🌱 Ep 21: Circular Fashion in Action: Insights From Luxury to Highstreet Brands with Laetitia Forst, Patrick McDowell and Philippa Grogan (x Fashion District)

🌱 Ep 21: Circular Fashion in Action: Insights From Luxury to Highstreet Brands with Laetitia Forst, Patrick McDowell and Philippa Grogan (x Fashion District)

Author: Mili Tharakan May 18, 2025 Duration: 1:13:01
No Ordinary Cloth: Intersection of textiles, emerging technology, craft and sustainability
ArtsCraftsCultureLeisureSocietySociety & CultureTechnology
In this episode of No Ordinary Cloth, host Mili Tharakan is joined by three pioneering voices in sustainable fashion and textiles: Dr. Laetitia Forst (University of the Arts London), Patrick McDowell (designer and founder of Patrick McDowell), and Philippa "Philly" Grogan (Sustainability Manager at Nobody's Child). Together, they break down the jargon around circular design, and circular business models-exploring why these concepts matter and how the fashion industry can shift from linear to circular ways of thinking and working. What We Cover: * What circular design really means in fashion and textiles, and the three core pillars of circularity * How circular design is being implemented at different scales-from luxury, made-to-order brands to large high street labels * The creative opportunities and technical challenges of designing for recycling, durability, and closed-loop systems * How circular business models like rental, repair, and resale are changing the way we use and value clothing * The importance of storytelling, emotional durability, and customer engagement in making circularity a behaviour change. * The role of emerging technologies, policy, and regulation in accelerating circular innovation  ⭐️ Fashion District Festival [https://www.fashion-district.co.uk/fashion-district-festival-2025/]:  3rd - 8th June 2025, London, UK ⭐️ Check out these events and buy your tickets here: * Launch and performance showcase [https://www.fashion- district.co.uk/festival/fashion-district-festival-showcase-2/] * Accelerating Regenerative Fashion [https://www.fashion- district.co.uk/festival/accelerating-regenerative-fashion/] * Circular Design Practice [https://www.fashion-district.co.uk/festival/circular- design-practice/] - join our guests for this hands-on workshop * Past and Future fabrics [https://www.fashion-district.co.uk/festival/past-future- fabrics/] 💛 Support FLOCC: Help transform Madras lace waste into valuable cotton flock fibre by supporting the FLOCC crowdfunding campaign. Your pledge helps scale sustainable material innovation and keeps textile waste out of landfill. FLOCC Crowdfunder Campaign [https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/flocc-cottonflockfibre] Resources & Further Reading: * Circular Design with Next Gen Materials Guidebook – UAL Research Online [https://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/id/eprint/xxxx] (Laetitia Forst) * Garment Lifecycle Map – Interactive Tool [https://garmentlifecyclemap.com/] * British Fashion Council's Institute of Positive Fashion [https://instituteofpositivefashion.com/] * Future Fabrics Expo [https://www.futurefabricsvirtualexpo.com/] * Centre for Circular Design [https://www.circulardesign.org.uk/] * Try your hand at sewing or repairing a garment-engage with your clothes in a new way! Mili Tharakan:   Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjtharakan/]   I   Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/noordinarycloth/]   I   Website [https://www.noordinarycloth.com/]   I   Buy me a coffee [https://buymeacoffee.com/noordinarycloth] Connect with me: mili@militharakan.com Cover art: Photo by Siora, Photography on Unsplash Music: Inspired Ambient, Orchestraman

Mili Tharakan believes the fabric of our lives is quite literal. In her No Ordinary Cloth: Intersection of textiles, emerging technology, craft and sustainability podcast, she explores the profound, often invisible role textiles play, arguing they are our most intimate and pervasive technology. With over two decades as a smart textiles designer and researcher, Mili guides conversations that feel like pulling a thread and watching an entire world unravel. You’ll hear from material scientists engineering fabrics from unexpected sources, artists weaving cultural narratives into their looms, and bio-chemists reimagining sustainability at a molecular level. This isn't just about fashion trends; it's about the frontier where ancient craft meets cutting-edge innovation. Each episode delves into the stories of makers and thinkers who are fundamentally redefining what cloth can be and do-from responsive textiles that interact with their environment to new paradigms for circularity and ethical production. The dialogue sits at a rich crossroads, equally appealing to the hands of a hobbyist weaver, the mind of a tech enthusiast, and the conscience of an eco-conscious citizen. Tune in for a thoughtful, grounded exploration of the material that dresses us, shelters us, and increasingly, connects us to a more thoughtful future.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 33

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No Ordinary Cloth: Intersection of textiles, emerging technology, craft and sustainability
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