The fashion industry’s significant global environmental impact, primarily driven by low-cost, high-volume production through wasteful and traditional manufacturing, necessitates sustainable alternatives that overcome limitations associated with current solutions, such as zero waste fashion design. This research investigated the potential of modern circular knitting techniques as a zero waste solution for garment production. Using an iterative Research through Design approach, this research developed a method for shaped circular knitting, integrating textile manufacturing and zero waste fashion design as a holistic process. By leveraging the inherent dimensional properties of knit structures, the research realised the versatile personalisation of garments without the need to redraw their pattern. The results demonstrate the feasibility of this approach based on the principles of existing large circular knitting machines by delivering a design toolkit and proof of concept through detailed designs and prototypes. These provide opportunities to eliminate pre-consumer cutting waste, simplify and reduce production, and improve garment design flexibility and personalisation.

The clothing industry is one of the most polluting industries worldwide (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017). The current industry for producing garments is built on the overproduction of cut-and-sewn textile products, which are produced as fast as possible for as little money as possible. The denim industry is a major contributor, producing over four billion denim garments every year (Toepel, 2018). Over the last 150 years, the aesthetics of a pair of jeans and a denim jacket has barely changed, which is a result of this cut-and-sew fast fashion industry that still exists. A way to reduce the global impact of denim garment manufacturing would be to reduce the number of production steps.

This research aimed to investigate 3D weaving to rethink the production process for a denim jacket. 3D weaving combines woven textile design and garment design in multi-layer textile forms. With 3D weaving, the number of production steps after weaving and the resulting cutting waste can be reduced by weaving parts of the garment as already connected pieces.

This project is executed in a sustainable context of limiting pre-consumer waste and reducing the number of parts to assemble the denim jacket. A change in the manufacturing process of a denim jacket will raise the question if the 3D woven denim jacket can and also has to look the same as a denim jacket produced with the regular cut-and-sew method. The 3D woven denim jacket versions in this report show how and to what extent this is possible. These concepts also show how this new production method affects the aesthetic outcome of denim jackets.

This report starts with setting the context of denim jackets, the industry and its polluting side. After introducing 3D weaving and setting the criteria the process of experiments is explained and visualised. Research through design has been the basis of this research. This iterative research led to three 3D woven versions of a chosen concept. These prototypes were developed at Diamond Denim during a visit to their factory in Pakistan through many weave cycles. One of the outcomes is a zero-waste 3D woven jacket.
The aesthetic of the 3D woven jackets was found to fit the description of a denim jacket but was different due to the fabric density, texture and raw fraying seams.
Change is inevitable. Let’s wear the change!