond just not doing harm. Fashion is such a powerful tool. It can be used as such a strong medium. I even believe it can help restore both the planet and the people involved in the process.
I love exploring new systems within the circular economy, and thinking about how existing businesses can adapt to these more regenerative ways of working. It’s not just about materials or waste — it’s also deeply social. Fair working conditions and valuing the people behind the products are just as important.
Design also plays a key role. If we rethink how we design for example, by anticipating weak spots like collars or sleeves that wear out quickly we can create pieces that are longer-lasting and easier to repair or adapt. To me, a piece is never truly “finished.” It can always evolve, be reused, or reimagined. That mindset is part of what makes fashion regenerative.
Valentine Tinchant - Image by Lineta Liduma
How do you perceive the meaning and importance of community within the fashion field?
Community is really important to me, and I have realized this a lot this past year. I don't see fashion as something you do alone — it’s something you build together. Whether it’s working side by side with my sewers in the atelier, running workshops, or collaborating on projects, it’s all about sharing knowledge and lifting each other up. Especially in a field like fashion that can be so tough and individualistic, I really believe that the only way to make real change is by working together. You can’t change the industry on your own — but if we connect and support each other, we can push things forward in a much stronger and more meaningful way.