Knowing that the fashion world promotes artistic creation and exploration of the versatility of materials, Braskem and PatBo proposed a challenge for fashion students at Belas Artes, FAAP, Centro Universitário Senac, IED and Anhembi Morumbi: to create a collection that expresses the designer's identity using yarns made from polypropylene, a plastic manufactured by Braskem The winning projects will be presented on the catwalk of PatBo during São Paulo Fashion Week, on October 23. 

Each fashion school selected two students based on their own criteria, who were invited to demonstrate their creativity and knowledge in a challenge that encourages a real-world experience in a fashion design studio. To develop their collections, the students are being guided and accompanied closely by style professionals from PatBo's team and by Patricia Bonaldi herself. During phases such as design and modeling, they get instructions from pattern cutters to ensure not only the quality of the clothing, but also to further the experience of the future designers.

Polypropylene was chosen as the raw material for the challenge given its main characteristics, such as durability, resistance and light-weight, enabling designers to go beyond their usual concepts. In addition to its technical characteristics, it also has advantages when it comes to environmental performance: in addition to being 100% recyclable, polypropylene is dyed by adding dyes or pigments directly to the dry-yarning process, which saves water, an increasingly scarce resource on our planet. 

Participants and their creations will be assessed in terms of innovation, quality, number of items, creative concept, alignment with the brand's aesthetics, engagement and the harmony of the designer duo. The panel of judges is formed by Patricia Bonaldi, Paulo Borges, one of the creators of São Paulo Fashion Week, Ana Laura Sivieri, Braskem's marketing manager, and Gustavo de La Rue, from Profil, which produces the yarn.

All items produced in the competition will be showcased at Braskem's booth, where they can be enjoyed by visitors to SPFW, which will take place in the last week of October. São Paulo Fashion Week is the fifth most important fashion event in the world, behind the fashion weeks of Paris, Milan, New York and London. The initiative is a way to create opportunities for opening doors to students who are entering the competitive world of fashion design.

About PatBo
Created in 2012 to be the original brand of Patricia Bonaldi, PatBo has the same sophisticated and exuberant spirit of the designer, while leaning towards a bolder, more fashion-oriented style. Featuring comprehensive collections, which include evening gowns, jeans, casual and beachwear, the designer meets the needs of various occasions, tastes and personalities, without forgetting her cosmopolitan and modern DNA.
In November 2013, the first PatBo store was inaugurated in Shopping JK Iguatemi, in São Paulo. One year later, the brand debuted at SPFW, the country's leading fashion week. Today, it has 121 points of sale in Brazil and 17 abroad, including five own stores. But that is what happens when freedom is unrestrained. When you decide to explore the soul of today's woman and the plethora of possibilities, with fashion expertise and creative independence.