i had the honor of working on set with the stars from the hit show twilight last week. they were doing a photo shoot i believe to promote their new movie which is being filmed in vancouver. my job was to be the onset tailor, to be on call to alter any clothing if need be. this job is also similar to a 3rd stylist assistant, essentially running around gathering up the thousands and thousands of dollars of clothing and jewelry that the stylist leaves strewn about the mansion and its grounds. a fun job really. i got to try on some of my favorite designers newest clothes that haven’t even hit stores yet, drool over the most fabulous jewelry and accessories and just generally be in fashion heaven. being someone who is concerned about the environment and recycling and whatnot, i did find it to be somewhat of a polar experience.
why does all this amazing fashion and creation have to promote a wasteful lifestyle. wasting resources and money just to be able to flaunt the fact that you are in the top percentile of people who actually CAN afford these clothes. why does this clothing are have to become more than art?
how does someone like myself support an industry that essentially goes against everything i stand for as a human. is there somewhere in this industry that i can make a mark with recycling? that i can make beautiful clothing and help to reduce footprints instead of making giant new ones?
a good start is with an program called ‘our social fabric’. it’s an initiative that was started in april 2009 to recycle textiles from vancouver and somehow make new products. i have just gotten involved in it, and am seeing that this might be a way to solve some of these issues i am facing.
if you have any ideas, information, suggestions for us/me please get in touch. would love to hear form you.
i want to bring a new light into what recycled clothing looks like, how its made, and be able to do it on a large scale. lets put our heads together and see if we can’t start erasing some footprints, and starting a revolution that involves retreating instead of expanding.
every revolution in history has been about expansion. it is time for the next revolution, which is going to involve retraction and localizing. i’m excited for the future, i hope you are too.
kdon by kim cathers 
I’m down with this course of action, Kim! I’ve been pilfering value village and other shops for fabric refuse myself recently, but I’d like to get social with your Social Fabric peeps.
I may live in Kansas, but, I too love to refashion and recycle. Count me in and send whatever info you can!
Fashion has always included a group of us that take old and make new. Men’s old leather jackets into new purses (and no one knows – the skins are up to 4 times as thick as what you can purchase today – more like saddle leather almost) – jeans to skirts, skirts to shirts, shirts to tanks and dresses etc. We’ve been doing it since before the 30s – only we didn’t talk about it. The reality is, and this is a big one, it will only, ever be a small group of us. The rest want the smell of “new” on their bodies. You can’t force them to change, but you can change. Even 2% would be enough to make a difference.