With fashion known as one of the main triggers when it comes to global warming, there comes a time were fashion has stepped up in a time of need to help combat the negativity of unsustainably in the fashion industry. In today’s society, technology and social media are widely used in many industry’s around the world however, it is no surprise that technology has always been embedded in the fabric of fashion.  Fast forward to today, with many technologies upgraded to be incorporated into fashion you see on the runway or the clothes you buy, the fashion industry are now trying innovated ways to appeal to eco conscious consumers who are passionate for suitability in the industry, and to decrease the effects of global warming.

  1. 3D Print Fashion

With designers such as Catherine Wales, Victoria Secrets, Iris Van Herpen and many more designers have embraced 3D print creations on runways all over fashion capitals of the world.

This 3D print technique has an effective way to produce 3D printing designs quickly and efficiently. This method is done by using a polymers material, which have both natural and synthetic properties depending on how it is used. Yet, the benefits of 3D printing are crucial when avoiding fabric waste, as when it comes to unused fabric when creating a garment it is thrown straight into a landfill.

Also, 3D printing has the ability to lessen stock with outfits produced on a when – needed basis as it does not take long to make them. Therefore, when designers take orders from buyers who then estimate the stock of the garments, it means then the designer may end up with a lot more stock which may or may not sell. But if clothing was printed whenever a customer orders a garment, it can cut down the level of fashion waste thrown in the landfills each year.

2.High tech vegan leather

A demanding and popular market for vegan leather is thriving today with the rise of veganism and conscious consumers, to save lives of animals with technology. Today, many brands are now adapting to vegan leather and are creating ways to make vegan leather from 100% natural materials with technology.

A company called Modern Meadow, has a way of manufacturing vegan leather from yeast cells at a DNA level which are fermented similar to the brewery making process. The cells are multiplied into billions of collagen producing cell factories, which are then become a foundation for the materials. The protein called collagen which gives skin elasticity, can be used to imitate leather, which is then combined with other animal – free, natural or man-made materials to tailor a variety of clothing, shoes, handbags and even furniture.

On the other hand, the dangers of raising cattle is environmentally challenging, yet the production of leather is worse as it uses highly toxic dyeing and tanning processes. There is also a high risk of textile waste due to throwing out the imperfected patterns to achieve the perfect pattern when creating a garment.

  

  1. Bacteria to dye for

We all know that dyes have a negative impact on the environment, it is said that you can determine the colour of next seasons clothing by looking at the rivers in China and Bangladesh. This dirty and improper way of dye disposal, along with the vast amount of water waste involved in the dyeing process has become a challenging and ongoing problem today.

A technology has surfaced to help reduce the current dyeing process by biodesigner Natsai Audrey Chieza, the founder of Faber Futures and a designer- in–residence at Ginkgo Bioworks. There, Chieza has worked out a method that uses bacteria to produce pigments which dyes fabric. This sustainable technique has the power to decrease water waste, with the requirement of less than seven ounces of water to dye a pound of fabric. The dye pigments itself is created naturally without toxins and purely created by bacteria. However, this technique is still in the works due to figuring out how to produce enough bacteria pigments on a wide scale, which will be a step up from the current dyeing process and a safer and sustainable option on the market soon.

 

Stella McCartney S/S19

  1. Bioengineered Materials

Fashion’s most used fabric, acrylic, polyester and nylon all have committed a crime in being the most environmentally damaging, if you think your natural materials such as silk and cotton a are innocent too, then what you don’t know is that they are also treated with nasty toxic chemicals before they are sold.

This is where bioengineered materials come in, such as kelp and bamboo, it is known that kelp grows faster than almost any organism on earth, which can be handy when used to create materials such as viscose and rayon. Most materials today are used by harder to replace resources such as trees, to be then cut down and used to make materials.

However, a biomaterials research group of students from NYC came together to compete and win the first BioDesgin Challenge award in 2016. The winning technique was created by a yarn made from biopolymers extracted from the kelp, which is then used to produce durable materials for long term wear yet still biodegradable. A company called Algiknit has figured out with cutting edge chemistry and technology,  that it is possible for kelp based materials to be woven with a yarn of sturdy bioyarn which has the potential to replace today’s most common synthetics used in the industry.

In the long run this will help reduce textile and water waste to be more conscious about our carbon footprint, while still having an open mind on ways to design and make clothing with natural resources and advanced technology and science.

 

BY: MARYAM TARIQ