Zero Waste Patterns: 20 Projects to Sew Your Own Wardrobe

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By upcycling or reusing old fabric it reduces our carbon footprint and is so much more cost-effective. However, were you to be making garments from new fabric there are some more sustainable fabric choices for zero waste sewing: eco-friendly textiles that are suitable for zero-waste projects include organic cotton, linen and hemp. A zero waste pattern uses 100% of the fabric, with no scraps or waste. The pattern pieces fit together like a giant jigsaw puzzle within the width of the fabric. Eligibility. You may only submit Materials to the Service for which you hold all intellectual property rights. In other words, if you submit a digital image to us, you must own all rights to such image or you must have the authorization of the person who does own those rights. The Service is limited to parties that lawfully can enter into and form contracts under applicable law. Minors may not submit Materials to the Service. Further, you may not submit any personally identifiable information about any child under the age of 13.

With the exception of some small templates, this zero waste pattern has no pattern pieces. You will draw the pattern directly onto your fabric by following the step-by-step instructions in the pattern booklet and using small templates which you can print easily on your home printer – as you’ve seen the Bees do! Images with automobile license plates that are prominent and easily read (pictures with license plates that have been fuzzed out or that otherwise cannot be read are acceptable). Zero waste will continue to grow with innovation and experimentation. It’s a small part of the bigger picture of using our resources wisely, taking care of the environment, and valuing fabric and clothes. Zero Waste Sewing Pattern Designers Zero waste, as the name implies, is the process of making a garment or item without waste. As home sewists we know how much fabric is wasted in the construction of a garment and the aim is to eliminate this, thereby reducing the amount of fabric sent to landfill (or left languishing in bins in our sewing spaces!). There are two ways of eliminating waste: by utilising an entire piece of fabric in the making of a garment; or using the leftover pieces of fabric to create another, separate, item. This latter concept is not always as easy as it sounds and it will be the subject of a further blog post with exemplars. My Pattern Project dress takes a painstaking four hours to sew, although a professional could make it in an hour. The experience gives me a new appreciation of the skilled stitchwork of millions of unthanked garment workers around the world. “The more you make for yourself, the more you realise the time and effort it takes to make things – and how cheap things are on the high street, compared with how long it takes,” says Azmi. “The value people place on fashion has been diminished because of cost.” The value people place on fashion has been diminished because of cost Atia Azmi

Reusable Sewing Projects for the Kitchen

As mentioned before, it’s very different to think about zero and minimal waste design when creating large amounts of the same pattern at any one time. The reason being you have much more flexibility on how to use up the available fabric; large pattern pieces can be nestled against smaller pattern pieces from a different size of the garment. It’s therefore entirely possible to use a very high percentage of your available fabric (think 90%+) without changing the pattern a great deal. It’s also worth remembering that clothing factories are often using wider fabric sizes than are typically available to the domestic sewing community and so they can fit more along the same length. It might not be the most inspiring of names, but zero waste design has been around for much of humanity’s history. What it ultimately boils down to is the ability to use every last little bit of raw material to create something with. In the case of sewing, that’s using every millimetre of fabric. It’s more or less as simple as that – though it does get a little more complicated when you start thinking about the differences between mass producing clothing and making a single garment at home. There is plenty of support available for newbie sewists, too. The Fashion District festival, a five-day celebration of sustainable fashion that took place last week in Stratford, east London, dedicated a third of this year’s programme to maker workshops, including a tutorial on upcycling scarves into kimonos, hosted by the community interest company Trashion Factory. “There’s a huge appetite for people to be involved in their own fashion,” says Helen Lax, the festival’s founder. “This is a different incarnation of the good life. Rather than just following a pattern, the maker community is going off-grid and having a go. It’s about being able to take control of your style.”

Lauren at Elbe textiles is a massive fan of sustainable sewing, and she has a wonderful free tutorial how to make a zero waste robe – find it here. Have you discovered zero-waste sewing yet? It has been a hot topic with sewists for some time now, with loads of stitchers giving it a go to see what all the fuss is about. The theme was ‘Reduce Reuse Recycle’ and all nine contestants had to make three garments. The challenges included making a zero-waste pattern for a pair of trousers, upcycling tote bags into a wearable garment, and a made-to-measure outfit using secondhand crocheted blankets to fit a model. Take a look at our sewing pattern suggestions below, we’ve tried to find the exact patterns used but where we haven’t been able to we have plenty of suggestions so that you can recreate these looks at home for your handmade wardrobe. Kate also talks through her favourite pattern options from the episode on YouTube in our special mid-week sewing bee vlog. Schnitten Patterns have two zero waste patterns and I’m definitely going to give them a try. What seems to be different about these patterns is that you get an actual pattern and one size fits most.While not always included in "zero waste fashion", a large part of having a low carbon footprint in your closet is appreciating second hand or thrifted clothing. Reducing “fashion miles” – the distance a garment and its component parts travel through the supply chain – is also on the sewists’ agenda. The starting point for the newly opened Mend Assembly in Totnes, Devon – a two‑storey centre offering a makers’ space, dressmaking workshops, repairs and upcycling – was “clothing localism”, says its co-founder, Joss Whipple. The obvious benefit of zero waste patterns is, of course, no scraps. At the beginning of 2020, I decided I would only make zero waste patterns from now on. The following year I reviewed how much scrap fabric I was generating. In fact, I was still creating scraps, but they were all of the rectangular useable type. They were the ends of pieces of fabric I already had or where I’d bought fabric online and had to buy in quarter-meter increments. Remnants are only waste if we don’t use them, but these are all very useable. Using a Zero Waste Sewing Pattern In both the sewing books, the patterns are for a range of sizes though some patterns will have limitations, and the books outline this. These books are wonderful ways to get into zero waste sewing, and once you've sewn one up, you'll begin to understand the process to be able to adapt or even create a zero waste sewing pattern yourself! What I do know is that now I have at least ten of these projects ear-marked on my list to make soon!

If you are wanting to try zero waste without outlaying any money for patterns, here is a list of free zero waste patterns:Zero waste is a term which has slowly percolated through the sewing community in the last few years, but it’s been around for as long as clothes themselves, with bog coats and authentic Japanese Kimonos possibly being the most common examples. Fabric was once a precious commodity and both utilitarian and luxurious garments were made with minimal waste, using squares and rectangles. Many of the modern zero waste patterns for home sewists utilise this same technique and it works well. However, once people desire more shape and therefore curves, zero waste becomes problematic and requires more creativity and lateral thinking. There are relatively few modern zero-waste sewing patterns available; I estimate there are somewhere between 100 and 200, but likely closer to 100. As patternmakers get used to this way of making patterns and get better and better at it, we will see more patterns and interesting garments. Additionally, you can use the Image Notes feature to highlight one or more interesting areas in your image. Everyone will see your notes when they roll over your image. These projects are just a few of the fun and fashionable ways to embrace sustainability. Making use of your extra fabric, or creating items from other misfit materials, are some of the ways you can practice zero-waste sewing. Plus, these patterns are a great way to improve your sewing skills with items you already have at home.