By IVORY COLLINS
The Makhanda dumpsite was an unlikely venue for a fashion shoot.
But bystanders watched curiously as models Ursula and Shaningwa showed off items I made from blue plastic rubbish bags and recycled material.
One man was fascinated by the process behind making the items and interested in trying out the craft himself.
The models posed with various items found at the dumpsite: a suitcase, family photographs, condoms and broken furniture. Sustainability and expression were brought together in an eco-fashion statement.
A step-by-step guide to making plarn (plastic yarn)
Step 1: begin by flattening out your plastic bag.
Step 2: Fold the bag in half two to three times, depending on the size.
Step 3: Cut the folded bag into strips with a width of approximately three centimetres wide.
Step 4: Unravel the plastic strips and loop them through one another – pull gently to tighten.
Step 5: Once the strips are looped together, roll the plastic into a ball and create a slip knot to begin crocheting.
Step 6: Now that you have plarn (plastic yarn), you can cricket anything you like made out of plastic. Above is an example of a bag made out of plastic bags and recycled material.
The revolution
Billion-dollar companies make profits from the exploitation of people and resources. But consumers are rising in revolt, demanding we do better.
We can build a new world with fewer landfills, minimal waste, and innovative cultures striving to give more while taking less. The change needed is massive, and it has to be radical.
It starts with individuals like you choosing differently.
Plastic REVolution is a movement that challenges how we approach single-use plastic and fast fashion to initiate change within the individual and, ultimately, our society.
Waste has become a dangerous threat to all life on earth. In South Africa, we dump around 95 million tonnes of plastic waste annually across the 826 landfills found in South Africa.
Plastic is a convenient, fast-produced material,l but it takes between 500 to 1000 years to decompose. Some plastics can last indefinitely.
Companies are hesitant to stop producing plastic products as it is a material that is cheap and easy to mass-produce and meet consumer demands. It is found in food packaging, medical supplies, construction and clothing, with fast fashion being one of the main contributors to plastic pollution.
A recent study investigating plastic usage in the fast fashion industry found that 88% of just-listed items on the websites of major fast fashion chains contained plastic of some sort. Around half of such brands’ items were made from virgin plastics – even those found in their ‘sustainable’ lines. Polyester, acrylic and nylon were among these.
Major fast fashion chains, like Shein and H&M, are designed to mass-produce garments and constantly keep up with fluctuations in clothing trends. It is a market built on short-term satisfaction, worker exploitation and low environmental standards. In other words, fast fashion is the enemy of those advocating sustainability and a green future.
In 2021, the World Economic Forum found fashion one of the planet’s biggest polluters, following food and urbanisation. Fast fashion items are never made to last, and the industry is not shaped with conservation in mind. Over 64% of the 32 billion items of clothing produced annually end up in a landfill.
Fast fashion
Fast fashion is intrinsic to consumer capitalism. Plastic fibres and materials are an easy way to meet the ever-growing demand for the latest fashion trends.
The fast fashion industry stands strong because of consumer ignorance surrounding the industry’s practices; dismantling or transforming it requires consumers (ordinary people like you and me) to face the facts of fast fashion with a willingness to change their choices.
The fashion industry is one of the most extensive, essential and globalised industries of the modern world. New technological advancements have led to a significant decrease in production costs resulting in what is known as ‘fast fashion’.
Fast fashion directly results in chemical pollution, water waste and carbon dioxide emissions, and it is also a significant contributor to plastic pollution.
Slow fashion
Individuals should start practising the ‘reuse, reduce, recycle’ process on their wardrobes. Reuse clothing garments by supporting second-hand cycles or small-scale thrift businesses; reduce your impact by buying locally and always prioritise quality over quantity; recycle your clothes by DIY-ing them into something new or drop them at a recycling centre near you to ensure as little waste as possible.
Support slow fashion: businesses that advocate for the opposite of fast fashion. The statistics can be overwhelming. But with knowledge comes the power to choose better.
Recycling versus reusing
Regarding reducing our waste as individuals, recycling tends to be the primary objective. However, many citizens do not have access to waste removal, let alone access to recycling. This is where reusing materials gains importance, as it can help reduce pollution and move towards a greener future.
Reusing and recycling waste allows the material to be repurposed, turning it into something functional and more efficient than its initial form. Although both processes are environmentally beneficial, reusing junk will enable us to create something new without the complications of recycling (such as the lack of recycling facilities). For example, a durable, reusable shopping bag can be made from single-use plastic bags. Ideally, the life cycle of waste should involve both reusing and recycling as they both assist with minimising the environmental impact of existing materials.
Thrifting and social media
Thrifting has become popular in the world of contemporary fashion. Even celebrities have been seen rocking the red carpet in entirely thrifted outfits.
Though thrifting comes with ethical and moral concerns, it still beats fast fashion in the sustainability game. Activists use social media to quickly spread mass awareness about environmental problems and their potential solutions. Platforms like TikTok have provided creators with an educational and creative space to share content under titles like ‘thrift hauls’, ‘upcycling my old clothes’ and ‘how to live a sustainable life’.
Consumers have taken to social media demanding that brands are transparent about what occurs behind the scenes and insisting on solidarity in the stand against brands like Shein.
Social media can be a space of worldwide participation and debate where individuals can now share relevant information with various audiences in seconds. Unfortunately, it also works in favour of brands that thrive through ‘green-washing’ their consumers.
