So, what is zero waste clothing; zero waste clothing is using scrap fabric as efficiently as possible. In this era of fast fashion, using fabric well is a rare sight. 7% of the Global landfill area is textiles and fabric. In Australia, 27kg of clothing per person goes to landfill each year.
Fast Fashion
Fast fashion, by definition, is companies trying to produce expensive-looking clothing as cheaply as possible, this often comes at the expense of quality and sustainability. Fashion production contributes 10% of carbon emissions; even making jeans uses 3781 litres of water on average. The only thing fast fashion has going for it is it’s cheap, however, it’s unsustainable, low quality, wasteful and it costs the planet a lot.
Impact
The environmental impact of the fashion industry is huge. 85% of textiles go to landfill yearly. Cotton is one of the most popular materials used in fashion, even though 1 plant needs about 40 litres of water, now imagine fields of just cotton.
Thinking Outside the Box
Traditionally, clothes are made without thinking about scraps, but by thinking outside the box you can produce clothing without making offcuts. An example of an amazing zero-waste pattern is, Holly McQuillan’s Zero Waste T-shirts. We have made these in our Textiles class this semester. With a little bit of ingenuity, the fabric can be used more efficiently.
What You Can Do
After reading all that you’re probably thinking ‘What am I supposed to do’ and this is it. What you can do is shop second-hand. Second-hand clothes are often looked down on, options from vintage shops or opportunity shops are affordable and sustainable. You can also support businesses that make sustainable clothes and remember to buy quality not quantity.
Conclusion
Society is increasing in numbers and as a society, we are buying more clothing. We can all play our part by making good decisions, recycling, and shopping smart. In conclusion, I urge you to think of the Earth and shop and sew sustainably.
By Steele McMahon
Sources: https://earth.org/ https://www.un.org/en/observances/zero-waste-day