Grandma never lets anything go to waste and she’s always looking for a way to upcycle old clothes. Acknowledging the OG entrepreneurs are founders Priyanka Muniyappa (designer, NIFT Bangalore) and Anugrah Samuel Phillips (freelance fashion stylist) with their Vintage Reconstruction and Restoration brand Grandma Would Approve. Drawing inspiration from their own experiences with hand-me-downs and motivated by ideologies of upcycling and restoration to save the huge environmental cost of fashion, they started Grandma Would Approve and have been churning out one excellent piece after another ever since, with zero wastage (all fabric scraps and buttons find a home here).
Currently, the brand's apparel is available under three categories - Vintage, Restored, and Reconstructed - with pieces sourced from throughout the world on the duo's travels and through their family and friends living abroad. The Vintage category has pieces that are selected based on garment construction, fabric, pattern, print, era style, historical period, buttons, and are priced between INR 2,500 - INR 5,000. The Restored category, on the other hand, are damaged garments that the duo fixes with new panels, inner lining, buttons, zips, elastics, etc. creating unique clothes and are priced between INR 4,000 - INR 10,000.
The Reconstructed pieces are the most magical category of all. It has garments made using a minimum of 5-10 vintage garments that are taken apart and stitched back together to create one of a kind, non-replicable garments and it takes a minimum of six days to build one such garment. The idea is to give people "at least one piece of clothing that only they have" and the uniqueness of this idea and garment has us elated. It's just wonderful! Grandma Would Approve's reconstructed pieces are priced between INR 6,000 - INR 25,000.
You can order Grandma Would Approve's apparel through Instagram DM's (@grandmawouldapprove). They offer shipping throughout India.