Prince Charles is well loved for his quirky royal engagements, his sparkling personality and that rather cheeky smile, but up until now, the 70-year-old wasn’t exactly known for his fashion sense.
But it seems that’s all about to change as a new project involving an entirely new line of clothing, and a very interesting contribution from the Prince of Wales emerges.
You’d better believe it – Charles, the future King of England, Grandpa Wales to his nearest and dearest, and member of Britain’s elite, is dabbling in fashion design.
The Prince has teamed up with Vin + Omi, an iconic brand in the sustainable fashion space to help create a collection of clothing that is appropriately avant-garde – because it’s made entirely of nettles.
Yes, you read that correctly – and the nettles in question belong to none other than the garden of Charles and wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
Prince Charles is officially helping to launch a fashion collection and this is not a drill.
(Getty)The co-founder of the brand, Omi told PEOPLE about the unlikely collaboration.
“It was actually his idea to use nettles from his estate and turn them into clothes,” he explained.
“And what do you do with a suggestion like that? It was almost like a challenge for us!”
We must say, we’re impressed with the Prince’s ingenuity.
Prince Charles came up with the idea to turn his garden weeds into clothing.
(Instagram / @vinandomi)According to the publication, the idea emerged last year when the British Fashion Council held an event to promote sustainability, equality, diversity and craftsmanship.
At the time of the event, the talented designer duo were attempting to make fabric out of cow parsely.
They were completely ecstatic when they heard the Prince was offering up his weeds.
“He casually said that he had loads of nettles if we wanted them,” Omi explained.
The Prince offered up the weed from his private residence of Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire.
“Next thing we knew we were at Highgrove with his team harvesting nettles over two days!” The designer said.
WATCH: Prince Charles and Camilla attend a country show in Wales. Story continues after video…
The designers got to work with Charles’ donated plants (of which there were 3000 of!) over the Northern Hemisphere’s summer.
And Charles has certainly helped by providing more than just weeds.
A keen gardener, the Prince has apparently given the designers plenty of knowledge when it comes to working with the plant.
“[Charles] really knows a lot about gardening and the environment,” Omi commented.
The 70-year-old is a keen gardner.
(Getty)The end result? A ten-piece collection that will be showcased at London Fashion Week this year.
While it’s not expected Prince Charles will attend himself, the interest in seeing the quirky pieces remains high.
The V&A museum have requested to acquire a piece for their own permanent collection, while several other museum-staffers will be flying in to view it.
Sounds like Charles is garnering a fashion-following in his own unique way!
