There are many sustainable practices that can be adopted by the costume department. This section gives you advice and an outlook from professionals already leading change in their field.
From your department’s perspective, how can productions become more sustainable?
Production teams need to understand how much time it takes to source sustainable costume options, and use more sustainable delivery methods – we need to avoid ‘next day’ deliveries where possible. Late casting and last-minute schedule changes can limit our options. They also need to understand that the cost of responsible and trustworthy recycling of assets and waste needs to be included as part of the budget. It would be great if there were avenues for us to talk to production in a meaningful way about the wider energy footprint of the production from a departmental perspective.
What are your top tips for sustainability within your department?
Costumes
- When sourcing, try to use existing kit where possible, then look to second-hand sites such as Vinted, Depop or ebay, or rental options.
- If you need to buy new pieces, do not shop with high street brands or large online. retailers/marketplaces. Use the Good on You app to find ethical alternatives.
- When making pieces, consider the environmental impact of the materials and fabrics you use: see if you can use recycled, renewable or reusable materials, or deadstock fabrics from sustainable businesses. And avoid fur and leather, but make sure the replacement is biodegradable (not plastic).
- Use eco-dyes and haberdashery - organic cotton and/or recycled materials.
- For fastenings, use sewing, ties, pins and clips, instead of tapes, pastes and glue.
- Think about what will happen to the items at the end of the shoot. Options include:
- Selling pieces to another production
- Donating pieces to a costume house (e.g. Bristol Costume Services), or to charities (links to specific charities are included in the resources section)
- Having a costume sale and donate the proceeds to “Client Earth”!
Washing
- Pledge to reduce the loads of washing – consider if some items could be spritzed rather than doing a wash?
- Make sure the washing machine is as full as possible and wash at a lower temperature.
- See if you can use washers and dryers that perform at the highest level of efficiency.
- Wash synthetic clothing in a Guppy Friend bag to prevent micro plastics entering the ocean
- Find stores that have refilling stations so you can reuse containers for detergents and washing-up liquid
- Try to air dry when possible and only tumble dry if essential.
Storage
- Try to find storage boxes and hangers that are made from recycled or organic materials, that can be reused. Collapsible ones are really helpful.
- Budget for a zero-waste box from terracycle or First mile
What are the biggest challenges to working sustainably in your department, and how have you overcome them?
It can feel a bit daunting to try to make everything as sustainable as possible all at once. So instead, think about the things you already do, and identify a few things that could have a big impact on your current production. Tackle them, then try to add a few more things on the next production, so you’re continuously improving.
Budget, schedule changes and last-minute casting are our biggest challenges. I try to anticipate needs so I can accommodate the lead times of more ethical companies who don’t do next-day delivery. It’s useful to plan fittings to allow for the most sustainable type of travel available, or to carry these out on a day where there is a read-through to reduce travel needs for actors where possible.
How do you keep sustainability on the agenda?
Include sustainability in your initial interviews with people – recruiting people who are also passionate about it helps to build a shared ethos across the team, which is more likely to last throughout the production.
At the start of the production, have a sustainable training session and have your team develop a Green Manifesto together. And create a checklist of what you can do. Then try to tackle one thing at a time and revisit progress during the production.
What resources or groups would you recommend?
Costume Directory – a free resource that takes the hassle out of finding suppliers and brands who are committed to upholding the rights of people and nature, and who prioritise sustainability, environmental responsibility and fair trade.
Ethical consumer – a website that ranks high-street clothing stores and provides helpful information on every aspect of consumer choice (a bit like a ‘Which?’ ethical guide).
Good on you – directory that rates brands based on sustainability and ethics.
Guppy Friend – bag to put synthetic clothing in during washing to prevent micro plastics entering the ocean.
Charities that accept donations of clothing:
- Crisis – UK-wide charity that accepts donations of coats
- Spires – South London-based charity that accepts donations of coats
- Suited Booted Centre – London-based charity that provides clothing for interviews for vulnerable, low-income and unemployed men. Accepts donations of suits.
Companies that provide recycling services
- First Mile – Business recycling services
- Terracycle – provide boxes that make it easy to recycle a range of materials
With thanks to:
Lucille Acevedo-Jones, Costume Designer