Arrival in Our World Is Really a Departure
It should not come as an epiphany that we produce more clothing than ever before, with the driver being monetary gains rather than human necessities.
Needless to say, it did not take long for the more caring facets of the fashion industry to engage in what is commonly referred to as circular economy, i.e. the commitment to reusing, re- and upcycling by design which at the best of times can be challenging as the composition of most clothing is complex, sheer endlessly variable in terms of source materials and unlike metal, paper or glass simply not designed to be recycled.
In other words, if the objective of recycling is to culminate in arriving in a product close to the original, all components would first need to be separated, which would be a labour and cost intensive exercise.
Enter Brooklyn-based brand The Arrivals, the research lab of which has been tasked to creatively produce a net-neutral offering of products, culminating in their limited SS22 collection, which is comprised of responsibly constructed garments leveraging recycled, rehabilitated, and repurposed textiles titled SIGNAL LOST.
Centred around the reuse of vintage fabric and 100% repurposed organic cotton, the resulting carefully designed soft wear styles have been hand-dyed with graphical designs, giving them an idiosyncratic edge and promoting a mindful present and the endeavour to create the foundation for a meaningful future.
I specifically dig The Arrivals’ collaboration with the outdoor and sports brand MAAP, as it was the first exposure to the cycling industry stepping up to produce a performance gear built for distance capsule collection to blur the boundary between explorers and their surroundings, merging on-bike performance with an off-bike ethos with products like long sleeve tees made from Polartec Power Dry, containing 50% recycled PET fibre content and moisture wicking properties.
An immensely useful piece is the packable insulated jacket made from 100% post-consumer textiles and Primaloft Black Eco thermal insulation, with a water repellent finish, adjustable hood and multiple useful pockets.
Born of frustration with the excessive of the world’s natural resource, the collaboration between The Arrivals and MAAP manifests the belief that social and environmental issues go hand in hand and through exploring the connection between these issues, syncing sustainability and innovativeness.
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image from company website