Stores teach shoppers how to mend their own clothes as public begins to reject ‘fast fashion’ 

That’s a darn good idea! Stores teach shoppers how to mend their own clothes as public begins to reject ‘fast fashion’

  • Around 350,000 tons of used but wearable clothing goes to UK landfill annually
  • Brands that offer free repairs include Levi’s, Whistles, J Crew, Uniqlo and Toast
  • TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp wants schools to teach pupils to replace a button

The ‘make do and mend’ mentality is returning as environmentally conscious shoppers turn away from ‘fast fashion’.

Brands are offering free repairs and alterations so customers can wear items again rather than bin them. 

Others have workshops on how to sew and patch clothes worn only a few times.

Brands are offering free repairs and alterations so customers can wear items again rather than bin them after around 350,000 tons of used but still wearable clothing goes to landfill in the UK every year (stock image)

Around 350,000 tons of used but still wearable clothing goes to landfill in the UK every year. 

Brands that offer free repairs or alterations include Levi’s, Whistles, J Crew, Toast, Patagonia and Uniqlo.

TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp told the Sunday Times: ‘The No 1 reason for clothes to end up in landfill is missing a button.’ 

She wants schools to teach pupils to replace a button and to use a sewing machine.

Wearing a repaired item with a patch has now also become a badge of pride among some. 

After Jessica Hinds-Turner’s puppy ravaged her jeans in November, she took them to Toast in Harrogate, where tailor Molly Martin patched over the damage.

‘I’m delighted to show off my mended items,’ Miss Hinds-Turner, 27, told the Sunday Times.

‘Yes, it’s not brand new, it’s loved and it’s been fixed, but that makes it more valuable.’ 

TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp (pictured) wants schools to teach pupils to replace a button and to use a sewing machine

TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp (pictured) wants schools to teach pupils to replace a button and to use a sewing machine 

Miss Martin, who runs repair workshops for Toast, told the newspaper: ‘People are scared about what is happening to the environment. Fast fashion – buying so much and throwing it away – is out of favour.

‘We are regaining a make-do-and-mend attitude.’ 

She said some repairs were invisible but other customers asked for visible or decorative darns and patches.

‘They want to celebrate and draw attention to the fact they have old clothes and are taking care of them,’ she said, adding that customers below the age of 30 ‘don’t know what you are doing with a needle’.   

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