Zero waste will continue to grow with innovation and experimentation. It’s a small part of the bigger picture of using our resources wisely, taking care of the environment, and valuing fabric and clothes. Zero Waste Sewing Pattern Designers

Sizing: US 0 – 18 or US 14 – 32 (approx. UK 6/8 – 18/20 or UK 16 – 34, based on our standardised size chart). Available in the shop: Paper, PDF and PDF + printed copy shop. As I was researching more zero waste patterns to add to this post – I also found this brilliant resource. A full library of free, public source and paid for zero waste patterns. Find it here.An easy way to learn to self-draft your own patterns. Working this way will help you to start building a toolbox of skills, and you will learn an alternative method of self drafting which is super easy for beginners to understand. The perfect small challenge’ ... Made My Wardrobe’s Lydia Higginson says a callout for face masks last year inspired many dormant sewists. Photograph: Dan Higginson Depending on the size you’re making, you may be able to cut your garment along the weft or warp to get slightly different looks. For example, the pattern is drafted for a 44″ fabric, but we cut our brown sample from a 47″ option. Rather than cut it down to 60″ and lose all that waste, we simply made our tunic slightly longer. When you lengthen the tunic, it also lengthens your sleeve. This means more sleeve is gathered into the ‘armhole’ to create more volume! I think that really zero-waste is a bit of a red herring. As several people have said, clever pattern placement can result in a better item more likely to be used because of the fit. I see that many of the zero waste patterns look best on the tall and slim, often with a smaller bust. These would be unsuitable for a lot of body types. Choosing a zero waste sewing pattern is a great way to reduce waste, save money, and contribute to a more sustainable future. I hope this has inspired you, and next time you're planning a sewing project, consider giving a zero waste pattern a try. You might be surprised at how much you enjoy the challenge and the results!

I also think that zero waste design can be an awesome intellectual challenge. It’s a very different way of looking at shapes and it does become creative problem solving at its best. Zero waste sewing patterns have the potential to revolutionize the fashion industry, combining sustainability and size inclusivity in an inspiring way. By adopting these patterns, we can contribute towards reducing fabric waste and offering clothing options that cater to a diverse range of body shapes. Let’s embrace zero waste design principles and start sewing our own zero waste clothing on our way toward a more sustainable and inclusive future.

As before, this isn’t a simple question to answer. The reality is that many clothing factories are already producing “regular” patterns in a minimal waste manner as it reduces overheads, so you could be wearing a minimal waste garment from the high street already. As mentioned earlier, my next post will look at just a few of my makes, and the patterns I have tried in the hope that I can inspire some Sewcialist readers/followers to give it a go themselves.