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What's the problem with fast fashion?

The facts:

The fashion industry accounts for 10% of global carbon emissions

(aviation accounts

for 2%!).

[Source: The true cost of our clothes, Which Magazine, September 2021]

Globally, textiles are

responsible for 20% of

industrial water pollution

[Source:  www.europarl.europa.eu]

Recycling clothes is complex.

Textiles are usually ‘downcycled’ into lower value items such as industrial rags, because they are full of different fibres (e.g. lycra in jeans, or a wool jumper with a polyester thread) that cannot be separated back out.

[Source: The true cost of our clothes, Which Magazine, September 2021]

350,000 tonnes

(£140 million worth)

of used but wearable clothing goes to landfill in the UK every year.

That’s 1 in 3 of all items

of clothing in the UK

ending up in the bin!

Cotton farming

uses a vast amount

of water –

one pair of jeans needs upwards of

10,000 litres.

The number of times the average item of clothing is worn has decreased by 40% since 2000

(clothes are seen as a disposable commodity).

As much as 40% of manufactured clothing is never sold or worn.

[Source: Green Alliance, April 2024,

Changing Fashion –

What people want from a greener clothing industry]

It is estimated that more than half of fast fashion

produced is disposed of

in under a year.

Growing enough cotton

to produce a single T-shirt requires 2,700 litres of water (that’s enough for one

person to drink for 2.5 years!).

[Source: ecosmithrecyclers.com]

What can we do to make fashion more sustainable?

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  • Wear what you have.  Challenge yourself to buy nothing new for 30 days!

  • Buy second-hand.  Preloved items, not just clothes, often cost less.  So you can save money and help the environment.

  • Buy, sell and donate via online sites such as Vinted, Depop, eBay, Facebook marketplace or high-street charities.   Pass on unneeded clothes, particularly kids’ clothes, to friends.

  • Wash your clothes less!  This will save water, energy, and saves wash wear.  Underwear – one wear; Bra – two to three wears; Jeans – six to ten wears;  T-shirt – one to two wears; Skirt – five to seven.

  • Wash your clothes at lower temperatures and always with a full load.  A 30 degree wash uses 38% less energy than a 40 degree wash.

  • Dry your clothes outdoors whenever you can, reduce heating and energy costs, and minimising mechanical wear on your clothes.

  • Repair and reuse.  Simple repairs can prolong the life of clothes and avoid the need to buy new ones.   Check out a repair café!  Learn how to upcycle!

  • Never place shoes or textiles in the general waste.  Donate unwanted useable items to charity and recycle textiles in a textile recycling bank.

  • Need an outfit for a special occasion?  Hire instead of buy!

  • Create a local preloved clothes-swap Facebook group.  This works really well for school uniform!

  • Unsubscribe from all the tempting emails that land in your inbox encouraging you to buy new clothes from the latest range!

  • Buy fewer, higher quality clothes.  And keep them for longer!  This reduces their environmental impact.

  • Try and choose natural fibres when buying new clothes.  Buy organic cotton if you can.  Farming the same amount of organic cotton creates just over half of the carbon emissions of conventional cotton.  It is free of polluting chemicals and uses less water too.

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The Slow Fashion Show

A completely new event for this for Green Week this year was Overton’s very first slow fashion show, a show focused on extending the life of what we wear not only to protect the impact of discarded clothing on the environment but also save money.

From preloved treasures to upcycled finds celebrating creativity from our local designers, the show helped demonstrate how we can all rethink fashion and not necessarily loose our sense of style!.

The clothes were of course a key part of the show but the people who supplied the clothes are the real heroes!. What a talented bunch of people who worked tirelessly to showcase how we can rethink fashion.

Gracie, a year first fashion student at Farnborough College. For her course work Gracie created some amazing, very unique pieces that take upcycling to the next level in terms of use of materials, the ethos behind her design inspiration and the designs themselves of course. Truly individual and innovative clothing that kicked off the show in style. https://www.instagram.com/gracielomaxfashion/

Henry is 19 just finishing his gap year before going to study Physics with Spanish at Manchester. Henry has always had an interest in sustainability, and really believes that being more sustainable doesn’t have to come at a cost. His interest is in more unique items and styles and he can sew too enabling him not only to make individual pieces but also repair existing clothing. https://www.instagram.com/henry_28.24/

Gitte took up crochet again after a long break, and has almost entirely given up fast fashion and is now a preloved, upcycled and especially handmade clothes convert. For Gitte, it's not just about the clothes, it's the satisfaction of making the top or the skirt yourself and knowing that you are not contributing to the mountains of unwanted clothes thrown out every day.  https://www.instagram.com/yarn_garn_crochet/

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Claire (aka the garden editor) re-discovered sewing with the help of YouTube in her 30s. She runs The Garden Editor, a sustainable horticulture service and is passionate about living well, without costing the earth and without compromising on style. She makes her own clothes using deadstock which is left over fabric from factories, or second hand fabric which she sources from local shops and charities.  https://www.instagram.com/the_garden_editor/

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SJ demonstrates the amazing potential in upcycling, something very different but no less beautiful from "Made by SJP" in Stockbridge. During lockdown SJ made scrub bags out of donated duvet covers for the NHS. She had lots of beautiful fabric left over and this is where her inspiration for the business came from. SJ made a top and a dress from the left over fabric, her family and friends loved them and so with the help of Instagram she now runs a successful business making made to order garments from preloved fabrics.  https://www.instagram.com/madebysjp/

Kat manages St Michaels Hospice Shop in Overton  - a thriving business within the community. Kat and the team brought the pre-loved theme of the show to life and created a wide range of outfits to inspire the audience.  https://www.instagram.com/relovedsmh/

Danielle creates unique, bespoke pieces from items that are already in circulation and combines with a wonderfully colourful, selection of scrap fabrics and recycled saris that she has collected over the years to make the most amazing jackets. Each design is created and stitched with love and messages to always be kind to ourselves, each other and the natural world around us.  https://www.instagram.com/houseofra_sustainable/

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