You may have noticed that my handmade items and my crochet kits use recycled yarns and my patterns are designed around them also. I even use them in my crochet lessons, workshops and courses. I also always mention the recycled yarn brand I'm using on my posts, stories and reels - check out this Instagram hashtag, where you can see them: #lovetocrochetloveourplanet
Do you wonder why I use recycled yarns?
The answer is: because I can! Yarn companies are becoming increasingly aware, that not only are their customers more conscious of the need to craft more sustainably, but that they, as manufacturers and designers of yarn, can produce beautiful yarns from textile waste that would otherwise end up in landfill - and of course, there is pressure on all of us to do our best to protect the future of our planet.
I agree with the yarn companies! I get a buzz out of making and designing something useful, beautiful, durable and desirable from this waste - with the knowledge it will be cherished for a long while (sometimes even as an heirloom piece). The thought of pretty much all my fairly extensive yarn stash being in landfill and knowing that it would only be the tiniest micro tip of the textile waste mountain is enough to spur me on in my mission to help raise awareness of recycled yarn. It fills me with cheer and hope to think you too feel this way, and together we can make a small difference to the future of our planet.
Whilst textile, and in particular clothing, manufacturers continue to overproduce in anticipation of our seemingly insatiable appetite for fast fashion, this textile waste continues.
There are signs that people are changing their purchasing decisions, opting to buy less, buy vintage and preloved (judging by the popularity of apps like Vinted and the growing number of vintage clothing shops and fairs), but we’re a long way from manufacturing only to requirement or need, as buying newly mass produced clothing is still a weekly occurrence for many, in countries like the UK. Fashion is still huge business, with brand new collections each and every season created by haute couture and fashion houses, clothing manufacturers hot on their heels spewing out their toned down clones and bargain copies from factories with little consideration for their workers or the planet.
To be fair, some textile and clothing brands are doing their best to manufacture using pre-consumer waste, but there is still an urgent need to stem the tide of all this overproduction and the associated dumping of the unsold products in landfill, whether it's made from "new" or recycled materials.
As crocheters, in particular, we are in a powerful position to be able to hand make clothing and accessories that will be valued by the purchasers and recipients far above the cheaply made mass produced equivalents. It’s the thought and care that we infuse into every lovingly executed stitch. Remember - there is no machine invented that can produce crochet, only “crochet look-alike” knit - isn’t it marvellous it can’t be mechanically replicated? But, whilst we’re celebrating crochet still having its moment, let's not forget those human “machines” affected by its mass production, proliferated by this “thirst” for fast fashion.
When we hand make with love our fabulous creations, there are many ways in which we can help conserve our planet and secure a sustainable future for our children and grandchildren:
Only buy what we need - resist temptation to buy bargain yarns we don’t have projects in mind for.
Frog those failures! Like artists painting over their discarded daubings to produce masterpieces, we can make something brand new and brilliant from projects that didn’t quite work out.
Consider buying yarn from charity shops - this no longer needed yarn might be exactly what you’ve been looking for. It’s also sometimes possible to even frog a garment found there - for a glorious yarn.
Make informed purchasing decisions - knowledge is power.
Ask yourself what the yarn is made from, how and where was it produced? Did producing it pose a great cost to our environment (think pollution, water, power and land usage, use of fossil fuels and other materials in declining supply) and to the lives of those involved in its manufacture? What dyes give it that glorious hue? Are these fibres, dyes and other additives things you actually want next to your or your loved one’s skin and are they polluting our oceans and killing our wildlife?
There are symbols found on some yarn labels to help guide you - but it’s important to find out what they really mean. Do they meet the standards you hope they would?
If buying “new” yarn, choose recycled yarn whenever it can suit your project. Very often it’s no more expensive and is made from some beautiful original fibres - let’s give them a second chance to show off. As most of these recycled yarns don’t even need to be dyed, the use of water and energy in their manufacture is a huge environmental saving.
To conclude: I’ve set myself the task of finding out more about the recycled yarns generally available, in particular the newly launched ones. The plan is also to review the yarns and maybe design a little pattern to put them through their paces. Naturally, I'll be posting these right here on A heart shaped cherry - stay tuned!