feltmaking is good for you (and the planet)

Every now and again a piece of junk mail lands on my door mat that I really look forward to receiving.  Issue 13 of JunkMail describes some of the efforts ongoing to De-toxify Textiles.  

One of the facts is that 75% of UK textiles end up as waste in landfill.  Well I reckon that's a really bad thing as most textiles are biodegradable and would break down to give off greenhouses gases.  So simple, lets not throw away clothes to landfill, lets do something else.

Making felt out of old clothes is pleasing - here are a few pictures of the Memory Cloth where old cloths have been repurposed into a protector cape.  Charming model remarked that she liked it.

memory cloth

I know this is quite simplistic in my analysis, and that even commiting to using charity shops for donating old worn out clothes and purchasing our clothing needs is fraught with complications.  'Most clothing collected for recycing is sold overseas to developing countries, where this has a big impact on local markets and damages local indigenous textile production.' - see JunkMail article.

There are an increasing number of SLOW Textile designers out there, and many voices calling for sanity in our attitudes to fashion.  Upcycling is all the rage.  The buzz word is 'third hand', not just second hand anymore. Just visit Ravelry to realise the number of knitters doing their thing for sheep and the planet, as well quench their passion for knitting.

flying

Here the light shines through the Memory Cloth showing off the textures, and subtle shades of white.  Charming model looks concerned that the milk crate will tumble.  (photographing white is quite tricky)

demure and snuggy

Over the next couple of weeks I'm hoping to get around to visiting some of the Open Studios in this years offering from Devon Open Studios, in search of textures, and felt.  Already seen some gorgeous work from Jane Ayres whose textile work can be seen at Lydia Corbett's studio.