Sustainable Holiday Gifts Made from Surplus Fabric
Every garment starts as a length of cloth, and making it leaves a little something behind. Some of that is scraps from cutting. Sometimes it's whole yards of fabric we ordered ahead of time, expecting to sell more than we did.
This holiday season, for the first time, we're featuring a collection of gifts designed around putting all of that to good use, and we're so excited to show you. You'll also find a few pieces designed with the holidays in mind, though of course you can wear them all year long.
Why Does Fabric Get Left Over?
Here's the behind-the-scenes version. Most of our fabric is hand printed, and it can take 6 to 8 weeks to make. We work with small, often family-owned businesses, and their capacity is limited, so there's no rushing it.
That means we have to order fabric long before we know what you'll want. It's a bit like ordering food for a party before anyone has RSVP'd. We do it so you're not stuck waiting, but sometimes we end up with extra yardage, and it can strain our cash flow too. It's a real balancing act, and honestly one of the least talked-about parts of making clothes responsibly.
We could have let that fabric sit on a shelf or discarded it. Instead, we decided to design with it.
Putting It to Work
The Nidra Robe was made for our larger pieces of extra fabric. We overdye the cloth to give it a rich, coordinating look, so a surplus print turns into something artistic and totally new.
Our Chindi collection takes the idea even further, and yes, it's a lot of work. Our team gathers the scraps left over from production and sorts them by color family and size. Some become hats, bags and other small gifts. The larger pieces become garments like the Nandika Jacket and the Rushila Tunic. Because each piece is made from whatever we have, no two are quite alike.
Necklaces, and a Brand-New Skill
And then there are the necklaces, which started with a simple question: what could we do with strips of knit fabric. Answer: Necklaces. They're made from strips of knit fabric and crocheted by the artisans, who learned crochet at the start of this project. They've had such a good time making them, and we think you can see the joy in every stitch.
A Gift With a Good Story
Every gift in this collection carries a little extra meaning. It's made from fabric that might otherwise have gone unused, by artisans who are learning and growing, and it supports the small family businesses that make our cloth.
Out of challenges come creativity, and we love seeing what each year brings. Happy Holidays, and Happy gifting!
