With colorful patchwork sweatshirts like the mixed print ‘all-over reroll’ sweatshirt and bottoms to match, you’ll find plenty of fun pieces to freshen up your zero waste wardrobe. Helen : Yeah, I do love scrap busting. I mean, it can get a little overwhelming when you keep every little piece of fabric. So you do have to be a little bit careful about getting too many scraps built up in your stash, but that’s why working in some scrap busting projects as a regular part of your sewing practice is so great because it helps to clear out those scraps. And also, just use what you have which is the baseline for more sustainable sewing. Helen : Yeah, I think this is super important to note. I mean, it reminds me of, like, when you shop for ready to wear, and sometimes things are “one size fits all.” And I just always laugh when I see that tag. I mean, even on things, like, as simple as a hat, “one size fits all” is certainly not gonna fit everybody, right? But I do think that there are ways to get around this, especially if you’re interested in designing your own zero waste patterns because the principles are the same. You just need to apply them to make sure that the garment is fitting your specific body. Or maybe you can tweak a zero waste pattern that’s out there already and piece things together to make some adjustments to make it work for you. Obviously, it’s not ideal, and hopefully, we’ll see more zero waste sewing pattern designers coming out with patterns with more groups of sizing so that more people can be included. Helen : Yeah, totally. I do this all the time, especially cause I hate when, like, a piece is just sitting off in the middle of, like, a big open area of fabric. I’m like, oh, but I could just cut this facing on the fold and, like, have half of it hanging off. And then I’ll, like, squeeze the other half in over here, maybe cut it on the cross grain. Definitely getting creative is a big part of zero waste sewing.

If you are wanting to try zero waste without outlaying any money for patterns, here is a list of free zero waste patterns: Caroline : Yeah, and designer Julian Roberts has a free PDF ebook called Free Cutting which teaches this method of “subtraction cutting,” making a garment by cutting, or “subtracting,” small pieces from the main piece of fabric rather than “adding” the large pieces.Helen : Yes, and designers and sewists may want to contribute to a body of knowledge that is definitely growing. It’s really exciting to see new innovations as well as the revival of time-tested techniques. So everyone who sews with zero waste methods and principles is contributing to the growth and refinement of this movement that may completely change the industry. These projects are just a few of the fun and fashionable ways to embrace sustainability. Making use of your extra fabric, or creating items from other misfit materials, are some of the ways you can practice zero-waste sewing. Plus, these patterns are a great way to improve your sewing skills with items you already have at home. Caroline : So zero waste sewing is the process of creating a garment or garments without any or with very little waste. So for those working in the fashion industry, it could be designing a sewing pattern or changing a wasteful garment production process at the factory level. For a home sewist, it could be about creating habits that reduce or eliminate waste, sewing from zero waste patterns, or designing your own zero waste garments.

Malaika works with Kopenhag Studio in Izmir, Turkey, where a sustainable production process and a safe and healthy work environment are top priorities. 100% of textile waste is reused or recycled.Rissanen first became interested in the idea in 1999, when he wrote an undergraduate thesis that focused on the French designer Madeleine Vionnet, who later influenced Issey Miyake, John Galliano, and Claire McCardell. Vionnet’s innovative use of the bias properties of fabric, in which she considered both the width of the fabric and the grain, and her use of geometric shapes such as rectangles and quarter circles, led Rissanen to believe that it might be possible to design garments without wasting any fabric. “I think she ‘listened’ to the grain of the fabric more deeply than most designers, and that is what inspired me about her work,” says Rissanen. Caroline : Yeah, I think the zero waste sewing pattern world is fairly new. And I think it’s really important that we use our voice. I know that’s one thing that I ran into when I was looking at zero waste patterns is that there weren’t many that I felt comfortable making cause I felt like, oh, I’m kind of either at the top or beyond the size range and maybe it would fit me, but they’re not really catering to me, you know? So reaching out to these designers and letting them know, hey, I’m here, and I’m outside of your size range, or I don’t fit in with this kind of, you know, diagram that you’ve put together for your zero waste pattern. Can you make another one for a larger size range? And just using your voice to make sure that they know that you are wanting to support them, but only if they’re really paying attention to you and catering to you. Finally, if you’re wondering “how do you dispose of sustainable clothes?”, think about how you can prolong their use for as long as possible.