Making sustainability 'sexy'

As a fashion student, one of my major focuses is on sustainability. The fashion industry has become reliant on cheap production practices, but as new wave designers and industry workers, we are trying to flip the script. All of our fashion courses have strong roots in sustainable practices.

In my apparel construction and design class our final project was an upcycle project. We were to take either an old table cloth, curtains, or garment and give it a sick and fresh new life.

The challenge was to completely change the use of the garment (ex. turning a dress into pants).

Well you see I wanted a new cool and unique top, and I had some pants that had ripped seams just laying around, so… I did a little garment flip.

It was such a cool project so I’m going to walk you through my process.

Like I said, I started with a pair of black denim jeans and decided to turn it into a top. The first thing I did was draw up a sketch. Not anatomically correct, but a fun fashion illustration nonetheless.

My idea was to create almost a faux lapel/vest look. I wanted to use the zipper of the jeans as the closure in the back to get in and out of the top. I also like the look of the front pockets as detailed work on the back.

Another quality of the pants I liked was the belt loops and the V-shape of the waist area, so I wanted this in the front.

Lastly, I wanted gathers and folds on the chest pieces.

Now I had my pants, I had a sketch, so the fun part begins: deconstruction. Ripping seams is surprisingly satisfying.

I cut off most of the legs from the crotch down. Then I ripped the back pockets off and the seams down the legs.

Because the jeans already fit my waist, flipping them upside down on my top half was a perfect fit. I just took in the top half a bit and hemmed.

This is where it got difficult for me. I’m used to working with store-bought patterns, but I was flying blind and solo on this one. I used a mannequin to help me drape the remaining fabric for the bust.

I absolutely LOVED working with the mannequin. I had my tape measure around my neck, and my pin cushion on my wrist and I felt so legit.

Once I had half the bust set, I made an identical piece for the other side. I sewed in little folds to give that lapel-like look. Then I attached them to the bottom half.

We have a cute little dressing room in my classroom with a full tri fold mirror that really makes you feel like you’re getting a real fitting.

You want good news or bad news first?

Good news is that it fit perfectly. Bad news is that something was missing.

I talked with my professor (a total queen by the way) and we came up with the idea of reattaching the back pockets to hang off the front.

Spoiler alert: it was genius.

The entire thing was a success. We were in love with it.

Later in the year, I ended up getting to model this top in my fashion department’s annual spring fashion show: The Katwalk. I styled it with some flowy trousers and strappy block heels to give it a classy look. The experience of being in a real fashion show was incredible. Especially wearing something I made myself. I also modeled for a senior designer (and can talk about the experience of fittings and photo shoots in another post).

The project really taught me a lot about improvising designs and using basic sewing knowledge to give a garment a whole new life.

Creating a sustainable fashion industry is so important and needs to become a mainstream goal. Not only is it in the hands of designers and companies, but also everyone as a consumer. As consumers we need to make sustainability "sexy" and appealing and shop with that in mind. So here’s my little PSA on how fun it can actually be to give new life to fabrics and garments and create personalized unique pieces.