Zero-waste fashion

Zero-waste fashion refers to a fashion design strategy that generates little or no textile waste during the production process, particularly focusing on the pattern making and cutting stages.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4] It is a reaction to the high amount of discarded clothing items going into landfill around the world.^[5]^[6]^[7]

Zero-waste fashion strategies can be categorized under two general approaches: pre-consumer zero-waste fashion, which eliminates waste during manufacture, and post-consumer zero-waste fashion, which generates clothing from existing materials such as second-hand clothing^[8] and elements or textiles made from other discarded consumer products. Historically, zero-waste designs have been utilised in folk clothing, including the kimono, sari, and chiton, among others.^[9]

Pre-consumer zero-waste fashion

Pre-consumer waste is created primarily by the fashion industry during the fibre, yarn, fabric, and garment manufacturing processes and includes unsuitable fibres, remnants, trimmings, cutoffs, and scraps of unsuitable quality. This waste consists of fibres, chemicals, dyes, and finishes that are ideal for recycling. Secondary pre-consumer waste consists of unsold finished stock of garments and other fabric items like curtains and bedding.^[10]

Zero-waste pattern design

In zero-waste pattern design, the designer creates a garment through the pattern-cutting process, working only within the space allotted by the fabric width.^[2] This approach directly influences the design of the final garment, as the pattern-cutting process is a primary design step. Alternatively, zero-waste manufacturing is an approach that aims to eliminate textile waste without modifying garment patterns. This approach allows garments and fabric to be fully used with no fabric wasted.^[11]

Gradable zero-waste apparel design

The Carrico Zero-waste Banded Grading technique is one proposed solution that utilizes bands to cut patterns without wasting textiles. In this technique, carefully planned seam placements grow or shrink, allowing sizing of the clothing item up or down to create three different sizes of a garment. After conducting the study, they found that the technique was successful at creating one-piece or two-piece items. Some issues with this practice include the proportion of the differently sized garments and inconsistencies in seam allowances.^[12]

Differences from standard fashion production

A standard garment production process may begin with a drawing of the desired garment. A pattern is then generated to achieve this design, a marker is made to most efficiently use the fabric, and the pattern pieces are then cut from the cloth, sewn, packed, and distributed to retailers. Standard garment production generates an average of 15% textile waste.^[13]^[14]

Slow Fashion

Fast fashion is a system of seasons and microseasons created by at the retail stage, where certain clothes, designs and materials are advertised as being desirable for a short amount of time, at the end of which consumers are encouraged to abandon these and move on to buy other, more suitable clothes.^[15]^[16]

Slow fashion is seen as an antidote to this, and part of the larger slow movement culture, advocating for thoughtful manufacturing which is respectful of people, animals and the environment.^[17] Slow fashion encourages consumers to look at purchasing timeless garments and styles, believing that such items can last for years, rather than weeks, as well as only buying items which are needed.^[18] This reduction in demand can also lead to a reduction in transport costs, both financial and environmental.

Post-consumer zero-waste fashion

Post-consumer zero-waste fashion can also include used and discarded garments. Unwanted clothing can be sold on through donations to charity shops^[19]^[20] or through online sales.^[21]^[22]

However, less than one third of discarded garments are resold as post-consumer recycled (PCR) clothing. In 2018 1.5 million tons of discarded clothing was sold by the EU to Asian and African countries,^[23] competing with local garment producers in those countries.^[24] Over two-thirds of discarded garments that are not incinerated, are either torn and used as wiping rags, or stripped down to extract yarn or fibres^[25] The fibres, post-consumer recycled (PCR) textiles,^[26] remain in a closed loop where the recycling results in the manufacture of the same type of product: garments.^[27]

In an open loop, other types of discarded consumer goods are recycled to create zero-waste fashion. One example is rPET bottles, which are processed to extract polyester fibre used in the production of garments.^[28]^[27] Other examples of recycled consumer products not related to fashion that are used to create zero-waste fashion are old books, newspapers, plastics, and shopping bags.

Waste elimination hierarchy

The waste hierarchy consists of the three 'R's' - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - in order of impact. Zero-waste fashion design reduces or even eliminates pre-consumer textile waste. However, it does not necessarily address waste created during the use life and disposal phase of the garment's life cycle.

During textile production, many pollutants are emitted into the environment. The textile and apparel industry are some of the most polluting, and both have a low recycling rate of about 15%. Zero-waste fashion design could significantly reduce gaseous emissions during the production process and help to reuse material waste.^[29]

Limitations

While zero-waste fashion design methods offer sustainability benefits, they also face limitations. Variations in aesthetic appearances between sizes, increased production time, and challenges in documentation are some of the notable concerns. Informing customers about size variations, exploring ways to lower costs, and improving documentation practices can address these limitations. Continued research and innovation are important to overcome these limitations and advance sustainability practices in the fashion industry.^[30]

Notable contributions

Dorothy K. Burnham: Cut My Cote, (1973)^[31] was a seminal text that summarized decades of Burnham's research into cuts of traditional dress, and the influence of weave on costume cut.
Madeleine Vionnet's design approach aligns well with zero-waste fashion design; many of her garments had minimal waste.

References

^ Rosenbloom, Stephanie (13 August 2010). "The New York Times". Retrieved 2014-04-26.
^ ^a ^b Gwilt, Alison, and Timo Rissanen. Shaping Sustainable Fashion: Changing the Way We Make and Use Clothes. Earthscan Publications Ltd., 2011.
^ Hethorn, Janet, and Connie Ulasewicz. 2008. Sustainable Fashion: Why Now?: A Conversation Exploring Issues, Practices, and Possibilities. 1st ed. Fairchild Publications
^ "Using design practice to negotiate the awkward space between sustainability and fashion consumption". mro.massey.ac.nz. Retrieved 2014-04-26.
^ The Conversation website, For a true war on waste, the fashion industry must spend more on research, article by Mark Liu dated August 15, 2017
^ Zero Waste Scotland website, Is it time to break up with fast fashion to help save the planet?, article dated March 13, 2023
^ Zero Waste Week website, Let’s Talk about Fast Fashion
^ Wang, Youjiang (2006). Recycling in textiles. Woodhead publishing.
^ Rissanen, Timo. "From 15% to 0: Investigating the creation of fashion without the creation of fabric waste" (PDF). BUGIstudio. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 21, 2006.
^ Eppinger, Elisabeth (2022-12-09). "Recycling technologies for enabling sustainability transitions of the fashion industry: status quo and avenues for increasing post-consumer waste recycling". Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy. 18 (1): 114–128. Bibcode:2022SSPP...18..114E. doi:10.1080/15487733.2022.2027122. ISSN 1548-7733.
^ Gupta, Lotika; Kaur Saini, Harminder (2020-06-22). "Achieving Sustainability through Zero Waste Fashion-A Review". Current World Environment. 15 (2): 154–162. doi:10.12944/CWE.15.2.02.
^ Carrico, Melanie; Dragoo, Sheri L.; McKinney, Ellen; Stannard, Casey; Moretz, Colleen; Rougeaux-Burnes, Ashley (1 January 2022). "An inquiry into Gradable Zero-Waste Apparel Design". Sustainability. 14 (1): 452. doi:10.3390/su14010452. hdl:2346/92575.
^ Circular Economy Europe website, Waste isn’t waste until we waste it, article by Ramesh De Silva (2022)
^ ABERNATHY, F. H., DUNLOP, J. T., HAMMOND, J. H. & WEIL, D. (1999) A stitch in time. Lean retailing and the transformation of manufacturing - Lessons from the apparel and textile industries, New York & Oxford, Oxford University Press.
^ Sustainable Jungle website, Zero Waste Fashion Brands, article by Jenny Bell, October 13, 2023
^ Good On You website, What is Slow Fashion?, article by Madeleine Hill dated July 3, 2023
^ Sustainable Jungle website, What is Slow Fashion?
^ Oxfam website, What is Slow Fashion?
^ Zero Waste Week website, How a charity shop can save more waste from landfill than you might imagine
^ Brighton and Hove City Council website, Discover how you can reduce textile waste for Second Hand September, article dated September 8, 2023
^ BBC website, Vinted makes first profit on used fashion, article by Lucy Hooker dated April 29, 2024
^ Business Reporter website, Depop Sale: fashion retailers must move faster on sustainability or they will be replaced by Gen Z apps, article by Elaine L. Ritch
^ Coscieme, Luca; Manshoven, Saskia; Gillabel, Jeroen; Grossi, Francesca; Mortensen, Lars F. (2022-06-15). "A framework of circular business models for fashion and textiles: the role of business-model, technical, and social innovation". Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy. 18 (1): 451–462. Bibcode:2022SSPP...18..451C. doi:10.1080/15487733.2022.2083792. ISSN 1548-7733.
^ Brooks, Andrew; Simon, David (2012-09-17). "Unravelling the Relationships between Used-Clothing Imports and the Decline of African Clothing Industries". Development and Change. 43 (6): 1265–1290. doi:10.1111/j.1467-7660.2012.01797.x. ISSN 0012-155X.
^ Shirvanimoghaddam, Kamyar; Motamed, Bahareh; Ramakrishna, Seeram; Naebe, Minoo (2020-05-20). "Death by waste: Fashion and textile circular economy case". Science of the Total Environment. 718: 137317. Bibcode:2020ScTEn.71837317S. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137317. ISSN 0048-9697. PMID 32088483.
^ Young, Carol; Jirousek, Charlotte; Ashdown, Susan (January 2004). "Undesigned: A Study in Sustainable Design of Apparel Using Post-Consumer Recycled Clothing". Clothing and Textiles Research Journal. 22 (1–2): 61–68. doi:10.1177/0887302x0402200108. ISSN 0887-302X.
^ ^a ^b Palme, Anna (2016). Recycling of cotton textiles: Characterization, pretreatment, and purification. Sweden: Chalmers Tekniska Hogskola.
^ Park, Sang Ho; Kim, Seong Hun (2014-07-01). "Poly (ethylene terephthalate) recycling for high value added textiles". Fashion and Textiles. 1 (1): 1. doi:10.1186/s40691-014-0001-x. ISSN 2198-0802.
^ Stanescu, Michaela (2021). "State of the art of post-consumer textile waste upcycling to reach the zero waste milestone". Environmental Science and Pollution Research International. 28 (12): 14253–14270. Bibcode:2021ESPR...2814253S. doi:10.1007/s11356-021-12416-9. PMID 33515405. S2CID 231746977.
^ Carrico, Melanie; Dragoo, Sheri L.; McKinney, Ellen; Stannard, Casey; Moretz, Colleen; Rougeaux-Burnes, Ashley (2022-01-01). "An Inquiry into Gradable Zero-Waste Apparel Design". Sustainability. 14 (1): 452. doi:10.3390/su14010452. hdl:2346/92575. ISSN 2071-1050.
^ Burnham, Dorothy K. (1973). Cut my Cote. Ontario: Royal Ontario Museum.

[nytimes-1] Rosenbloom, Stephanie (13 August 2010). "The New York Times". Retrieved 2014-04-26.

[Gwilt,_Alison_2011-2] Gwilt, Alison, and Timo Rissanen. Shaping Sustainable Fashion: Changing the Way We Make and Use Clothes. Earthscan Publications Ltd., 2011.

[3] Hethorn, Janet, and Connie Ulasewicz. 2008. Sustainable Fashion: Why Now?: A Conversation Exploring Issues, Practices, and Possibilities. 1st ed. Fairchild Publications

[massey-4] "Using design practice to negotiate the awkward space between sustainability and fashion consumption". mro.massey.ac.nz. Retrieved 2014-04-26.

[5] The Conversation website, For a true war on waste, the fashion industry must spend more on research, article by Mark Liu dated August 15, 2017

[6] Zero Waste Scotland website, Is it time to break up with fast fashion to help save the planet?, article dated March 13, 2023

[7] Zero Waste Week website, Let’s Talk about Fast Fashion

[8] Wang, Youjiang (2006). Recycling in textiles. Woodhead publishing.

[9] Rissanen, Timo. "From 15% to 0: Investigating the creation of fashion without the creation of fabric waste" (PDF). BUGIstudio. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 21, 2006.

[10] Eppinger, Elisabeth (2022-12-09). "Recycling technologies for enabling sustainability transitions of the fashion industry: status quo and avenues for increasing post-consumer waste recycling". Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy. 18 (1): 114–128. Bibcode:2022SSPP...18..114E. doi:10.1080/15487733.2022.2027122. ISSN 1548-7733.

[11] Gupta, Lotika; Kaur Saini, Harminder (2020-06-22). "Achieving Sustainability through Zero Waste Fashion-A Review". Current World Environment. 15 (2): 154–162. doi:10.12944/CWE.15.2.02.

[12] Carrico, Melanie; Dragoo, Sheri L.; McKinney, Ellen; Stannard, Casey; Moretz, Colleen; Rougeaux-Burnes, Ashley (1 January 2022). "An inquiry into Gradable Zero-Waste Apparel Design". Sustainability. 14 (1): 452. doi:10.3390/su14010452. hdl:2346/92575.

[13] Circular Economy Europe website, Waste isn’t waste until we waste it, article by Ramesh De Silva (2022)

[14] ABERNATHY, F. H., DUNLOP, J. T., HAMMOND, J. H. & WEIL, D. (1999) A stitch in time. Lean retailing and the transformation of manufacturing - Lessons from the apparel and textile industries, New York & Oxford, Oxford University Press.

[SJ-15] Sustainable Jungle website, Zero Waste Fashion Brands, article by Jenny Bell, October 13, 2023

[16] Good On You website, What is Slow Fashion?, article by Madeleine Hill dated July 3, 2023

[17] Sustainable Jungle website, What is Slow Fashion?

[O-18] Oxfam website, What is Slow Fashion?

[19] Zero Waste Week website, How a charity shop can save more waste from landfill than you might imagine

[20] Brighton and Hove City Council website, Discover how you can reduce textile waste for Second Hand September, article dated September 8, 2023

[21] BBC website, Vinted makes first profit on used fashion, article by Lucy Hooker dated April 29, 2024

[22] Business Reporter website, Depop Sale: fashion retailers must move faster on sustainability or they will be replaced by Gen Z apps, article by Elaine L. Ritch

[23] Coscieme, Luca; Manshoven, Saskia; Gillabel, Jeroen; Grossi, Francesca; Mortensen, Lars F. (2022-06-15). "A framework of circular business models for fashion and textiles: the role of business-model, technical, and social innovation". Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy. 18 (1): 451–462. Bibcode:2022SSPP...18..451C. doi:10.1080/15487733.2022.2083792. ISSN 1548-7733.

[24] Brooks, Andrew; Simon, David (2012-09-17). "Unravelling the Relationships between Used-Clothing Imports and the Decline of African Clothing Industries". Development and Change. 43 (6): 1265–1290. doi:10.1111/j.1467-7660.2012.01797.x. ISSN 0012-155X.

[25] Shirvanimoghaddam, Kamyar; Motamed, Bahareh; Ramakrishna, Seeram; Naebe, Minoo (2020-05-20). "Death by waste: Fashion and textile circular economy case". Science of the Total Environment. 718: 137317. Bibcode:2020ScTEn.71837317S. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137317. ISSN 0048-9697. PMID 32088483.

[26] Young, Carol; Jirousek, Charlotte; Ashdown, Susan (January 2004). "Undesigned: A Study in Sustainable Design of Apparel Using Post-Consumer Recycled Clothing". Clothing and Textiles Research Journal. 22 (1–2): 61–68. doi:10.1177/0887302x0402200108. ISSN 0887-302X.

[:0-27] Palme, Anna (2016). Recycling of cotton textiles: Characterization, pretreatment, and purification. Sweden: Chalmers Tekniska Hogskola.

[28] Park, Sang Ho; Kim, Seong Hun (2014-07-01). "Poly (ethylene terephthalate) recycling for high value added textiles". Fashion and Textiles. 1 (1): 1. doi:10.1186/s40691-014-0001-x. ISSN 2198-0802.

[29] Stanescu, Michaela (2021). "State of the art of post-consumer textile waste upcycling to reach the zero waste milestone". Environmental Science and Pollution Research International. 28 (12): 14253–14270. Bibcode:2021ESPR...2814253S. doi:10.1007/s11356-021-12416-9. PMID 33515405. S2CID 231746977.

[30] Carrico, Melanie; Dragoo, Sheri L.; McKinney, Ellen; Stannard, Casey; Moretz, Colleen; Rougeaux-Burnes, Ashley (2022-01-01). "An Inquiry into Gradable Zero-Waste Apparel Design". Sustainability. 14 (1): 452. doi:10.3390/su14010452. hdl:2346/92575. ISSN 2071-1050.

[31] Burnham, Dorothy K. (1973). Cut my Cote. Ontario: Royal Ontario Museum.

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Zero-waste fashion

Pre-consumer zero-waste fashion

Zero-waste pattern design

Gradable zero-waste apparel design

Differences from standard fashion production

Slow Fashion

Post-consumer zero-waste fashion

Waste elimination hierarchy

Limitations

Notable contributions

References

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