You've probably heard the shocking stats around just how wasteful the mass-produced engine behind the fashion industry really is – roughly 2 out of every 3 garments made annually ends up in landfill within 12 months.
But another dirty little industry secret you may not know is that an incredibly large amount of fabric ends us as offcut scraps on the cutting room floor. And when we say 'large' we mean it – estimated to be around 60 BILLION m2 every year – roughly equivalent to covering the entire landmass of Sri Lanka in a layer of fabric! Yowzers.
“60 billion m2 of fabric ends up on cutting room floors around the world as waste every year” - Fashion Revolution
SCRAP THAT
Most factories consider these offcuts to be unusable and send them straight to landfill. But here at Citizen Wolf, minimising waste has been woven into our business model from Day 1 and this 'scrap' has never been treated as an afterthought. Instead we upcycle them into the incredibly popular Totes and Scarves in our Zero Waste collection.
They're gorgeous but equally laborious. And honestly, there's only so many we can make... So as our business grows, we recognise the need for another solution that scales with us.
Which is why we're thrilled to announce our Recycled Zero Waste Yarn in collaboration with Dempstah, who are themselves on a mission to shift society away from its current reliance on landfill.
Their state–of–the–art recycling facility cleans, sorts, shreds and reconstitutes our trash 'scrap' into legit treasure: gorgeous yarn for makers and manufacturers alike. Better still, the process is completely mechanical and uses no water, no bleach and no dye!
"The fibres we spun from Citizen Wolf had an exceptionally high yield rate of 86% (the norm is 50% - 75%) which really speaks to the quality of your fabrics" - Dempstah
MOVING THE NEEDLE
COVID has inspired many of us to resume old hobbies or learn new ones this year, and many Aussie's have dusted off their knitting needles. In fact, The Australian Yarn Company reported a 200 percent increase in sales over April:
“Yarn sales have spiked dramatically as masses of Australians find new ways to get creative during the coronavirus crisis.” - ABC News
We’re always yarning about new ways to be better and proving that we can burn the existing model of mass production to the ground and re-build the future of an on-demand, local and circular industry - this is just one more way to close the loop.
Available now in five gorgeous colours, our Zero Waste Yarns make for a nifty stocking filler for the crafty ones in your life.
It’s safe to say they really are the gift that keeps on giving (and giving!), so if you’ve ever wished all of your accessories felt as luxurious as your Citizen Wolf Tee, now’s the moment you’ve been waiting for.
PS – If you're just getting into crochet, the standard hook size for our 10 Ply/Aran weight yarn is 5mm and you can find them here.