What is Reclaimed Fabric?

Reclaiming Fabric for Fashionable & Sustainable Clothing

It is no secret that the fashion industry is one of the most wasteful industries in the world. Globally we produce 12 million tons of textile waste each year and according to planetaid.org 95% of which could be reused or recycled into new products. While some might think that a thrift store or donating might help with keeping existing items reused (though even in that case, only about 15% of clothing makes the thrift shop / secondhand market in the United States) the bigger issue is the material that doesn’t make it to the store in the first place. Over $120 billion of excess material sits in warehouses globally, ending up either burned or in landfill subsequently causing pollution for many around the world.

Working in the fashion industry we are faced with this dilemma in order to make a living - we can either perpetuate the problem cycle or contribute to the solution.

Our decision was easy but the needs are vast. Before we’ve talked about our decision (read more about plus size sustainable fashion here) to start where we could make the largest impact with clothing longevity and textiles. To do that we partnered with our factory to locate reclaimed fabric, excess fabric or dead-stock.

What is a dead-stock fabric?

So what exactly is a dead-stock fabric? Fabric that is leftover or unused excess fabric from other company’s production is known as dead-stock. This can happen when a company orders more than they need. The pressure to meet sales goals forces companies to prioritize over producing rather than being responsible in order to not miss sales. When the overproduction is not needed, it is left unused with the mill or factory and often left to be burn or buried. Once in a landfill it can take years to finally break down. According to W24.com, it takes denim 10-12 years to decompose, a lycra sports bra 20-200 years, and nylon tights 30-40 years to decompose, while also releasing methane, a harmful greenhouse gas. The North American textile industry typically send up to 10.5 million tons of clothing each year to a landfill, that’s 30 x heavier than the Empire State Building in New York City! We are bringing light to choosing where our clothes end up AND just as important - where they come from and making them in an eco-friendly manner.

It’s our goal to selectively curate sustainable fabrics / reclaimed fabrics and rescue them into a See ROSE Go silhouette. We target this left over fabric to repurpose into our best selling silhouettes for years and years of use staying in your closet and out of the landfill. This Spring & Summer, then beyond, enjoy our Reclaimed Collection fusing the staying power of design and sustainability.