Long live my clothes

There is a chapter on mending techniques of darning patching and embellishing in the recently published book Loved Clothes Last How the Joy of Rewearing and Repairing Your Clothes Can Be a Revolutionary Act where author Orsola de Castro talks about her favourite jumper of all time She inherited it from her maternal grandmother back from the 1940s The messy rips on the black cashmere cardigan have been repaired lovingly with jersey elbowpatches embellished with tiny black beads crocheting around moth holes little embroidery motifs to complement some older darning and a lace trim along the front to reinforce the hold of the buttons Itrsquos almost quixoticSimilar moments occur across the 10 chapters of the book with a title so plain that you must read it with care to understand its significanceDe Castro is an activist former designer and cofounder of Fashion Revolution a notforprofit movement that advocates industry reform What elevates her narratives is the solemnity of their staging She explores the fractured lines not just in worn garments but between fashion production and the environment too The reader is greeted with ldquoalmost grotesquerdquo statistics cited in the Introduction of the supposed 53 million tonnes of textiles produced globally every year over 75 per cent are discarded both in production phase and at postconsumer levelIndeed there are high stakes involved in timely and honest statistics except here they are not trapped in theory but in the intimacy of a wardrobe Much of this ultracomprehensive book of love for clothes is built on partnership between text and images that inspire responsible consumer behaviour ldquoOur readytowear has turned into readytowaste Karl Marx once said that religion is the opiate of the massesmdashto upgrade this concept todayrsquos consumerism is our crack cocainerdquo she writesItrsquos fashionable to put the ethical onus on manufacturers but we are letting ourselves the consumer off too easily if we expect producers to shoulder full responsibility of the environmental consequences of our consumption To be truly sustainable you have to adopt De Castrorsquos ldquobuy better and buy lessrdquo mantra and then extend it as far as we can bear toAnd mindfulness really starts at home Understanding Learning to Read Care Symbols while buying clothes for instance is the key to unlocking how we care for them and make them last as is knowing how to turn your old jeans into a skirt or understanding roughly how long do clothes take to biodegrade in a landfill To wit Lycra activewear takes 20200 years while a polyester dress 200 years minimum De Castro gathers the perspectives of designers activists and artists covering topics from Case for Upcycling Recyling Craftivism and WhatsinMyClothes to the rights of garment workers moral rewards of switching to organic cotton and impact of washing machines To those who are invested in sustainable fashion new to the scene or just a little curious the author writes ldquoThis is not a lsquohow torsquo book itrsquos more of a lsquowhy torsquomdasha book for making things and for making changesrdquoBadges of honourPicTamzin HaughtonDe Castro writes ldquoI collect vintage brooches badges and pins which I use to cover moth holes It all started when one of my favourite jacketrsquos lapels got attacked and I covered the holes with every pin I had at my disposal The final look was totally punk and the jacket is one of my most admired pieces in pic I have been photographed wearing it several times Everybody comments on the pins and brooches unaware of the secret they are there to hide Over the years I have extended this practice to knitwear and trousers too and I never leave home without a few badges or pins in my bag in case I spot a stain I canrsquot get rid of with a quick onthespot spongeing or an unruly hole appears which I donrsquot like the look ofrdquo lsquoMain kapde durust karta hoonrsquoMohammed Adil Khan 38 might not be fully conversant with the global reducereuse storyline but he is the best candidate to talk about repairing clothes ldquoMain kapde durust karta hoon I repair clothesrdquo he says nonchalantlyAs a 12yearold Khan migrated to Mumbai from Bareilly in UP His elder brother worked as a darner and the plan was to learn the skill and start on his own Khan says it took him two years to learn his way around the sewing machine Repairing clothes has been a 9 am to 7 pm job for the last 25 years for Khan the inhouse darner at Garment Cleaners laundry at Love Lane Mazagaon He earns R50 for smaller repairs while more intensive work pays him R150 His monthly salary is R700 with which he supports his wife and three children ldquoHamare mamu bhi yahin kaam karte hain Samajh lo darning family business hai My uncle is also a darner so itrsquos like a family businessrdquo Khan says adding he had hoped to start his own tailoring business but didnrsquot have the fundsDe Castrorsquos repair and relove guide A pair of trousers that are fraying at the hems and one leg is split almost to the knee to it I will add sheer black or patterned tights and killer shoes A jumper that is covered in holes and so broken up at the elbows that one arm is almost hanging by a thread I will work on whatrsquos underneath it A dress that is so faded itrsquos gone from black to dark grey and is totally torn I wear it with a string of pearls and red nail varnish I will never understand people who buy denim shorts and that includes my daughters Why Why canrsquot you just cut down the ones you already own I have seen denim pockets become almost anything from the cutest phone pouches join two pockets together and add a long strapmdashthis could be beaded sequinnned crocheted woven knitted or customised to advent calendars Keep your old jeans to patch your new ones The robust material also lends itself to household duties I use my kidsrsquo old jeans to polish silver and brass and someone I know has made the bestever pot holders simply by layering two squares and binding them together with crochetHow to start being sustainable Ask yourself some simple questions at the point of purchase What materials is this piece made from Check the label before buying What are the cleaning recommendations And do you really need another drycleanonly sequinned number to wear at the office Christmas party Does it have further use later on If not might you consider renting a glamorous outfit instead Is it made of polyester If so is the poly used efficiently Is it a piece that will require less care because by now you know that polyester is a material that can be washed infrequently or is it a Tshirt that will react badly to your natural body odour and therefore need frequent washing Can you creatively imagine another use for the item you are about to buy Like Ooooh nice trousers I canrsquot wait to use them for a long time and then turn them into shorts Or Love this but it might not be right for me if I gainlose a few kilos so who else in my life motherdaughterbff might adopt it after me