Sustainable Fashion - the new wave in conscious living

Representational Pic

As the French really are the epitome of chic and have always propagated a buy less philosophy, the same logic can be extended to sustainable fashion choices as well. Most of the fabrics are consciously handwoven and we have all heard of handwoven sarees that withstood 2-3 generations, so we seem to be coming back a full circle. While India has always been a country that has had distinct weaves across the country and has taken various initiatives to support and encourage weavers, there are several feisty brands that are taking sustainable fashion to a different level.

Simply put sustainable fashion strives to encourage making clothes in a manner that is friendly to the environment. Socially and ethically conscious production is also something that several brands incorporate into their cycle.

For instance, Neha Khabra, founder of popular brand sustainable brand Maati spoke to us about how she incorporates sustainability at the various stages of manufacturing. ".We produce one type of fabric and the yarns which are wasted during the process is upcycled into another fabric which are used in our collections. We are also shifting to handloom fabrics as they are more sustainable (by keeping the art alive and artisans enjoying their craft)"

At the dyeing, printing level, they use natural colours. Primary colours are sourced naturally and then mixed to achieve the desired colour. for e.g.:- Red comes from Gulmohor flowers, Yellow from Haldi and so on. While we wondered how these colours would stand the test of washes, she clarified "We also mix aloe vera so that the colours do not bleed and you can hand wash them at home, since dry cleaning uses petrol after all."

Moving on to the stage of production they have tied up with weavers in a village near Jaipur, who help her bring her ideas to life. They have converted an old government school into a production house where the women come together and help them ideate. Plastic bags are reused. And the tags which are the most wasted products of all time can be planted as they are made from seed paper.

She feels that "True sustainability is eliminating extra wastage and putting the resources to optimum utilisation. Also, no one can be 100% sustainable but we all can be as sustainable as possible.

Another interesting brand that caught our eye is Bayu. Bayu is a vegan sustainable brand. Deepa Choudhary founder of Bayu Sustain told us "We are a 100% PETA approved brand for all categories. We have a defined brand guideline- to create products that are ONLY natural and good for the environment, human beings and animals. Therefore, we are faced with limited options to work with in terms of process, materials and surface textures. We are constantly innovating and revisiting age-old ideas and techniques to offer something that's on dot in terms of design, aesthetic and affordability.

At the moment one can buy Clothing, Cork Bags/ Wallets & more, Up-cycled accessories from the brand.

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates