Sustainable Wardrobe Practical advice and projects for eco-friendly fashion

by Benson, Sophie

• ISBN13: 9780711262379
• ISBN10: 0711262373
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2023-09-12
• Publisher: White Lion Publishing

Summary

Sustainable Wardrobe gives you everything you need to cultivate a more sustainable, ethical and planet-friendly wardrobe that is still easy, accessible and affordable!

Statistics show that how we are consuming, maintaining and discarding our clothing is having a devastating effect on the planet. There are problems with every part of the cycle and they won't be fixed overnight. So what can we actually do to make a difference?

The answer is that if we all take small steps to improve our habits, it would collectively result in a big change, and this book teaches us exactly how to do this!

Sophie Benson, a journalist specialising in sustainable fashion, will guide you through – breaking down the issues and explaining how we can mitigate them at home: from the clothes we purchase, to the way we care for them, to how we dispose of them.

With easy tutorials to follow (how to read a label and have a conscious closet clear out, upcycling hacks, how to darn socks and how to care for your jeans), Sophie will show you that small changes in habit can result in a more sustainable, eco-friendly wardrobe without breaking the bank. 

Author Biography

Sophie Benson is a freelance journalist working with a focus on sustainable fashion, the environment and workers’ rights. She covers topics including climate, greenwashing, upcycling, materials innovation, consumerism, resale and fashion legislation for publications including Dazed, AnOther, i-D, The Guardian, The Independent, Raconteur and Vogue.

Having started her career as a stylist, Sophie saw first-hand how wasteful and careless the world of fast fashion can be. Unhappy with being part of an industry she didn’t believe in, she quit her job – and shopping – and began to write about the lesser seen side of the industry. Alongside working as a journalist, Sophie has taught at a number of UK universities, specialising in sustainability. She never went back to buying fast fashion, choosing second hand instead. In 2022 she has decided to make all her clothes from scratch. 

Table of Contents

Introduction
The Knowledge
The typical lifecycle of a T-shirt
The facts (and the fiction)
Who makes your clothes?
Focus on fabrics
Diving into dyes
Interview: Paola Vega, a garment worker
Reassess Your Wardrobe
Taking stock of what you have
The capsule wardrobe: reimagined
Shop your closet
Repurposing
Clearing out
What happens to your cast-offs?
Interview: Liz Ricketts from The Or Foundation
Shopping Habits
Consumerism reality check
What is slow fashion?
How to know what to buy
How to read the label
Your guide to greenwashing
Secondhand first
The sharing economy
Shopping and selling online
Interview: Fashion psychologist Dr Dion Terrelonge
Maintenance
To wash or not to wash?
What comes out in the wash
Alterations
How to store your clothes
Interview: Alexander Nolte, co-founder of Guppyfriend
Repair
The repair revolution
A quick guide to basic mending skills
What to have in your sewing basket
Is anything beyond repair?
Interview: Layla Sargent, founder of The Seam
What’s next?
Index