Upcycling has become apart of our cultural moment. With a quick search on google or a scroll on instagram, you can find a plethora of ways to upcycle your scraps into something new. But with this on the rise, we want to emphasize that upcycling isn’t just a trend, but a necessary part of our future.
Multiple industries, including the fashion industry, generate a substantial amount of waste and deplete natural resources. It’s essential for us to reuse the materials we have without demanding new resources to be made. This is the reason why we've used Upcycled Leather in our past collection and can’t wait to continue doing so.
When tackling the conversation around leather, we understand that it’s like unraveling a large ‘ethical knot’. But having conversations like these are necessary to our sustainable development, so let’s address a few topics:
- Traditional leather manufacturing leads to harmful environmental effects, animal exploitation, and labor trafficking.
- Faux leather, also known as synthetic or artificial leather, is typically made from plastic materials.
- Artisanal leather goods can be an effective way for indigenous communities to generate income.
The conversation around each of these topics is immense and should be engaged. And after much thought, we believe using upcycled leather can address some of these issues because:
- Our Upcycled Leather scraps are created as by-product from larger leather goods companies. Meaning that we’re diverting waste and not creating new demand.
- Since the products are still leather, they’re actually biodegradable compared to other leather alternatives made from plastic.
- We have an amazing opportunity to have artisans be apart of our earring manufacturing process. Read more about this here.
This material may not be perfect. But we’re excited to be apart of changing the narrative happening in the fashion industry by experimenting with new materials and offering precious resources a new life. Plus, the scrap we create when cutting out our earrings is donated to local art teachers to teach and encourage kids to reuse material. Because once (or twice) is not enough!
- Jazmine, Sustainability Consultant
