Ethically Sourced Clothing | How We Source Our Materials

 

The fabrics we use at Forage Design are hand selected. We travel to India each year to choose from large markets in Delhi. The main market is called Shanti Mohalla, a 1.5-hour journey for us through the smoke, noise, and bedlam of New Delhi traffic! 

 Through a maze of narrow alleyways containing shops of every shape and size crammed on top of each other, rolls of fabrics line the streets. 

Many shops are so small, they just about perch in doorways with their business owners sat on piles of folded chiffon. Some shops have store rooms around the corner, and often require you to climb over heaps of textiles, then tug rolls of fabric from a mountain of cotton to find the colours and patterns hidden at the bottom!

Surplus markets provide overstock of cotton, lace chiffon, lycra and other textiles left over from large-scale manufacturers. These end-of-roll textiles feel more precious! Not only does this enable Forage Design to give new life to a waste product, but you never know what you may find from one day to the next. Sourcing materials this way means that we never know exactly how much of a certain colour we will get, and once it’s gone, it’s gone!

Recycled riches

The rich variety of materials we are able to work with are inspiring in themselves, and while we head to India each year with new designs in mind, it is not until we are here touching and feeling these textiles that the inspiration starts to flow! 

We have cut clothing patterns from old, recycled saris, silks and fleece blankets, you never know what you will come across and what ideas it will give you!

 

So, what about recreating the same designs year after year? Well, sometimes we can’t! Even with a plain black jersey material, slight colour variations may occur. We trust that our customers are understanding of the circumstances; ethically, sustainably sourcing our fabrics means that the exact shade may vary occasionally, and that its part of what makes the product unique.

For us, what’s really painful is when finding a beautiful roll of fabric that is lovely to feel, has a gorgeous pattern and the best colour, which the customers love… and knowing we may not be able to find it again. It makes it all the more important for us to keep heading out to markets, exploring new places and getting new ideas. 

Find out more about the story of our products and the people who make them in our Meet The Makers section 

For unique clothing made with hand-selected fabrics, browse through our clothing collection. 

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