Turning Fabric Scraps into Fashion Statements

Zero-waste, hand-made, values-led. Fashion that starts with what’s already here.

🎥 Scene Setting:
This project began when I found a pile of discarded upholstery swatches—bold textures, saturated color, and no clear purpose. I matched patterns, played with scale, and used a zero-waste pattern to design a jacket made entirely from scraps.

I was inspired by traditional garments like the kimono, sari, and chiton—clothing designed to respect material from the start. This piece was both a nod to those origins and an exploration of sustainability through constraint.

🔍 The Insight:
Scarcity drives creativity. Constraints don’t limit design—they ignite it.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 My Role:

• Selected and sorted textile waste from local suppliers

• Designed the garment using a zero-waste patterning approach

• Constructed the piece by hand using deadstock only

• Documented process and explored drape- and patchwork-led design

✨ Why It Still Matters:
Too often, sustainability is discussed as a systems problem. This reminded me it’s also a creative one.

We already have the raw materials. The challenge is to see them—and use them—differently.

Design doesn’t have to begin with a blank page. Some of the most surprising ideas came from working with what didn’t match.

This project helped me think differently about sustainability—not as a feature, but as a creative method.