Piper Dugas

Piper Dugas

Materiality

Bio

Piper is a designer deeply inspired by the natural world, creating work that reflects its quiet beauty and subtle complexity. Specializing in knitwear, particularly hand knitting, they value the intimacy and connection formed through slow, tactile processes. This hands-on approach allows each piece to carry a sense of care and intention. Drawing from nostalgia and childhood fairy tales, Piper’s work evokes a sense of whimsy and wonder, blending softness with imagination to create garments that feel both personal and quietly enchanting.

@piper.dugas
Image: naturally dyed hand and machine knitted dress with hand felted bra

quiet bloom

Piper’s collection, Quiet Bloom, explores the experience of small, often overlooked moments in nature. Emphasizing simplicity in silhouette, the garments allow richly textured, natural materials to take visual and tactile precedence. Inspired by the fluidity of 1920s lingerie, each piece follows the body’s natural contours rather than imposing structure, resulting in soft, unfussy forms. Through textile experimentation, petal-like shapes emerge organically, with curved edges that fold and overlap, creating garments that appear to settle naturally into place and encourage ease of movement. The entire collection is naturally dyed using indigo, cochineal, marigold, and chestnut, grounding the palette in hues derived directly from the natural world.
A central element of the collection’s sustainability practice is the creation of the fabrics themselves. Developing textiles from scratch fosters a deeper understanding of material origins, reduces reliance on mass production, and ensures a more intentional use of resources. The making process is deliberately slow, with hand and machine knitting embedding time, care, and repetition into each piece, mirroring the quiet unfolding found in nature. Subtle irregularities in tension, density, and softness evoke surfaces such as moss, lichen, and layered petals, adding depth and quiet complexity. In balancing clarity of form with intricacy of surface, the collection uses minimal silhouettes as a calm framework while texture brings movement and sensitivity, transforming each garment into a tactile, living landscape.
Image:

naturally dyed silk dress with machine knit godets and crochet lace trim

Image:

naturally dyed silk bra, hand felted corset, and machine knit capris

Image:

naturally dyed hand and machine knit dress with hand felted bra

Image:

naturally dyed silk top with crochet trim at cups

Image:

naturally dyed silk top with hand felted petal skirt

Image:

naturally dyed jacket and pants with crochet trim along jacket opening

Image:

hand felted corset and petal skirt with naturally dyed silk bra with crochet trim

Image:

hand felted flower top and petal skirt

Image:

hand felted flower top and petal skirt