OREANDA-NEWS. September 11, 2015. With new high tech and luxury fabrics moving from the runway to the “everyday,” both style and luxury are now within reach for everyone. However, with this new trend comes confusion on how to properly care for your clothes, especially at home. As part of P&G Fabric Care’s commitment to protecting and preserving the clothes we love, Tide and Downy are supporting Parsons School of Design at The New School to educate future designers on how to “Design for Care” through a Fall 2015 course offering.

The course will take an innovative approach to fashion design to explore how the care and use of fashion—laundering, storing, repairing, altering and wearing clothes— informs the creation of garments. Students will consider how their designs will change as they are worn and cared for to learn how to craft garments that are long-lasting and have a low impact.

The specially designed coursework will combine the design expertise of Parsons Faculty with the fabric care knowledge of Procter & Gamble scientists to help students think of new ways to make their future collections surprisingly washable.

“This exciting collaboration between Parsons and Tide brings an innovative approach to fashion design that transforms the way we use clothes," said Burak Cakmak, Dean of the School of Fashion at Parsons School of Design. “This new way of thinking about fashion design with 'care of use' will challenge and inspire the industry and Parsons is thrilled to be starting the conversation.”

P&G Fabric Care is pushing the boundaries of “washable” by developing innovations that go beyond cleaning to conditioning, protecting and gently rejuvenating the appearance of clothing down to the fiber level. The technology in Tide Pods cleans and protects fibers, while the conditioners in Downy both condition and enhance those fabrics, making them look like new.

“With the ever-changing wash-basket of clothing fabrics and styles, we know that people are searching for guidance on how to care for their broad range of garments. At P&G Fabric Care, we invest in testing to ensure our products can meet these home washing needs, so it’s natural that we are dedicated to being the leading resource to both consumers and designers on how to best care for their garments at home,” said Carolina Rogoll, Marketing Director, North America Fabric Care.

In addition to the Parsons partnership, Tide is also hosting a design competition inviting aspiring designers to show their washable designs to a panel of fashion expert judges for a chance to create a commemorative item to be sold exclusively by The Procter & Gamble Company during the February 2016 at New York Fashion Week: The Shows HQ. The competition will take place at NYFW: The Shows HQ on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015. See official rules here for complete details.