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Fast fashion is a leading cause of global waste, second only to oil & gas. Also, cotton that is widely used is one of the most resource-intensive crops to grow, and the dyeing process contributes to mass consumption of freshwater. The fashion industry alone produces approximately 20% of global wastewater, and I won’t even start on the thousands of chemicals involved. Now with this in mind, the damage is far greater if we consider all of the materials used on our furniture pieces, pillows, curtains, etc.

So what are some steps we can take to reduce our impact on the environment?

Have you ever looked at the clothes you love, perhaps your closet staples or your favourite leggings and noticed that they are showing signs of wear? Maybe it’s your custom upholstered sofa that’s looking a wee ragged these days.

Pilling, excessive fuzziness, crackled silkscreens, faded prints, and loss of softness is actually all preventable, and sometimes even treatable.

If you have a minimalist home, love a few staples that fit you perfectly, or simply don’t want to buy new items, you’ve come to the right place.

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I wanted to look into what we can do to minimize our impact on the planet, without going into any extreme methods of changing our lifestyles. One of the more simple methods came to mind right away, and that starts in out own homes.

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 “…the average American throws away approximately 80 pounds of clothing and textiles annually”

Bio Med Central

Take better care of your textiles and reduce your impact on the planet!

Read the Care Tag On Your Garment

It is the 101 on best care practices for your item.

To find it: For pants, this tag is often sewn under the waistband or down the leg on the thigh. For shirts, this can be found either behind the tag behind the neck, or sewn near the bottom of the shirt on the side seam.

Sometimes tags will only have symbols, which can be annoying if you don’t know what they mean. Here is an infographic of common symbols you can find on these tags:

Washing

Generally, I only wash my clothes in cold water as it consumes less energy, helps to maintain textile fibers and prevent shrinkage. When I worked on custom homes, my appliance supplier taught me that the occasional wash in hot water will break down the detergent residue left behind in a washer that can contribute to weird odours. So, why not hit two birds with one stone? (Please be kind to your local birds.) I only use the warm/hot water to keep my washer clean and simultaneously wash my towels, as they don’t seem to mind the abuse.

Another reason why washing in cold water is beneficial, is that maintaining fibers means that they stay in place. Tiny, loose fibers and microplastics that come loose in the washer all end up down the drain and eventually in our water. I don’t imagine that salmon fillet sounds as appealing with an abundance of microplastics inside of it.

Also, always make sure to flip decorated pieces inside out. This includes all prints, silk-screen, embroidery, patches, etc. as it keeps them safe from tugging and rubbing against other items in your washer.

Drying

The only time I use the dryer are for old shirts that I use for PJ’s, towels, and bed sheets. There has been times when I put something in the dryer following all instructions, and yet the item is noticeably less structured than it used to be. Maybe it’s because I have an old, basic dryer! Regardless, generally, the less friction and heat your clothing faces, the better off it’ll be.

Have you ever had the artwork on a graphic tee quickly start crackling?

This was likely a result of the heat from the dryer, unevenly shrinking the paint and causing it to split. Air dry your printed fabrics to avoid this.

If you have the space to air dry your clothing, this is probably the best approach to keeping your textile fibers as well as your prints intact.

If you must use a dryer, invest in dryer balls as fabric softening dryer sheets cause more damage to your fabrics (and dryer) over time. The chemical residue left on your fabrics reduces breathability and makes it sticky, to pick up more lint. This also means that towels are left less absorbent, and less fluffy. That’s not ideal!

Key Takeaways:

• Follow all care tag instructions
• Wash in cold water as much as possible.
• Flip your decorated items inside out
• Air dry your clothes when you can!
• Keep fabrics soft by using dryer balls

Get Fabric Defuzzer

Goodbye pilling! Defuzzers are incredible.

What a defuzzer does, is it shaves off pilling and other pieces of fuzz which are no longer woven into the original fabric. This is all a part of natural wear and tear and can only be avoided to a certain degree, especially if you wear something often.

Let me demonstrate. Here are photos of my beanie, before and after defuzzing.

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Mine does it’s job, however I actually do NOT recommend buying the same one I have, because of one really obvious design flaw on it. There is an exposed screw head in the middle of the shaver head behind the screen, and there is a hole that aligns with the screw so it occasionally catches on larger tufts and can cause some damage. I took the screen off and put a dab of hot glue onto the center, to block the opening that aligns to the screw behind. Hopefully this will hold and prevent any further damage.

So I did some research and found a defuzzer that actually does not have a menacing screw problem, and includes everything you want in a defuzzer in case you need one.

The Conair CLS2TC Defuzzer has it all: USB rechargable battery, fuzz catcher, power, and ergonomic design. One other perk to this is that there is an adjustable head distance to customize how close of a shave you want, which is helpful for more delicate fabrics.

This can be used to freshen up the fuzzy sweaters, remove pills from the insides of your leggings, and remove the tufts from upholstery.

Always test your fabric with the defuzzer in a hidden spot to make sure that it won’t destroy anything! Also always look at the instruction booklet that comes with the device.

Key takeaway:

• A defuzzer is a fantastic investment if you like to prolong the life of your textiles.

Fold Materials Properly to Avoid Creasing in Weird Places

This is one of my favourites because it’s so simple!

If you fold them right, your clothes will always look their best. (Paraphrased and translated)

My mom

Folded material is less likely to have problematic wrinkles, and over time help to maintain the structural integrity of the fibers.

via GIPHY

Not only does nice folding prolong the life of your materials, it also makes sure that they are ready for when you need them.

Have you ever pulled something out of your closet, thinking it would be the perfect item to complete your outfit, only to have it be creased in all the wrong places? Then you washed it, and once it dried those same creases had not completely disappeared? The horror! (Especially when you don’t own an iron or a steamer.) It was probably improperly folded to get this way, and sat there for a very long time.

If you don’t have an iron or a steamer, maybe you’ve used your hair flat iron instead. You should get a steamer though, because they’re less technical to use than an iron, and do not require an ironing board.

If you are looking for a steamer, this is the unit I have, and I highly recommend it. It is travel-sized, so it will only do around two complete long sleeve shirts at a time, but have some water nearby for quick refilling and you’re all set. You can also take this with you if you’re going somewhere that requires you to look sleek. Just make sure to keep it upright when turned on!

Keeping your items folded and crease-free ensures that they are ready to go when you want them, and also ensure that they look their best for a long time. A quick YouTube tutorial will teach you how to fold anything and everything!

Key Takeaways:

• Follow all care tag instructions
• Wash in cold water as much as possible.
• Flip your decorated items inside out
• Air dry your clothes when you can!
• Keep fabrics soft by using dryer balls
• Use a defuzzer to prolong the life of your textiles.
• Remove wrinkles and fold properly.