This document is a proposal for a summer project on green fashion. It discusses what green fashion is, the advantages and disadvantages of green fashion, the origins of green fashion, popular fibers used in green clothing such as organic cotton and hemp, designers supporting green fashion, celebrities promoting green fashion, and how the textile industry contributes a large carbon footprint. The proposal aims to raise awareness about more sustainable fashion choices.

1. “SUMMER PROJECT”
TOPIC-GREEN FASHION
Submitted by:
Mohammed Saquib Iqbal
DFT-3
71170600064
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2. Acknowledgement
I have taken efforts in this project. However, it would not have been possible without the
kind support and help of many individuals and organizations. I would like to extend my
sincere thanks to all of them.
I am highly indebted to Ms. Amisha Mehta for her guidance and constant supervision as
well as for providing necessary information regarding the project & also for her support in
completing the project.
I would like to express my gratitude towards my parents for their kind co-operation and
encouragement which help me in completion of this project.
My thanks and appreciations also go to my colleague in developing the project and
people who have willingly helped me out with their abilities.
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3. What is Green fashion?
Green-fashion” refers to stylized clothing that uses environmentally sensitive fabrics and
responsible production techniques. The nonprofit Sustainable Technology Education
Project (STEP) defines Green-fashions as clothes “that take into account the
environment, the health of consumers and the working conditions of people in the
fashion industry and also reduces the carbon footprint”.
Advantages:
With the eco-fashion industry still in its infancy, the main responsibility at the moment lies
with clothes manufacturers and fashion designers, who need to start using sustainable
materials and processes.
 Green-fashion clothes are made using organic raw materials, such as cotton
grown without pesticides and silk made by worms fed on organic tree.
 These items don't involve the use of harmful chemicals and bleaches to color
fabrics are often made from recycled and reused textiles.
 In addition, high-quality garments can be made from second-hand clothes and
even recycled plastic bottles.
 These are made to last, so that people keep them for longer and the people who
make them are paid a fair price and have decent working conditions.
 They are completely free of synthetic chemicals and toxic irritants and are totally
organic, sustainable and biodegradable.
Disadvantages:
 They can often be expensive.
 Time and money are wasted in recycling products.
 Many of the products being in development can have unknown risks and
reactions.
 Green fashion trend still in early stages.
 Liberal shoppers are willing to spend the money if it fits their pocketbook and
reflects their style of dress.
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4. Origin of Green Fashion:
1. Earth A‟Wear:
Earth AWear was the first shop in Copenhagen, Denmark, to stock only eco-
fashion clothing. Nick Paxevanos, the man behind the company, explains the story
behind the store. Earth AWear was inspired by the birth of his son. “I was
already environmentally conscious, but his arrival prompted me to become more
active. The lack of availability of eco-clothing nudged me in that direction”.
His aim was to set up first fashionable organic clothing shop for children and
adults. The key objectives were to increase awareness of the environmental
hazards of the textile industry, and to provide people with an alternative.
T shirts Made by Earth A‟Wear
“The Green Movement in the Fashion World” The green movement or the step
towards protecting the nature has turned out to be the most critical movement in the
history of mankind. We should take measures in every field to contribute towards
pushing this movement ahead for a bright green future. And every area of our contact
has been influence by it then why not the fashion world, which has been the dynamic
adherent of the nature.
Fashion world is showing an enormous growth in the field of eco-friendly clothing and
fashion accessories. Many European and Asian companies are showing a due impact by
adopting some of the generous ways in this context. Getting the great designers from
around the world, the fashion industry is targeting on the organic clothing rather the
synthetic or fibre cloths that puts a lot pressure on the nature.
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5. What, exactly, makes something a piece of „eco-fashion‟?
Eco-fashion is also called as Green fashion that is designed to be environment friendly.
Green fashion is part of the larger trend of sustainable design where a product is created
and produced with consideration to the environmental and social impact it may have
throughout its total life span, including its "carbon footprint".
For this we have to recycle the cloths and make them use in the reversible manner.
This will increase the life of the cloths and on the contrary it eliminates the pressure on
the farmlands to grow huge amount of cotton using chemicals. Imagine the amount of
land that we can save through this easy and tolerable step.
Fibres used for Green Clothing:
1. Natural Fibres
 Organic cotton fabric: It is grown in subtropical countries such as America and
India, from non-genetically modified plants that are to be grown without the use of
any synthetic agricultural chemicals such as fertilizers or pesticides. This soft easy
to care fabric is the most used and most popular of all the eco fabrics. There are
no limits to its use. It‟s being made into clothing of all kinds from underwear to
jeans and is a popular choice for infant wear.
Clothes Made from Organic cotton
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6.  Organic Wool fabric: It is extracted from sheep by a process called rooing
without hurting the animal. As an eco friendly clothing fibre, wool has good
insulating abilities, and can help to keep the heat in, as well as keep the heat out.
Wool fibres are also water absorbent and can absorb water up to a third of its
weight. In addition, wool can also absorb sound. Wool has the added benefit of
being rather fire-resistant – it requires a much higher temperature than cotton to
catch fire, and when burnt, it forms a char that self-insulates and self-
extinguishes. As such, wool is often used in uniforms for fireman.
Blankets made from organic wool Kids nappy made from organic wool
 Soy fabric: Soy is another plant-based fibre that is derived from the hulls of
soybeans. These hulls are in turn food-manufacturing by-products – the hulls left
over from soybeans food production are actually used in making the soy fibres. It
is a renewable resource, which can be grown organically and is naturally
biodegradable. Soy is a sustainable crop which not only cuts pesticide use, but is
also the leading substitute for cashmere. Soy fabric is known in some countries as
“soysilk” for its soft, lustrous feel.
Clothes made from Soy Fabric
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7.  Hemp- It is the name of the soft, durable fiber that is cultivated from plants of
the Cannabis genus. Hemp plants are resistant to most pests and diseases, and
can grow quickly with little or no use of pesticides and herbicides. Hemp fabric is
noted for its warmth and softness with a durability, which is rarely found in other
fabrics. Hemp fabric is highly versatile and is used in countless number of
products.
Hemp Fabric Hemp Shirt
 Piña – It is a fiber made from the leaves of a pineapple plant. It is sometimes
combined with silk or polyester to create a textile fabric. Since piña is from a leaf,
the leaf has to be cut first from the plant. Then the fiber is pulled or split away from
the leaf. Most leaf fibers are long and somewhat stiff. Each strand of the piña fiber
is hand scraped and is knotted one by one to form a continuous filament to be
handwoven and then made into a piña cloth.
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8. Scraping a Pineapple Leaf Shirt made from Piña fabric
 Nettle – Nettle fabric is developed from the vermin and parasite resistant
Brennessel plant. The fibers of the nettle are hollow which means they can
accumulate air inside thus creating a natural insulation. The juice of the stems and
leaves can be used to produce a permanent green dye while a yellow dye can be
obtained from boiling the roots.
Clothes made from nettle fabric
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9. 2. Man-Made Fabrics:
 Tencel- Tencel is a man-made fiber. It is the trade name for the generic fiber
Lyocell. In the fabric world, Tencel is known for its "drape". It flatters the human
form. The look is luxurious and refined. This new fiber also represents a milestone
in the development of environmentally sustainable textiles. It is Soft, breathable,
lightweight and comfortable, Shrink-resistant, durable and easy to care for.
 Eco Fi- originally called as Eco Spun. This fabric is made from recycled plastic
bottles and is being used in clothing from fleece outerwear, sweaters, caps, totes
and even T-shirts.
Popularity of Green Fashion:
Even though finding green apparel in stores is not easy, these garments are steadily
increasing in popularity despite the state of the economy. This is likely due to the rise in
numbers of people who are becoming conscious that what they purchase has a direct
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10. affect on the environment. Such people are willing to do whatever it takes to maintain the
environmental stability of the planet.
The clothing industry impacts the environment in several key ways. How clothes are
made and transported, as well as how they are discarded is a cost to India of $180 billion
dollars annually. Consumers are taking a closer look at how their consumption affects
the planet. This forces designers to embrace incorporating organic cotton and natural
fiber into their designs as more people follow this trend.
Designers supporting green fashion:
 Elena Garcia: is a London based designer who constructs her pieces by hand
and with the finest in organic wool, linen and silk fabrics. Ms. Garcia designs
multifunctional pieces and uses low-impact dyes. It has been said that Ms. Garcia
is inspired by the elite and socialite crowds as well as Queen Victoria. She
designs mainly silk gowns, tunics made of chiffon, knit jackets and asymmetric
vests.
Elena Garcia Her Dress
 Marion McKee and Tristan Gribbin: together design the label SUST which
essentially stands for „cool‟ in British colloquialism. The duo uses rich colors and
clean silhouettes and makes their pieces from organics. They primarily make
organic cotton tanks, scarves and pants as well as dresses and tunics.
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11. Marion McKee and Tristan Gribbin
 Mark Morris and Andrew Sorensen: make the duo Turk and Taylor. The duo
started out designing organic cotton graphic t-shirts then moved into designing
sharp and tailored pieces for both men and women. The duo‟s designs exude a
mid-century modern feel and utilize chic silk lined pieces. They are known for their
blazers and pleated skirts made of hemp and organic cotton.
 Portlander Gretchen Jones: is an up-and-coming green fashion designer that
exudes silent movie glamour through her lines of bamboo dresses, garnished and
embellished headbands and cropped riding jackets. Ms. Jones accessories are
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12. hand crafted by her through using vegetable tanned leather remnants and she
calls her line MothLove.
 Swati Argade: This Indian designer uses hand woven fabrics and has a signature
style of mixing ethnic and bohemian aesthetics that is transformed into an urbane
looking collection. She chooses fabrics and dyes consciously keeping sustainability
as a priority. Swati also goes for recycling, re purposing and up cycling. Last year,
she launched a collection of coats made from recycled bottles and organic cotton
under her „Bhoomki‟ collection.
Coats made by swati argade
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13. Celebrities supporting green fashion:
Livia Firth wearing dress made up Robert Kenner wearing dress made up
of recycled plastics of organic fabric
Suzy Amis Cameron wearing dress made up of hemp Julia Roberts wears a blend of peace silk and hemp silk
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14. Meryl Streep wearing dress made up Demián Bichir wearing TROFEO 600 fabric
of eco-certified fabric which is blend of organic wool and silk
Green Fashion and Carbon Footprints:
Fabrics, believe it or not, have a large carbon footprint. In other words, it takes a lot of
energy to produce fabrics. In the developing world, where the textile industry represents
a larger percentage of GDP and mills are often antiquated, the CO2 emissions are
greater.
In fact, today‟s textile industry is one of the biggest sources of greenhouse gasses on
Earth, due to the huge size and scope of the industry as well as the many processes and
products that go into the making of textiles and finished textile products. Based on
estimated annual global textile production of 60 billion kilograms (KG) of fabric, the
estimated energy and water needed to produce is 1,074 billion KWh of electricity (or 132
million metric tons of coal) and between 6 – 9 trillion liters of water.
There is no question that the current state of the worldwide textile industry is
unsustainable. Accounting for almost one-third of water usage and 4.3 percent of energy
consumption, the present global production of fabrics needs to evolve. No one is more
aware of this than the industry itself. Companies such as Indigreen have been
developing economically and environmentally-efficient technologies. Industry leaders,
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15. such as Bill Fong of Hong Kong based Fong's Industries, have advocated massive
strides towards greater energy efficiency in textile production, pointing out that making
small changes will save money, resources, and the environment.
Environmental groups such as Ecotextile and Carbon Neutral Clothing are trying to
raise awareness about the eco-effects of this industry. As a consumer, we can make a
difference by choosing eco-friendly textiles. Buy hemp, bamboo, and flax-based clothing
and linens. Choose organic cotton over conventional cotton. Don't buy products made
from synthetic fibers. As the demand for sustainable, environmentally-sound textiles
grows, the organic textile farmers, eco-friendly dye companies, and responsible
producers will be able to thrive.
The carbon footprint of the textile industry is just as suffocating as the elephant in the
room. This is a worldwide problem that only a worldwide effort can solve.
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16. BIBLIOGRAPHY:
 ECO Fashion – by Sass Brown
 http://www.stepin.org/casestudy.php?id=ecofashion&page=3
 http://www.brighthub.com/environment/green-living/articles/73624.aspx
 http://oecotextiles.wordpress.com/2009/05/25/carbon-footprint-of-the-textile-
industry/
 http://www.peachygreen.com/going-green/sustainable-fabrics-how-green-are-
your-clothes
 http://www.brighthub.com/environment/green-living/articles/73624.aspx
 http://www.domain-b.com/environment/20090403_carbon_footprint.html
 http://oecotextiles.wordpress.com/2011/01/19/estimating-the-carbon-footprint-of-
a-fabric/
 http://m.vogue.com/voguepedia/green-fashion
 http://www.ecofashionworld.com/EcoFashion-Pulse/FLOURISHING-FIBERS.html
 http://www.swicofil.com/products/016nettle.html
 http://www.all-recycling-facts.com/eco-friendly-clothing.html
 http://www.livbit.com/article/2010/08/03/dpol-the-eco-friendly-and-smarter-way-of-
garment-manufacturing/
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