From Pillowcase Dresses to Avatar Fashion: The World of Cunnington & Sanderson

Cunnington & Sanderson have proudly been featured in the Yorkshire Post, and we wanted to share some of the highlights with you.

From pillowcase dresses for adults to clothes for avatars, the world of Yorkshire designers Cunnington & Sanderson is one of artistic vision, emotional depth, and radical sustainability. Their designs tackle mental health awareness and environmental responsibility — and now they're stepping into the digital frontier with fashion designed for avatars.

As the creative duo behind the eponymous luxury label, their work is instantly recognisable to those with a yearning for challenging, individual, avant-garde fashion — clothes with meaning. Their garments are sculptural yet fluid, always unexpected, sometimes haunting, as if asking to be stepped into and lived in as one with the wearer.

The Pillowcase Dress That Started a Movement

"Every Cunnington & Sanderson garment is inspired by a narrative and holds its own emotional symbolism. Many will recognise the pillow top and dress that featured in the Future Fashion Exhibition 2019 at Lotherton Hall and in DANSK Magazine — published in Sweden in April 2020, the same time Instagram influencers @myforteisfashion and @stylebynelli, also based in Sweden, sparked the viral #PillowChallenge and #QuarantinePillowChallenge trend of turning padded pillows into mini dresses cinched with a belt, Just like our Pillow Dress we created in 2018. The challenge was taken up by billions around the world, including celebrities Halle Berry, Anne Hathaway, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Barbie. The piece has since been featured in Vogue Italia, Vogue Greece, Love Want, Tatler, Schön Magazine, Kinfolk China, Puss Puss, and shown at Milan Fashion Week and Bankfield Museum."

The concept carries a serious message — raising awareness of mental health and the feelings of solitude so many experience.

John says: "The bed becomes wearable clothes, so your surroundings are worn. The pillow is to highlight that you are not hiding from your anxieties or worries, but wearing them. We want to encourage people to talk about how they feel."

This design has since evolved into the Pillow T-Shirt, a unisex, organic top which can be worn with or without a pillow and the Pillow Printed T-Shirt — a unisex, one-size-for-all wearable piece available now.

Award-Winning Designers with a Sustainability Mission

Since winning the Grand Prize at the International Festival de Mode at Villa Noailles, Hyères in 2008, the pair have accumulated an impressive list of awards, nominations, and accolades. Their designs have been photographed by Rankin, Thanassis Krikis, Paola Kudacki, Eva Al Desnudo and worn by style icons including Lily Gatins, Zola Jesus, Conchita Wurst, and Jorge Gonzalez to name a few.

Beyond designing, they sit on panels, judge competitions, and lecture fashion students across the UK — always with sustainability at the core.

"The more people talk about sustainability the better. We are trying to use it as education."

The Future: Fashion for the Metaverse

In what may be the most sustainable fashion initiative yet, Cunnington & Sanderson is collaborating with Seamm — a digital wardrobe and marketplace for virtual worlds. Customers will be able to purchase digital assets, including pillowcase dresses worn by avatars, tradeable and wearable across games and metaverses as a new form of personal expression.

Follow the journey on Instagram.

Shop Innovative Fashion by Cunnington & Sanderson