GREEN FASHION OR CARBON FOOTPRINTS

Presented by-Shipra kumariKD-IIIRoll no.-262011-15NIFT Kolkata

With R4

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT-I, shipra kumari, would like to take an opportunity to thanks those who has helped me in collecting the information and making of the document. First of all I would like to thanks my course coordinator, Ms Jayati mukherjee for assigning this project to us. I would also like to thanks my mentor Partha seal for his helpful hand and guidance for the progress and completion of this project. I would also like to thanks all my friends and family who have helped and encouraged me to complete my summer project. And last but not the least I would like thanks I.T lab members and librarian who played most important role in collecting my data. 

INTRODUCTIONFashion is an external expression of everything we love, appreciate and wish to emanate, an extension of our physical self, in short a piece of our identity.Thus, being an eco positive citizen our outfits should express the same. Many of the designers and brands have started designing eco-friendly fashion by not only using nature friendly yarns but also nature friendly process of manufacturing garments. Getting green in fashion is becoming a trend by upper class people and famous brands.

” According to the Organic Clothing blog, the textile and garment industries overlap with global warming in many ways- from growing fibres to manufacturing, distributing and transporting the clothes, to the way we wash, clean and discard them.”

At least 25% pesticides in the world are used to grow non organic cotton and 8000 chemicals used to turn raw materials into textiles causing an irreversible damage to people and Earth.

Many fashion designers are designing beautiful eco-friendly products by using environment friendly materials and socially responsible methods of production.

Organisations like The National Association of Sustainable Fashion Designers works to increase opportunities for sustainable designers, assisting entrepreneurs with growing fashion related businesses that result in social change and respect the environment.

New York fashion week Green show collection

What is Green fashion all about ?

“Green fashion also known as eco fashion, is a part of the growing design philosophy and trend of sustainability, the goal of which is to create a system which can be supported indefinitely in terms of environmentalism and social responsibility. It is part of the large trend of sustainable design where a product is created and produced with consideration to the environmental and social impact it may have throughout its total life span, including its carbon footprints”-(Wikipedia). In short, Green fashion includes all the designs and techniques that can be used by people as a trendwithout effecting mother earth greenery moreover protecting her.

Many people around the world has different views regarding Green fashion, for many wearing organic fibre garments comes under green fashion, for some reusing or wear recycled clothes are green fashion. They are of course right, but its only a part of it.

OBJECTIVE

Using technique

known as R4

The green movement has turned out to be the most critical movement in the history of mankind whose dream is a bright green future. The fashion world which has been the dynamic adherent of the nature is showing an enormous growth in the field of eco-friendly clothing and fashion accessories. But not only the fashion world and designers, it’s also us or the companies we prefer, who have to take the initiatives, by adopting some generous way in this context. Some of the brands like Victoria Secret has introduced beauty products made with organic ingredients from mint to coffee beans.

Banana republic most luxurious brand uses 50% recycled materials in their boxes and bags, 100% organic denim pants and cotton hoodies.

There exist few brands built on the concept of sustainable fashion by using natural, sustainable materials to make their clothing and renewable forms of energy to power their factories. Rapanui is one of them, UK based green fashion brand use Vestas Wind Turbines to power their textile mill in India, and organic cotton is turned into products.

There are some controversies regarding bamboo fibers and cotton fibers, although being organic it still effects environment during its productions. To overcome these controversies there are techniques already discovered but observed or known by few of us. R4 is an extension of R3 which comprises- Recycle, Reduce, Reuse/ Reengineering and rewind.

RECYCLE- Processing of used materials that are now a waste, into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, energy and pollution.CONTROVERSY

Bamboo use green house gases for their growth, without the use of pesticides they grow in huge amount, still chemicals used to create soft viscose from hard bamboo to make bamboo fibers is very harmful for the environment.

SOLUTION

label I AM NOT A VIRGIN, created a limited run of 400 beer-bottle jeans. In the way bamboos were transformed into threads, same way bottles are broken down into a fine particulate, melted and extruded into fibres. Using a mix of 25% bottle fiber and 75% cotton, the resulting material is soft to hand, durable and performs as denim should.

It takes one million years for a single bottle to break down in the environment, and according to the company's literature, if all jeans sold in the United States alone were manufactured by using the same green technology, approximately 1,200,000 barrels of oil could be saved yearly without the use of any harmful chemicals during the process.

REDUCE- Reducing the use of water, emission of carbon and reduction of energy is very important for sustaining earth.

CONTROVERSY

Organic cotton is considered to be more sustainable choice for fabric, as it is completely free of destructive toxic pesticides and chemical fertilizers, still cotton (organic or not) uses a tremendous amount of water during the growth and dyeing phases.

SOLUTION

A very new method of dyeing textiles using 90% less water and 85% less energy is invented by colorep, name as AIRDYE method.synthetic fibres made from recycled PET bottles and dispersed dyes applied to a paper carrier, paper used can be recycled and dyes are inert thus can be reused.

Dyeing is a potentially devastating industry regarding wastage of water and use of chemicals. 71 kinds of chemicals are thrown out after dyeing process among which 30 of them cannot be treated.Colorep created a wonderful way to short out the problem, known as Airdye method. In this 90% less water and 85% less energy is used. Synthetic fibers made from recycled PET bottles is used. Dispersed dyes are applied to a paper carrier, extreme heat is used to transfer the dyes from the paper to the surface of textiles, coloring it at the molecular level. All papers are recycled and dyes can go back to their original state and be reused.

The biggest score for AirDye came last week at New York's Fashion Week, where designer Costello Tagliapietra debuted an entire line made with their methods

REUSE / Reengineering--Last of the 3 R. The best technique that people can practise easily.REENGINEERING- 10,000 Old T-Shirts, Transformed to T-Skirts – Stained and moth eaten t-shirts in America are raw material for Jenny Jo Allen, they produce mass no. of t-shirt skirts, which she calls t-skirts . She also has a line of monster baby caps.'Found' fashion is Allen's passion.

REUSE-ThredUp's is taking their popular second hand marketplace platform where you can buy and sell children's clothes and toys .

Great looking handbags and wallets are made out of recycled or factory-second potato chip bags. They are made by hand by women’s groups and prisoner support groups also known as Prisoner couture in Estonia.

REWIND-Our history carries some antique techniques that are helpful in green fashion.Synthetic dyes are harmful for the environment. Dyeing fabrics or garments made up of natural materials (silk or cotton). Natural dyes made up from flowers, trees, fruits, vegetables, spices and teas can give a wide range of colours, earth friendly and are beautiful alternative. Examples- Turmeric spice - yellow colour, Smoked tea - grey, Madder root- red.

Atlanta based artists gave a beautiful idea of wearable planters which was later made by colleen jorda. Just like living talisman strung around the neck or pinned to the lapel having a sprouting sprig, air plant or plucked posy, undeniably magical experience wearing it so close to heart. Scientifically it keeps us fresh, clean our breath and our beautiful.

CONCLUSION-As the time passed answer of why we wear clothes changes. Earlier it was used to protect from environmental effects, then it became a status, century later clothes had both applications and now clothes are made in such a beautiful way that it protect us as well as or environment from getting harmed. . Designers as well as entire brand are practicing the concept of sustainable fashion. People too are incorporating green fashion in reusing things in many ways. Some of the observed examples of reengineering that are practised by normal people- Wools of sweaters are regained and reused by common people, old saris are converted into beautiful pillow covers. From above documents we finally conclude that there are people practising different techniques of reusing, reengineering, recycling and rewind techniques that if inculcated and explored as well as practised properly, sooner we will get a green and better earth tomorrow.

But first and foremost is awareness among people which is still lacking. Airdye method is one of the best methods that should be given popularity and should be practised by brands sooner.Different workshop should come forward with different ideas like which is mentioned above so that people as well as brands can be encouraged to come forward for better green future.

It's cool if you don't care about clothes, but its way cooler to think and act selflessly. So, Style in such a cool way that environment to become cool like you do.

 Thank you…

REFERENCES-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_fashion www.treehugger.comwww.imnotavirgin.comwww.jennyjoclothing.comwww.airdyes.com