A Look at how three lecturers are implementing the circular fashion business model into the Division of Textiles and Apparel program at The University of Texas at Austin
Peggy Blum, a lecturer in the Division of Textiles and Apparel at The University of Texas at Austin (TXA), looks over a room filled with young minds eager to make a difference during UT’s sustainability week and proclaims, “Apparel consumption is projected to rise 63 percent to 102 tons of clothing in 2030.” Now more than ever, it is important that we assess our environmental and social footprint from both a fashion design and consumer point of view. With the new business model of circular fashion at the forefront, three TXA lecturers including Blum, Gail Chovan, and Jessica Ciarla are changing the way students think about design and consumption with their research initiative titled The Circle Project. This year, senior designers were given a special task of transforming previously owned pieces of clothing into new designs and raising awareness for sustainability and the negative impact that fast fashion has on the industry and environment. Inspired by the Copenhagen Fashion Summit, the future of fashion begins with implementing sustainability. The project began last year as merchandising students collected 1,500 pieces of clothing to document and analyze everything from provenance to fabric content. Design students then went on to use the pieces to construct a completely new garment from 100 percent pre-existing clothing.
All garments created by this assignment are included in the research of The Circle Project. Blum describes The Circle Project by saying, “With circularity we’re taking post purchased apparel and putting it back into the beginning of the supply chain. We’re bringing it full circle.”
Design students dove straight into the pile of 1,500 pieces of clothing to find 10 garments. From there, they went on to create designs that are entirely new by taking them apart and redraping them in a course led by Chovan and Ciarla. Students were challenged to problem solve and react to unexpected outcomes as they combined knits with wovens, dealt with different colors in dye lots, and struggled with how to stretch small pieces of fabric into a larger format. The results brought new designs to life and a tangible expression of circularity and sustainability. Through the design initiative, fast fashion garments are reintroduced to the beginning of the production process and are made reusable in a new, innovative way.
The Circle Project is an explorative avenue for TXA students to discover new ways to bridge the gap between consumer awareness and fast fashion. Renewing, recycling, re-making, and reusing are important. The Circle Project is a chance for students, faculty, and consumers to be involved in an innovative and economically responsible approach to generate change in the fast fashion industry.
The professors involved in The Circle Project are taking this research and completed garments to Copenhagen to present at the Fashion Summit of 2018 in May. Garments created for The Circle Project will also be showcased at the senior fashion show “Dimension” on April 26, 2018 at the Frank Erwin Center. Tickets for admission are free.
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