Fab Scraps, Clever Pattern Cutting and Why Apparel Factories Need Design Thinkers, with Industrial Upcycler Agustina Comas

Continuing our theme of fashion's crazily wasteful ways, and our focus on Latin America, this week, more Brazilian goodness, as Clare sits down with São Paolo-based industrial upcycler Agustina Comas.

We're talking fast fashion, big business, athleisure's reliance on synthetics and rethinking pattern-cutting.

BTW: how much do you know about pattern-cutting?

If you've ever done this yourself at home with paper dressmaking patterns, you'll know that you pin these onto the fabric and cut around them.

Sometimes using tailor's chalk to add markings. It's often trickier than it should be!

The scraps - or offcuts - are the wastage round the edges. And they can pile up.

On an industrial level, technicians also use paper markers. Multiple layers of fabrics are laid on the table, and many garments are being cut at a time, often using computer-controlled machines.

Of course brands try to make the most of fabric yields, even if only to save money, so if multiple styles use the same fabric, you might see these placed intricately on the marker to form a complex jigsaw puzzle.

At the end of the day, they still sweep the offcuts into the bin. Who cares? It's just scraps.

In some cases, these scraps account for 35% of the fabric.

Instant waste! Mad!

Making new stuff out of wasted old stuff is a noble idea.

But wouldn't it be better if we used less in the first place?

Agustina's got a plan for that.

Also up for discussion - Brazil's mighty craft heritage, and how women are leading the way; Shein's designs on the country (and everywhere else); and which South American designers are pushing innovation.

Find all the links & further reading at thewardrobecrisis.com

Tell us what you think? Find Clare on Instagram @mrspress

Got recommendations? Hit us up!

And please share these podcasts.

THANK YOU x

---

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.