Can we change the future with the past?

I’m sure we’ve all heard the phrase ‘history repeats itself’, and nowhere is this truer than in fashion. Think of some of the most popular trends in the last few years and fashion’s history is right there. Certain decades have come back in style, like Y2K’s recent comeback. Popular TV sees historic fashion rise again too, like corsets and pearls Bridgerton-style. So, if we’re thinking about fashion’s future trends, surely some of them are rooted in the past?

This philosophy doesn’t just apply to fashion’s trends – it can also apply to sustainability techniques. Like many final years at the moment, I’m busy writing my dissertation, and this is the topic I’m discussing. I’ve looked into three key areas: the dyes that colour our clothes, the women that make them, and the way we can mend our clothes, stopping them from ending up in landfill. Whilst fitting a 6000-word dissertation into one article isn’t quite possible, here’s a little summary of what I’ve found out about how we can learn from the past to be sustainable in the future.

Thousands of years ago, people used natural sources for their clothing dyes but they were often rare, expensive, and didn’t last very long in the fabric. After an accidental dye creation during the industrial revolution, fashion became reliant on synthetic dyes instead, as they seemed to fix the problems of natural dyes. We still rely on man-made colours for our fashion nowadays, but these dyes have a dark secret. The waste from the dyes run off into rivers and although it looks beautiful, like in the picture above, the pollution poisons the people who rely on these waters for drinking and hygiene. Toxic dye waste can cause health issues from skin irritation, to cancer, to brain damage. So ideally, we’d stop using synthetics, but we can’t keep naturals either, if they are so expensive and exclusive. What is the solution then?

Well some innovators are exploring different natural solutions, ones that are inexpensive, easily accessible, and can still produce all the colours we are used to seeing in our stores. These sources include algae and harmless soil bacteria. These innovations are still in relatively early stages of development though, meaning they are unlikely to roll out to mainstream fashion just yet, but may be a sign of a better future.

Another area we can learn from the past is the way we make our clothes. Rather than churning out loads and loads of unnecessary items for a ridiculously low price, we could go back to making things by hand and valuing the time and effort spent. This could reduce the amounts of dangerous dyes and fabrics we produce, meaning less exploitation of garment workers, as there would be less expectation to make excessive amounts of clothing. It would also mean less clothing being thrown away, as we would care about our items more. Of course, making everything by hand just isn’t feasible, due to the sheer volume of clothing that would need to be made, but certain items could definitely be slowed down. Look at the rise in popularity of knit and crochet on social media – since the COVID lockdowns, slow crafts have had a resurgence and I think, are here to stay.

And what about the way we dispose of our clothes? When clothing was much more expensive, people couldn’t afford to throw things away when they ripped or unravelled. Mending was much more common than it is now, as clothing couldn’t be disposed of in the way we dispose of fast fashion nowadays. Trying to make something look good as new can be very difficult, but if we leant into the visible mending trend, we could have unique and personally customised clothing, celebrating the imperfections rather than getting rid of them. This would massively reduce the amount of fashion in landfills, helping to reduce the impact dumping clothing can have on the environment.

So it seems we can learn from the past – we can’t directly copy it, going back to how things used to be, but we can be inspired by it, and use it to craft a sustainable future that benefits both the planet and the people living in it. Sustainability in fashion is such a huge arena, and I’ve barely scratched the surface. What about fabrics, transportation, packaging, shopping… there are countless areas that could be improved. Despite the potential for it to be overwhelming, I’d like to reframe and be excited instead. I’m intrigued to see how the industry learns from its past and I’m excited to be a part of the change.

- Tegan