Is It Healthy?

Is it healthy? The question to our relationship with fashion and garments. Sadly, we all know the answer.

Fast fashion has contributed to a climate emergency within the fashion industry, and being one of the most polluting industries we are now in an age where garments are disposable. Clothes are being produced at such high volumes, and with the advent of several notorious online companies they are so cheap that it is so difficult to believe that garments are even made by humans. The overflowing of low-priced, hastily made clothing floods the market, only for any unsold items to fill the ‘recycling’ bins. I say recycling loosely because we have all seen the images of rivers and beaches in third world countries overflowing with bundles of garments and textile waste. So do we blame our mindset, or do we blame companies that encouraged this? You can read this commentary written by the London School of Economics and Political Science (Read here) for more in-depth analysis.

I have always chosen to make my own garments using remnant fabrics, thinking that I was, at least, removing myself from this issue. But recently on a decluttering exercise, I ended up discarding a lot of discoloured garments (cheap fabrics) and donating the rest (the majority, clothes I had made in the past). They ranged from the same cut of trousers in all the colours of the rainbow, to ‘starter’ pieces from when I learnt how to sew. I felt so depressed and guilty that the charity shops had to deal with a problem that I had created. Most depressing of all, and purely because I could, I made and had become what I hated most. Fast Fashion.

I was already thinking very carefully about my environmental contribution to the Fashion Industry and had been reducing the amount of garments I made, to a point that I felt so disconnected with my creative side. That is when I had an epiphany.

Continue to make but concentrate on the complexities of pattern cutting, fashion through materiality and championing excellent craftsmanship. The items I make should be low in volume or one-offs and desirable. Harking back to haute couture, these garments become something that is of value, both intrinsic and emotional; creating something that is aspirational.

Although any two of the elements can create desirable garment, it is when all three collide that aspirational garments are created. This is one way to counter the uncontrollable consumerism we are exposed to, and to champion slow fashion. It is time to savour what we are wearing, while building a healthier relationship between the garment and the user.

I previously experimented with this by attempting to create a pair of trousers. Languishing in the storeroom was a grey superfine wool suiting fabric which was donated, as it was not being used anymore – i.e. deadstock. Not only was the colour neutral so it could be paired with anything, the weight contributed to an excellent drape, while the natural fibre fabric was luxurious to touch. From the side of materiality, I had ticked the box.

The next step was to focus on the pattern cutting to create something unique but wearable at the same time. I say wearable loosely because fashion is constantly pushing the boundary of wearability. Through the amalgamation of both front and back pieces of the trouser leg, I manipulated the patterns to take advantage of the width of fabric. Although I wanted to create as little waste as possible, I wanted to utilise as much fabric as possible in order to materialise this design. You may think this is counter productive, but with the ethos of slow fashion I am creating a one-off piece – so instead of using 5 meters of fabric to create 4 pairs (4 times waste) of the same trousers, I used 5 meters of fabric to create one unique pair of trousers (limited waste). This anti-copy feature also ensures the design will be too unprofitable to plagiarise and thus, will always be identifiable to the original designer.

With the patterns cut from the fabric, I spent a while analysing the best way to create a well made trousers. I made long straps from the offcuts for the gathering details and focused on tiny elements within the trousers. This took me a while, but the analysis of the possibilities of construction is something I enjoy and I savoured every minute of it. These trousers took me roughly 3 days to complete from the design, pattern and construction.

The straps in the channel allowed the gathers to be manipulated so they can be full or loose.

The trousers may look complicated but essentially, the pattern pieces comprises of the trouser legs, pocket bags, fly, waistband and nothing else.

Naturally, it will be an expensive piece to produce based on the time and effort put into creating it. However, we need to step away from the thought that fashion should be cheap, as this usually means that someone down the bottom of the chain is being exploited. Well made, considered, ethical and sustainable design should be charged accordingly.

I have worn these trousers to several events, and so many people have approached me to compliment on their uniqueness, but at the same time wondering how the pattern actually works. Personally, I feel great in them and they are something I always look forward to wearing again. This experimentation thoughtfully considers all the three aspects of aspirational design but also factors in sustainability, wearability and individuality. The dialogue emanating from this pair of trousers also enables me to spearhead discussions about fashion, both good and bad.

On a related note, a recent article (Read Here) by the Business of Fashion reports about the French National Assembly passing a bill that would impose steep penalties on the sale of fast fashion products based on their environmental impacts. I personally believe that it is a step forward in rebalancing our relationship with fashion. After all, the big companies which profit from fast fashion only answer to their shareholders, so it is about time legislation is put in place to counter that.