As warm beams of sunlight shine through the skylight at Mayfair House Hotel and Garden in Miami, attendees of the Little River Flea wander from stall to stall, rummaging through bins, looking for the next thing to add to their closets. Racks of colorful clothing, 1920s jewelry, and handmade pieces decorate the hotel’s second-floor terrace. Leafy plants and pools of water highlight the theme of the flea market, connecting the fashion-inclined to sustainable outlets for clothes and jewelry.
While most fashion today is made of synthetic materials, some small businesses are intentionally using natural fibers in an effort to tap into sustainable fashion trends, giving consumers a more ethical choice and “encouraging people to buy things that they actually really, really want,” says Nadezhda Amé, co-owner of Kasiopya, a slow-fashion brand based in Miami.
Currently, the fashion industry is worth $1.79 trillion, and global fiber production continues to grow as well; it is expected that by 2030, 148 million tons of fiber will be manufactured. It’s not just trendy, Amé says, but about “something that’s supposed to last them for generations.”
However, that is not the case with the many items of clothing we find in malls and online. Fashion trends continue to oversaturate social media, making it hard for people to stay trendy and find pieces that they will want to wear continuously. At present, 7% of our global landfill waste is occupied by clothing and textiles, equalling 92 million tons of fabric waste being created annually.
Fast fashion brands are responsible for 10 percent of global carbon emissions and are the second-largest consumers of freshwater. The use of synthetic materials contributes significantly to microplastic pollution and oil consumption. Their use of natural fibers is just as harmful, as they are grown under negligent practices, deforestation and the degradation of the soil tend to follow, further polluting the land with pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.
The history of fabrics
Companies continue to invest in synthetic fibers and fiber blends due to their durability, cheap manufacturing, and easy care. In 1939, nylon hit the market and took the world by storm. In the 1950’s polyester came onto the scene and by the 2000’s synthetic fibers surpassed natural fibers in global production. Though these fibers seem like a blessing, the degredation of quality and craftsmanship is seen more and more.
Beginning in the mid-2000’s the slow fashion movement, a term coined by Kate Fletcher an expert in sustainability and design, began to take place. Discussions on sweatshop labor, textile waste, and overconsumption were heard everywhere, yet it feels like much hasn’t changed.
“In the collective cultural consciousness, fashion is consumption, materialism, commercialisation and marketing,” said Fletcher in a 2012 blog post, “it is expected that these same products will look dated and stylistically incongruous in six months; it is usual to discard rather than repair.”
Though these sentiments were written 13 years ago, they still ring true.
The process
For small, slow-fashion-centered companies, it’s more about how they can make pieces that will last for generations and reduce the impact on the environment.
Born and raised in Miami, Fla, 28-year-old Nadezhda Amé started Kasyopia with her mother Tabitha Thomas in 2020.
Thomas is the sole seamstress, designer and manufacturer, using scrap fabric whenever and wherever she can. She creates unique patterns and textures on their pieces. What makes the brand different is that they almost exclusively use silk for all of their garments and use natural materials to dye and print their fabric.
The birthing process for one article of clothing takes roughly two days. Using upcycled, deadstock, antique or occasionally outsourced fabric from Dharam Trading Co., the process begins with hand-cutting the pattern and sewing it together. To dye their clothes, the pair will either use botanical printing or protein-based dyes to stain their pieces.
“With botanical printing, we use all locally grown plants, aside from eucalyptus,” explained Amé. “So it’s all Miami-grown plants and flowers and leaves. We take the plant, we lay out our design, then we bundle, wrap it, and we boil it in our homemade mordant .”
Their process for using protein-based dyes is the same, except they paint the chemical-free dye onto the silk.
“We can literally make any kind of color that’s from our protein-based dyes, and it kind of looks like watercolor painting,” said Amé.
The timeframe to stain the clothes is between 7 and 12 hours; the results are something out of a fairytale.
Villa Melina, owned by 26-year-old Natalia Avila, is a New York and Miami -based sustainable fashion brand, boasting timeless designs and ethically made pieces, their garments are made from 100 percent Peruvian natural fibers. Beginning as a side business, the brand was conceptualized as a way for Avila to connect to her Peruvian heritage and as a creative outlet.
“We only work with other small businesses in Peru to manufacture all of our cotton,” said Avila.
Starting her company in 2022, Avila has built up her business around sustainability and community, using Bergman Rivera for fabric sourcing and a family-owned factory in Lima, Peru, to put together her pieces.
Avlia has designed her garments with modern silhouettes while incorporating vintage styles such as bell sleeves, by having a “less is more” mentality, she can create a reasonable price range for her customers and create less waste while producing her pieces.
“The women that we design for, they’re not looking for something to wear and then throw away…they want to keep it for a long time,” said Avila.
To further the notion of giving back to her country, Villa Melina donates five percent of their revenue to Accíon Andina, a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring the Andean forests in Peru and other South American countries.
How sustainable is sustainable?
The limited number of pieces created, the price point and the speed at which trends change may deter customers from buying from these sustainable fashion brands.
Natural fibers also have their issues to contend with; arguments of certain textiles not being vegan, such as wool and silk, drive some people away, and growing fibers such as cotton have their drawbacks as well.
“Natural fibers are not the end-all,” Deborah Young, a textile expert based in Los Angeles. “I mean, for example, the cotton industry uses a lot of pesticides and too much water. So just because it’s natural doesn’t mean it’s always good for us.”
Yes, synthetic fiber harms the environment, but there are start-up companies that are focused on recycling these fibers to not only reduce the pollution they create, but also limit how much virgin synthetic fibers are being created.
“The technical definition of sustainability is using up resources without compromising the future, and polyester doesn’t meet that criteria because we’re using up fossil fuels… that said, it’s the most recyclable fiber of all,” explained Young. “When we talk about sustainability, we have so many lenses that we can look at, you know.”
More bang for your buck
In reality, buying from these businesses is more expensive than buying from fast fashion outlets, however, the difference in value is what makes it worth it. By supporting these small businesses, you are not only supporting your community but also receiving clothes that are better for you and will last for years to come.
“People wonder…why is it this price? Well, it’s silk,” says Amé. “We literally grow the plants ourselves. We gather the plants ourselves. It takes this amount of time for all of that to actually come together. I think that my mom stuck with natural fibers from the very beginning, because that’s what her skin wanted.”
Social media and consumerism have distorted our view of fashion and how it affects our planet.
“The actual raw material that goes into our production is natural and is biodegradable and is better for you and the planet,” Avlia explained, “Whatever you spend money on is your vote for the type of…industry you want to support, so it’s just really important that we are…very intentional about how we spend our dollars.”
