There is no such thing as fashion waste

Be it tones of textile scrap dumped in landfills or the waste generated due to fast changing trends, fashion’s ways have always been criticized for polluting the environment. But Covid 19 made people sit up and realise that this had to change. The sustainable fashion movement grew across the world. Fashion aspired to become responsible, transparent and compassionate.

From upcycling, recycling and reusing, fabric waste has become the new gold. Designers are using it in myriad interesting ways to launch fresh collections that include accessories, masks and much more. “2020 was a year which changed a lot of things. We were left with surplus fabric from both the brands and many detailing. Our focus became timelessness and season fluid fashion. We used leftovers to create reversible, versatile pieces which could be styled in multiple ways. We also created a lot of accessories such as bags, neckpieces, masks etc for our stores. We are also being judicious with ordering new fabric,” says designer Shruti Sancheti.

Many designers are putting leftovers to good use by working on artistic patchwork. “Our textiles are handcrafted and hence too precious for us to discard. We don’t consider any of our fabrics to be waste. Any scraps left from garment production cycles are always stored for use in a multitude of ways. We patch them into quilted textiles that are used for creating unique garments. We also use the smaller scraps, even those that are an inch across to either patch as is, or do tiny shibori swatches to repurpose as art pieces or accents in quilted textiles,” says designer Amit Vijaya of Amrich.

Designer Vaishali S also believes in utilizing waste in the most creative ways. “My focus is to not have waste at all. You will not see a single thread being wasted in my atelier. And the reason for me is not only ecological, but also out of the utmost respect for the work of my weavers. Crafts take very skilled long hours and days to produce. The cutting itself is made in a way to minimize wastage, following lines of draping rather than typical cutting patterns. What is left over from this is used for making accessories and for home interiors details,” says Vaishali S.