gender-free vegan black basics since 2005              

Balkan Tango


Story Balkantango's story started well before the first inner-tube upcycling experiments of its founder and designer; IPek.
As process is very important in Balkantango's philosophy, we share with you IPek's personal memories about how she became an upcycler.
London 
Budapest 
Basel

London“I have been creating accessories using upcycled materials since my childhood. I was born in Istanbul, grown up in Budapest and when I was twenty I moved to London. Besides being an illegal part-timer in a South-London factory and working as a cleaner, I kept on making clothes and jewelry which I sold on Portobello Market. On my free day, the greatest pleasure was to go shopping in my favorite second-hand shops. Later when I moved back to Budapest I realized how influenced I became by the consumption habits of my surroundings. It took me almost a decade to get rid of my overconsuming compensation for feeling myself a ‘poor Eastern European charwoman’. Whatever, London was the very city where I first sensed the taste of riding a bike for every-day use. I am sure that my commitment to slow-fashion and my love for bicycles dates back to these years.”
  
IPek, photoDaniel Drognitz

Budapest “Between two shifts in the factory, I tried to visit some open classes on Central Saint Martins' Fashion department. That was where I have learnt to think of objects as a collection. So when I moved back to Hungary I designed small collections of fashion accessories from any material I could upcycle. My first success as a designer was a collection of bags made from second hand vinyls that brought our workshop eco-friendly partners to cooperate with.”

Bicylcle-innertube upcycling experiments, 2004
Upcycled tarpaulin bags for Amnesty International, 2006 
LP bag prototype, 2005
Balkantango branding by @kulocity > Stark Attila, 2007
First Balkantango webshop, 2008 
Stylish Bicyle Clothing Collection, upcycled banners from @szigetfestival, 2006 
Limited edition > cooperation with @extraverage design, 2009
Nivódíj Exhibition, Hungarian Museum of Applied Arts, 2010 
Budapest Bag in 3 sizes, 2008 , photo: Kováts Dániel

“After having so much hustle with using different materials I started to upcycle punctured bicycle inner tubes only. Balkantango became a pioneer brand of the 2000s’ Hungary that has been inspiring users and fellow designers to change their way of thinking to environmentally conscious consumption. The concept of a timeless and gender-free collection, with black and minimalist accessories, worked so well that we are still producing some of the original items.”

Basel

Woven Tubes Collection, 2011 
Laser logo experiments, @Hyperwerk, 2012
Velofetish exhibition, Budapest 2013
2nd Balkantango website, 2012
Velofetish exhibition Istanbul, 2015
Velofetish exhibition Berlin, 2014
Minimal Collection, 2016
new displays made by @ivanka concrete, 2014
*____* 2018 
Velowelt, Zürich 2017
3rd Balkantango website, 2020
Original Collection, 2019 photo  Daniel Drognitz

“Partly because of the incredible longevity of Balkantango products and partly because I refused the support of big investors' green-washing campaigns, Balkantango went almost bankrupt after the financial crises of the 2000s. However, I keep up the good work in two altered forms. Balkantango’s production is reduced to the limited collection of the best-selling products. Also, I share my knowledge by giving lectures on environmentally conscious design and social entrepreneurship.”

 Are you interested in cooperating with IPek or inviting her to give a workshop or a  lecture? You can contact her here.



Show me your Balkantango 2021photo: Daniel Drognitz
new sticker by @untune 2020
4th Balkantango website, 2022 
Show me your Balkantango: 
shooting with @MUNA, 2023
IPek, 2021 Ⓐ photo>Daniel Drognitz