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CONTACT:
Illia Barger
Pantaluna LLC
908-996-3213
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www.pantaluna.com
 

Artist uses t-shirts as her color palette to create one-of-a-kind artwear.

Illia Barger, renowned colorist and artist known for her large scale murals and sensual paintings of fruits and flowers, has launched an environmentally conscious fashion line called PANTALUNA . Each design collages reclaimed 100% cotton t-shirts into a distinctive, comfortable American made wearable work of art. Pantaluna’s innovative line includes several styles of women’s pants, skirts dresses and accessories. Their creative team will make you custom memory pieces made from your T-shirts, including women and men's pants, scarves, blankets and accessories.

The idea for Pantaluna developed in December of 2006 when Illia took scissors to a pile of second hand cashmere sweaters and cut them into panels to create warm winter pants for herself and her partner, Glen Capelle. The panels were sewn together, seam side out for maximum comfort and the concept for Pantaluna was born.

After many months of practicing sewing techniques, learning pattern making, sourcing recycled T’s and fine tuning the design into a tailored comfortable fit, Illia and Glen started up their first factory at the idyllic Cane Farm in Rosemont NJ. Within two years, they moved their workshop to Frenchtown, NJ. The T-shirts are meticulously laid up and deconstructed on a 150 yr. old guillotine into panels of cropped graphics that then become part of the unique “personal poem” of each garment. “One of our goals in minimizing waste is to try and find ways to use all of the fabric from the T-shirts”. Fabric scraps are used in the “Tee-Bone”, a chew for dogs, and in the decorative flowers made to wrap each purchase.A perfect match was made in 2010 when Neya joined the pantaluna team. With degrees in fashion and textile and graphic design, she brought with her an impeccable design sense and a keen eye for color and graphics.

Pantaluna keeps close to the social issues as well as the environmental. In an effort to encourage future employment opportunities, they are also sponsoring a “work your pants off” project, where you can volunteer at the factory in exchange for product. The Pantaluna concept has attracted the curiosity of a diverse core group who are inspired by their creative efforts to help move the company forward in an organic way. Illia remarks, “the uplifting energy surrounding Pantaluna which is supported by its volunteer team seems to find its way into every Pantaluna product”.

Pantaluna also offers their clients the option to personalize a purchase by adding one of their own T-shirts or choosing from the factory’s wide variety of stock. Pantaluna is currently on the web and at:

• PANTALUNA Workshop, 39 Bridge Street, Frenchtown, NJ 08825

• DIG YOGA, 204 North Union St. Lambertville,NJ 08825

• LaBella Vita, 42 Main St., New Hope, Pa 18938

• Winter Sun Summer Moon, 10-14 East Market St., Rhinebeck, NY 12572