Your Complete Guide on the 7Rs of Sustainable Fashion

As someone doing their best to embrace an eco-friendly lifestyle, it can be frustrating to feel like an unwilling participant in the fashion industry's destructive tendencies. Although you're familiar with the 3Rs—reduce, reuse, recycle— there's also the 7Rs of sustainable fashion.

In addition to the 3Rs, which have been part of the school curriculum for decades, experts have developed a few more ideas to be more sustainable in our clothing choices. The 7 Rs are rethink, refuse, reduce, reuse, repair, recycle, and rot.

This article discusses the importance of each principle and how we can implement it. But first, let's highlight…

The global fashion consumption problem

The fashion industry's social and environmental impact is a worldwide problem. In producer communities, garment workers suffer unjust labor practices, while lax regulation allows factories to pollute the environment with toxic chemicals. These practices significantly risk the health of humans, wildlife, and nonliving environments.

The global West accounts for the highest amount of the world's fashion consumption, making them most responsible for encouraging the damaging popularity of fashion. Most unwanted clothes find their way to low-income countries. They form trash mountains there because of a used-clothing glut.

The fast fashion industry is responsible for encouraging a buy-to-dispose culture. Manufacturers produce more than they can sell and throw away 10 to 40% of never worn clothes yearly. Consumers buy shoddily made clothes just to hop on a trend, and in a few months, both the trend and the clothes are done with it forever. They throw away an astonishing 92 million tons of clothes yearly⁴.

The fashion industry also accounts for a significant amount of global energy consumption. It takes 1.35% of the world's fossil fuels to produce enough synthetic fibers to meet yearly global demand. Fast fashion's selfish exploitation of raw materials puts natural resources under unsustainable pressure. The industry puts freshwater resources under pressure through overconsumption and pollution³.

The fashion situation is dire but not hopeless. With deliberate, consistent changes throughout the supply chain, we can all enjoy fashion without endangering the planet. We expect brands to make durable clothing in the most eco-friendly ways. However, it is up to the consumer to buy garments with the intention of using them for years or decades.

7 Principles for Sustainable Fashion

Jump into the following principles and adopt them as much as you can:

1. Rethink

The first step in the 7Rs of Sustainable Fashion involves only our minds. The fashion industry today is primarily fast fashion, which involves cheap apparel with short lifespans at whatever cost to people and the environment. Therefore, to make sustainable choices, you must intentionally go against the flow. The first step is to assess your mindset about fashion and change any ways of thinking that fuel unsustainable consumption habits.

Celebrities and social media influencers convince many people that wearing a piece of clothing twice is uncool. If you feel that way, change your fashion role models to people who make it cool to repeat outfits. Remember, you need to wear a garment at least 30 times to stand a chance of sustainable use.

Critically examining your reasons for making a new purchase could reveal that fast-fashion trends are influencing you. In a study, 38% of the American respondents admitted to impulsively purchasing clothes they never wore. The sustainable approach to fashion prioritizes long-term value over temporary satisfaction. 

Additionally, you should move from viewing clothing as playthings to viewing them as assets. Clothes can become valuable vintage items, just like jewelry or paintings. So, you must consider the durability of the material and style of a garment. Otherwise, the chances of using it for a long time or giving it a second life through donations or recycling are quite low.

Ways to rethink:

• Change mindset toward fashion.
• Change people you follow for fashion inspiration.
• Do not let fast fashion trends influence you.
• Look at clothes as assets.

2. Refuse

You can refuse to participate in unsustainable fashion consumption by turning down unnecessary fashion freebies and refusing to patronize unsustainable brands.

It is common to receive clothing items like T-shirts and caps from businesses as promotional gifts. The lure of free things is strong, but these gifts often end up in the landfill after a few or no wears because of quality and utility issues. According to the Advertising Specialty Institute, only 21% of people who receive promo gifts keep them, and 23% throw them away. Companies even throw away some promo clothing because they have made new designs.

Refusing promo clothing keeps your wardrobe clutter-free. It also encourages companies to consider more eco-friendly promotional strategies, like giving experiences instead of another branded cap.

Your money is your voice in the retail world. When you buy from a brand, you say you support its practices. In a recent survey, 66% of U.S. respondents say they patronize brands that reflect their personal values. If you patronize fast-fashion brands, you encourage and finance their unsustainable operations.

Brands depend on consumers for profitability, so you can use your purchase choices to speak against destroying the environment.

Ways to refuse:

• Say no to garment freebies.
• Stop supporting unsustainable brands.

3. Reduce

Don't make the mistake of buying clothes indiscriminately, thinking that if you just donate or recycle them, you'll cancel out the carbon footprint. Donating or recycling textiles is not as sustainable as reducing how much you buy in the first place. 

Clothing manufacturing is energy-intensive and consumes a lot of raw materials. The more you buy, the more products brands manufacture. Slowing down fashion manufacturing is best for the environment because it reduces resource consumption and encourages the production of quality goods.

Reducing your purchases leaves you with more money to buy quality garments. These investment pieces will last much longer than fast-fashion products. Make sure your fashion choices reflect your personal style; you'll keep items that make you feel and look confident around for longer.

Do you feel like you have nothing to wear every morning? Sometimes, a critical look at your wardrobe may reveal a styling problem you can fix with the help of a stylist. You can find styling tutorials online, too, at no cost.

Additionally, consider renting your outfit if you have a special event, such as a wedding or a red carpet-event. It is cheaper than buying a new outfit, and you can dress as fancy as you want without leaving a significant environmental footprint. Lastly, avoid impulse buys and shop for thrift clothing often.

Ways to reduce:

• Only buy the best quality garments.
• Purchase clothes that fit your style. Hire a stylist if needed.
• Rent outfits.
• Shop at thrift stores.

4. Reuse

Sometimes, people wear garments seven to ten times before throwing them in the trash because they went out of style or were damaged. Those damages are often repairable, and the garments can be altered into new styles.

Circular fashion says we ought to give clothes as many lives as they can bear until they are too damaged to wear. If you don't want a clothing item, pass it on. The easiest way to do this is to exchange clothes with loved ones or donate your old garments to those in need in your locality. You can also resell your unwanted fashion items through consignment and thrift stores.

Just as you would like others to accept it when you resell your own clothes, you must also embrace pre-loved items. Keeping previously owned clothing in circulation can reduce the carbon footprint of fast fashion by 90%². However, social embarrassment is the biggest pushback against second-hand shopping¹.

Before you resell or donate old clothing and household textiles, consider repurposing them. Repurposing items can be fun and budget-friendly. Need a purse? Make one from unused or ripped leather bags. You can turn old t-shirts into quilts, totes, and even braided carpets. Mix the old wool sweater scraps with new wool roving to make wool dryer balls.

Ways to reuse:

• Use your clothes as much as you can.
• Repurpose clothes into another item.
• Give, donate, or resell clothes you don't want.
• Receive or buy pre-loved clothes.

5. Repair

It's typical for garments, even quality ones, to develop faults during active use. But you can't just throw them away because one of the essential principles of sustainability is keeping items in use for as long as possible. Discarding and replacing clothes at the slightest inconvenience leads to overconsumption and waste.

Learning how to repair your own clothes is the next step in your sustainable fashion game. A loose button, ripped seams, or holes in your favorite sweater? Get a thread and needle, and you'll have it fixed quickly. You can even get a domestic sewing machine to make repairs more straightforward and faster. If you don't want to do it yourself, find local tailors to help you. Some fashion brands even offer repair services on their products.

Follow care label instructions to avoid irreparable damage. A sure-fire laundry hack is to wash with cold water and dry garments outside in the shade. Proper care for your clothes, even the cheap ones, will make them last longer than average.

Ways to repair:

• Learn basic clothing repair skills.
• Find a repair service near you.
• Follow care label instructions to avoid damage.

6. Recycle

Just like the final step of the 3Rs, the 7Rs of sustainable fashion also have recycling. It is the best disposal method when clothing reaches the end of its useful life–the yarn is weak, the color is gone, and there are unremovable stains. Recycling old clothes gives new life to already-extracted materials and reduces the dependency on virgin resources. It also reduces waste that goes to landfills.

Recycling in the fashion industry isn't always a closed-loop system. Most clothing items are a mix of materials that cannot be separated or processed together. Often, recyclers downcycle clothing into insulation, cleaning cloths, stuffing, and carpets. Only a minuscule 0.3% of clothing comes from recycled textiles. That's why you'll find most recycled polyester cones from plastic bottles rather than old polyester garments. However, recycling technologies are improving, and we'll see more innovation in the industry. 

Almost all our garments and accessories are recyclable, but only 12% of them are recycled⁵. You can encourage more investments in the recycling industry by buying items made from recycled materials. Some people think recycled products are lower quality than those made with new materials. That is a myth.

Clothing recycling options are usually not available curbside. You'll have to research for a facility to take your old garments. Getting the clothes to the facility might cost a little money, but protecting the planet is worth it.

Ways to recycle:

• Buy clothes using recycled fabrics or materials.
• Research and drop off clothes at nearby recycling centers,

7. Rot

When natural fiber clothing reaches its end of life, has been reused, and is unsuitable for recycling, you should follow the last of the 7Rs of sustainable fashion: rot. Put the clothes in your compost bin or at an industrial composting facility. That's much better than sending it to landfills, where biodegradation happens too slowly, encouraging methane release.

Compostable fabrics must be 100% natural fibers, including the threads; otherwise, they won't biodegrade completely, making them unsafe for composting. When buying clothes, choose biodegradable fabrics whenever possible. They are much more environmentally friendly at the disposal stage than synthetics, which don't biodegrade and will remain in the environment for up to 500 years. Synthetics break down into toxic microplastics.

Remember, turning clothes into compost is a last resort when reuse and recycling options are not feasible. 

Ways to rot:

• Choose biodegradable fabrics.
• Add clothes to compost bins.
• Send clothes to composting facilities.

Extra R: Research

The 7Rs of sustainable fashion above are good enough to help you build an environmentally friendly wardrobe. However, for good measure, here's an extra R: Research.

There's a lot you need to know if you want to make more sustainable fashion choices. You need information about the social and environmental impact of the item you wish to purchase. What are the brand's manufacturing standards and labor practices? Do they use safe materials? Are the garments durable? 

Nowadays, brands share information on how their production practices affect people and the environment. You can find the information online and on product labels. You've got to watch out for greenwashing; many brands make false statements about their sustainability. You need to verify from 

Websites like us, TRVST, The Good Trade, and Good on You provide an unbiased overview of fashion brands that produce locally, manufacture sustainably, and pay fair wages. Social media is also a good place to find out where other eco-conscious consumers buy clothes and get trustworthy reviews.

Conclusion: 7Rs of Sustainable Fashion

Building a sustainable wardrobe by following the 7 R's is an essential part of sustainable living. Our clothes incur significant environmental costs regarding resource consumption, waste generation, and pollution. It also affects the quality of life of people and communities along the supply chain.

If the world isn't careful, it will wear its resources into extinction. Consuming fashion slowly with the least pressure on the environment is the only way to secure a more sustainable future. Reread this post again whenever you need practical tips to live a greener life through your fashion choices.