‘Buy Less, Chose Well and Make it Last’ - Lark and Sustainability
This Monday the Lark Team headed down to the NEC Birmingham for the CHSI Stitches: The UK’s Trade Show for the Creative Craft Industry!
After winding down the M50 in the Lark-mobile, we arrived at the NEC for a fun-filled day of meeting craft suppliers and attending insightful industry talks! Thank you so much to Stylecraft for inviting us.
Our highlight of the day? (No…it wasn’t the £6.50 sandwiches!) . We loved the ‘Sustainable Textiles, Saving the Planet and Surviving in Business’ talk led by Jane Makeower. Drawing on the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Jane talked through the steps retailers should be taking to address the climate crisis issues that are unfortunately worsened by the textiles industry.
In 2022, everyone working with textiles has the opportunity to act differently. Textiles and fashion will use up ¼ of the world's carbon budget by 2050, which is more than the impact of flying. Textile dye is the second largest polluter of clean water in the world.
But there’s hope! According to McKinsey & Co, 75% of consumers now factor in sustainability when making a purchase. Jane outlined a 3 point sustainable action plan for craft businesses:
Buy and sell more eco-friendly materials - including recycled fibers.
Know where our fabric has come from.
Encourage and celebrate responsible consumption.
So what steps can Lark and our lovely customers take to encourage sustainability in our crafting?
Get Listening: I’m sure a lot of us know the beloved Patrick Grant (The Great British Sewing Bee). But did you know he’s a huge anti fast fashion activist? In his podcast for BBC Sounds, Grant investigates sustainable businesses. This is a great drive-home listen for anyone keen to learn a bit more! Find it here.
Put those sewing skills to use! Anyone that’s been to a Lark beginners sewing has the power in their hands to mend and repair their old clothes, instead of throwing them away. Following the SCAP (Sustainable Clothing Action Plan 2020) guide, its proved that mending and keeping clothes longer is one of the best ways we can lower our carbon footprint.
Consider your craft materials: I’m sure we’ve all fallen victim to over-buying our craft materials! But small steps can really make a difference; use up your materials in your craft stash before buying new, and check yarn and fabric amounts needed on your patterns before buying to prevent waste! We’ve also got a previous blog post here about buying fabrics.
Let Lark know!
We’re keen to bring the ideas from CHSI’s talk to our Cardiff studio. If you’re interested in a ‘make and mend’ sewing workshop at Lark, let us know via this survey, as well as any other thoughts you might have!