Environmental pollution does not occur for no reason. But who would have expected that clothing from the fast fashion industry would be one of the culprits of water, air and land pollution?
Upcycling clothing is the process of turning unwanted clothes or textiles into the clothing of higher value than its original value.
Yes, indeed. This is a cruel fact that we can’t deny or shrug off.
The fashion industry facilitates the production and distribution of crops, fibres and garments, and the making of clothing uses a large amount of water. These ongoing processes and increase in demand are major contributors to water, air and soil pollution, making the fashion industry one of the major polluting industries in the world. To be precise, the main factor that contributes to pollution is the vast overproduction of fashion items!
“The fast fashion industry has created a phenomenon of rapid consumption and discarding behaviour among consumers. With its constant production of new trends that come with cheap prices, it encourages consumers to keep on buying and replacing their old clothes. This will ultimately cause increased extraction of new resources and create more waste,” said Louise Yee, Head of Programme for the Diploma in Fashion Design programme, Centre of Art and Design (ICAD), INTI International College Subang.
“As the cost on the environment is not factored in for the cheap clothing that we pay for, we need to think about who will eventually pay the price once we have exhausted all non-renewable resources that the earth can provide,” she warned.
The INTI Centre of Art and Design displays a painting designed and created using fabric scraps and end of rolls at the Yayasan Sime Darby Art Festival.
As consumers become more aware of this, what are the options to minimise buying new clothes, and instead practice a more virtuous consumption model where we can consume less but better quality products?
Louise suggested, “Let’s go for upcycled clothing, which is part of the concept of sustainable fashion.”
Upcycling clothing refers to the process of turning unwanted clothes or textiles into clothing that is of a higher value than its original value. One may use old, discarded or vintage pieces of clothing and transform them into something better through design and value additions.
“For example, scraps of leftover fabric that are collected could then be used to construct a dress that is well thought and designed, or turned into an aesthetically pleasing dress which can be sold at a higher value,” added Louise.
She pointed out that many people often confuse upcycled clothes and recycled clothes, which are two different concepts.
“Upcycling clothing involves many stages that are required to ‘renew’ old resources – this may include washing, treatment, repair and reconstructing. On the contrary, recycling means recovering discarded garments to be made into a new product of similar value.”
Upcycled clothes are also different from the concept of preloved clothes – which is the process of passing down unwanted clothes to others, to delay them ending up in landfills, and to prolong their lifespan. Preloved clothes can be converted into new clothing by upcycling or down cycling these. However, it doesn’t mean that pre-loved clothes are equivalent to upcycled clothing.
According to Louise, upcycling old clothes is more challenging than designing a brand new one, as it could involve challenging processes, like sourcing, washing, designing and reconstructing.
“Furthermore, by supporting brands that are adopting a sustainable practice in the creation of products, we are doing a part to help reduce waste, delaying the usage of new resources like cotton and fibres in making new clothes.”
If upcycling is a concept of designing for good in the context of a fashion designer, what would it be when it comes to the consumer?
“I think we as consumers choose a better alternative that is more responsible and sustainable to the environment,” opined Louise.
“Yes, upcycled clothes are no doubt slightly more expensive, but as a consumer, we need to re-examine the products that we consume daily, and what is the true cost behind those cheap, designed for short-lifespan clothing that we are paying for?” she challenges.
Due to a lack of awareness and cost, upcycling clothing is not popular in Asia, including Malaysia, compared to the fast fashions that people usually opt for. Furthermore, the industry lacks a strong supply chain to support the efforts for upcycling garments – from material sourcing and production to a strategy of marketing and promoting it effectively.
“The idea of upcycled fashion does serve a niche market who truly appreciate and understand the value behind this effort, but a majority of consumers still value price and aesthetics over sustainability,” sighed Louise.
Louise Yee, Head of Programme for the Diploma in Fashion Design programme, Centre of Art and Design (ICAD), INTI International College Subang.
However, she shares that many big players in the fashion industry have started jumping on the bandwagon of upcycling fashion and brand themselves as sustainable. By doing so, they are raising awareness with regards to sustainability and providing eco-friendlier and cruelty-free alternative clothing to the market.
“As a regular consumer, we may not have many choices for affordable, sustainable clothing, but we can buy wisely by choosing better quality garments for a longer lifespan. We should also select ever-green and versatile designs so that it lasts longer and can be easily paired with other clothing to create fresh looks,” Louise suggested as some of the alternative tips to go green if consumers are unable to go for upcycled clothing fully.
“As designers, we need to put in sustainability as one of our design considerations. This starts from designing for aesthetic value to the garment construction method that reduces wastage, and of the use of more sustainable materials,” urged Louise, who has been lecturing at ICAD for eight years.
In contributing to the efforts to raise awareness, ICAD recently conducted a deconstruction workshop at the Yayasan Sime Darby Art Festival.
“During the workshop, the participants were tasked to turn unwanted socks into a sweater. This is a method created by Maison Martin Margiela, a Belgian fashion designer who is known for his skills in ‘deconstructing’ fashion. ICAD also displayed some of our students’ works that were made from reused materials. The works included paintings made out of fabric scraps, garments and gloves made from unwanted clothing and so on,” she said.
The main idea of “Deconstruction Fashion” is producing unfinished garments, or garments that are coming apart, upcycled, transparent and grunge. According to Louise, students studying the Diploma in Fashion Design programme at ICAD had the opportunity to learn the deconstruction method in their classes. This has helped them to expand their knowledge in this area of sustainable fashion and to keep pace with global trends in a green fashion.