A stitch in time: Repairs, recycling and other fixes for fast-fashion waste problems
Average Canadian throws away 31 kg of textiles each year, says U of A researcher
Sarah Janzen watches customers in her shop as they pick through tables and racks of pants, shirts and sweaters priced at less than three bucks per pound.
"We started off a year ago in a 2,000-square-foot warehouse with 40 volunteers," says Janzen, owner of Blenderz Garment Recyclers. "The demand for it was so high that we've doubled."
Good items go back for resale to stay in the local economy, Janzen says. The not-so-good ones — like stained T-shirts and single socks — find new life as woven rugs or other upcycled items sold in the shop.
"The not-good clothing goes through a sanitization process and disassembly, and we put them into one of our different products," says Janzen.
She accepts donations as an eco-fee toward processing of things like used sheets and towels.
You can see more in the Clothing and Textiles Edition of Our Edmonton on Monday at 11 a.m. on CBC TV and CBC Gem or anytime here.
The shop also sells bulk textiles and clothing that can be recycled or upcycled by cottage industries.
"We're keeping the resources for people to make things here and take care of our waste right here," Janzen says. "So we're not creating the carbon emissions from exporting and ending up in a landfill in another country."
A growing aspect of the Blenderz business is classes held on the last Thursday of every month, offering instruction in skills like learning to sew and mend or creating homemade holiday presents.
"It's amazing to just get over that fear to fix something yourself. There's a sense of self-worth and self-reliance," Janzen says about projects as small as sewing on a button.
That kind of pride is something Rachel McQueen has seen first-hand.
Last month, McQueen, an associate professor in the University of Alberta's human ecology department, joined her colleagues to launch a Clothing Repair Café.
Skilled volunteers assist people mending rips, adding patches or replacing zippers or buttons with a goal of helping them learn how to give a longer life to the clothes that they they love.
"It was so much fun. It was such a great vibe," says McQueen. She has opened registration for the next free public event, which will be held Nov. 19 from 1 to 4 p.m.
The average Canadian discards about 31 kilograms of textiles per year — equivalent to the weight of about 70 soccer balls. McQueen says the act of taking care of your clothes causes people to be less likely to dispose of them.
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A recent textile audit done in Ontario estimated that about two-thirds of textiles found in residential waste could have been reused with a small amount of mending.
Repair, says McQueen, is as important as the other three Rs — reduce, reuse and recycle.
Other tips include considering reselling — or clothing swaps — for unwanted items and renting clothing items for special occasions like weddings and graduations.
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