How it all started.
Our story starts in New York City, where I (Emmy, designer and founder of Oddment Apparel), received my dual degree in apparel design and sustainability from The Fashion Institute of Technology. I knew stepping into the fashion world that I wanted to be part of the sustainable movement and living, learning, and working in New York’s fashion industry gave me the opportunity to see first hand all of the wasteful and unfortunate practices that go on. It was through being on the team at FABSCRAP, a textile recycling non profit in Brooklyn, that textile waste quickly became my passion. Managing the thousands of pounds of brand new fabrics, trims, zippers, yarns, and other material coming in per week from design houses in the city was eye opening, and it inspired me to create my own clothing brand in spring of 2021 using only materials diverted from landfill.
From NYC to Grand Rapids, MI.
Commercial textile waste includes fabrics, trims, zippers, buttons, yarns, and other brand new materials that are discarded before ever getting into the hands of consumers. Material samples, pattern and color approvals, sample garments, scraps and off-cuts, and overproduction are just some of the causes of why textile waste exists in the apparel and product design process. This occurs across so many industries all over the world, and though we’re beginning to expand our sourcing, Oddment’s materials are mainly sourced from fashion brands within the New York City limits. Everything from the fabrics to buttons, even down to the threads we use is sourced from the never ending mountain of brand new materials that would have been discarded. Materials are then brought back to the Oddment’s home base in Grand Rapids, MI to be created into one of a kind garments.
Only divert, never contribute.
At Oddment, we stay true to our sustainable mission by adopting a fully zero waste and closed loop design and production process.
First, brand new materials are sourced from what big companies are discarding.
Next, we start the creative process. Because the material we source is often scraps, off-cuts, and small yardage, a piece of clothing from Oddment is almost always one of a kind and the only one ever to be produced. Which we think is pretty rad!
The scraps generated from these new products are used again to be made into our scrap work pieces. We love a good challenge, so scraps generated by the scrap work pieces are used once again, before all remaining small bits of fabric and thread are collected in bins.
These bins come along on the next trip to FABSCRAP, where they are sent to be shredded into a material called “shotty” that is used to create industrial insulation.
More materials are sourced, and we start again!
No textile waste happens in our studio and within our process, ever. For real.
Along with our goal to be fully sustainable, Oddment Apparel is also a fully transparent brand!
Have questions about how we do things? We’d love to answer them! Or have info to share with us? We’d love to hear it! Send us a message here.