![IMG_4252 IMG_4252](https://www.circularglasgow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/IMG_4252.jpg)
Sewing, Sustainably
Bawn Textiles is a small independent sewing shop in the Southside of Glasgow specialising in sustainable fashion fabrics and haberdashery. Founded in 2020 by textile specialist and conservator Bevan O’Daly, the business stands out for its commitment to sustainable sourcing in the face of notoriously obscure global textile supply chains. Bawn believes that sewing is for everybody and encourages its customers to cultivate a more circular relationship with textiles through creative making, repair and reuse.
CIRCULAR RESULTS
Rejecting disposability culture: Helping customers have long-lasting, informed relationships with textiles. Promoting design and mending skills that allow materials to be used and adapted over and over. Implementing a swap box to keep pre-loved materials circulating.
Rethinking resources: Avoiding all fossil-fuel based fabrics to prevent contribution to global plastic pollution. Choosing single-fibre fabrics where possible to increase the ease of future recycling.
Collaboration: Joining with local businesses to found the Fair Fashion Collective, promoting sustainable and circular fashion in the Southside of Glasgow.
HOW THEY DID IT
In the context of a global fashion industry that perpetuates major environmental and social harms, Bawn aims to connect sewers to textile supply chains they can believe in. Avoiding highly-polluting fossil-fuel based fibres, the shop offers an array of natural fibre fabrics which meet certified industry standards such as the Global Organic Textile Standard and Responsible Wool Standard. Its curated selection of timeless colours and patterns are intended to ensure that any garment created will be loved for many lifetimes, not just for a trend season.
Bawn encourages its customers to have creative and long-lasting relationships with textiles, pushing back against a ‘throw away’ fast-fashion culture. The shop’s fabric and haberdashery stock is complemented by books on circular design, zero-waste sewing, and mending techniques. Pop-up workshops held in-store also focus on skills like darning, empowering participants to extend the longevity of their garments at home. Meanwhile, a swap box in store allows customers to easily pass on pre-loved sewing supplies to others, preventing waste and unnecessary consumption of new materials.
In 2023, Bawn joined with several other small businesses in the Southside to found the Fair Fashion Collective. Members are united by their commitment to promoting circular and sustainable approaches to fashion, and they work together to share knowledge, skills and resources. They also collaborate to engage the public through communications and events and in 2024 successfully ran the inaugural Fair Fashion Festival in the Southside.
LEARN MORE
Click here to learn more about Bawn Textiles.