Zero-Waste Fashion: The Best UK Brands To Know
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Zero-waste your wardrobe with this handy guide to the zero-waste fashion brands that are redesigning fashion, through their eco-friendly approaches to clothing design.
Zero-waste fashion is the ultimate goal when it comes to ethical clothing. With the fashion world being a notoriously wasteful industry, we desperately need brands that are cleaning up fashion and reducing waste.
But what is zero-waste fashion exactly? Confusingly, the term actually has multiple meanings. At the base of it, everyone agrees that zero-waste fashion is a type of ethical fashion.
From there, definitions deviate. Some people say that zero-waste fashion is where a clothing brand participates in the circular economy by using deadstock fabric or waste materials to create brand-new items of clothing from items that would otherwise be binned.
Others view zero-waste fashion as when a clothing brand does not produce any textile waste at all. Or at the very least, creating only very minimal waste. This could be achieved by employing clever cutting techniques to minimise offcuts, or by creating other products out of remnants or offcuts to help reduce or avoid fabric wastage.
The Best Zero Waste Fashion Brands
The good news is that whatever your interpretation of zero-waste fashion may be, there are some incredibly exciting and innovative brands out there tackling the scourge that is fabric waste. All whilst making some seriously stylish clothing.
To help you out, here are some of my favourite zero-waste fashion brands that are either keeping clothes out of landfill or are creating clothing out of materials that would otherwise go to waste.
The price range key for this guide is:
£ = Under £50 | ££ = £50 – 100 | £££ = £100+
Beyond Retro
Budget: £ – ££
Caters for: sizes XS – XXL
Beyond Retro is an online treasure trove of vintage and secondhand clothing for men and women, carefully sourced from around the world.
You can shop by clothing type, brand, by era, and even type of fabric should you wish to avoid synthetic fibres. What’s more, Beyond Retro also has dedicated plus-size sections for both men and women, catering up to size XXL. There is also the ability to search for unisex clothing.
As well as saving clothes from landfill, for extra zero waste points Beyond Retro also offer their Reworked range*. Here, new items are made from vintage clothing, meaning your piece is totally unique. Beyond Retro says that only 1 in 1,000 vintage items are suitable for sale. Reworking clothes that are otherwise unsellable helps lower this number and delivers a more zero-waste-minded fashion.
Use the exclusive code MORALFIBRES at the checkout to receive 15% off your order at Beyond Retro.
Do also check out my full guide to shopping for secondhand clothes online, for more ideas of where to shop secondhand.
Boyish Jeans
Budget: £££
Caters for sizes: XS – XL
Boyish Jeans – available at Farfetch – works exclusively with recycled fabrics and materials to create stylish denim products – from jeans to jackets, and much more. This means that its zero-waste clothing has a much smaller impact, particularly in terms of water usage.
As well as using recycled fabrics, Boyish Jeans also employs ethical and sustainable practices when developing and manufacturing its products. From natural plant-based dyes to water recycling, Boyish Jeans is keen to keep its impact as low as possible.
Do also check out my full guide to ethical jeans for more denim-based inspiration.
Christy Dawn
Budget: £££
Caters for sizes S – XL
When it comes to high-end women’s zero-waste fashion, then look no further than Christy Dawn – available in the UK at Content Beauty.
The Christy Dawn team shun new fabrics. Instead, they spend their time rummaging through piles of leftover and discontinued fabric – what’s known as deadstock.
When they find the fabric they love, their team of artisans cut, sew, and finish each piece in their Los Angeles factory. Making limited-edition runs from existing fabric in this manner means each version of a style is very limited. This means there’s little chance of being seen in the same dress as anyone else.
ColieCo
Budget: £ – ££
Caters for: sizes 28B to 38F – custom sizing is also available
Even your underwear can get the zero waste treatment, with ColieCo.
This sustainable intimates brand produces very fashion-led lingerie, all made by hand in Portugal in a zero-waste manner.
Here, only recycled, reused, and reclaimed fabrics are used. And what’s more, your underwear is only posted to you using biodegradable and recyclable packaging.
Sizes for ColieCo’s soft and underwired bras range from 28B to 38F. However, ColieCo does take requests for custom sizes.
Pantee
Budget: £
Caters for: sizes 28A to 38F
Pantee is a new ethical underwear brand, catering for bra sizes 28A to 38F.
What makes Pantee a zero-waste fashion brand is that they cleverly upcycle unsold t-shirts that have been left unworn and are destined for landfill, into soft and supportive bras and briefs.
All of its styles are underwire-free. In case you are worried about support, each bra is double-layered for extra comfort and support. Its bras are all £38, regardless of style.
Rokit
Budget: £ – ££
Caters for: sizes XXXS to XXL
Finally, Rokit sells a vast collection of pre-worn vintage & designer secondhand clothes in the UK that can be bought online. From sports, street, and designer to vintage, whatever your style, Rokit stocks it. And with a vast inventory, covering sizes XXXS to XXL, Rokit’s size inclusivity is something to applaud.
To minimise waste within the vintage clothing industry, Rokit has also developed its own Rokit Originals Range. This is a collection of reworked vintage pieces, that gives a new life to old garments and creates new items to be loved over the long term, keeping old clothes out of landfill.
Get 10% off at Rokit by using the discount code TAKE10 at the checkout.
I’ll be sure to update this guide as I find more great zero-waste brands – so do check back or pin it for later. In the meantime, why not share it with your friends to help spread the zero-waste fashion love?
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