Future From Waste Lab

Future From Waste Lab Residency
29th Sep 2021 to 17th Nov 2021 and March to May 2022

One of the most recognisable names in Australian fashion, Kit Willow has been pioneering sustainable fashion with her label KITX since its inception in 2014. Showing that luxury and sustainability can co-exist, the KITX collections use organic and regenerative fibres, along with repurposed materials. In collaboration with KITX, the Future From Waste Lab brings to life this circular approach by giving a second life to textiles that would otherwise be destined for landfill.

KITX has two residences throughout the BETA program, the first of which she created tailored jackets and coats from denim waste. Each piece will be inherently unique due to the varying washes and weights of the denim. Colours, textures and pocket/stitching details will be pieced together to create the final garment.

“The rate at which denim is produced and discarded is frightening. These pieces are an excellent way to re-imagine this material. The jackets and coats are carefully cut to best showcase the story of the garments they once were. The pieces we create have a beautiful ‘worn in’ feel as the history of the waste materials comes to life in a new way,” Kit explains.

The second residency will see KITX use silk scraps that have come from the label’s commercial cutters transformed into ready-to-wear ‘couture waste’ garments. The offcuts will be sewn together and re-born as silk bias cut pieces, which are a signature KITX silhouette. “We are creating these silk styles from waste in order to utilise luxurious materials that are ordinarily discarded,” says Kit, adding, “the finished garments will be truly special one-off pieces comprised of many silk weights, colours and prints.”

With the aim of challenging preconceived notions around waste – and to prove its viability as a material worthy of high-end fashion – Kit hopes that her involvement with the Future From Waste LAB will spark a conversation around turning waste into want. “We wish to create a harmonious dichotomy between the concepts of luxury high fashion and viewing post-consumer textiles as a valuable resource,” she says.

What We Achieved
(29 SEP – 17 NOV 2021)

524 garments retrieved
335kg textile waste collected
47 loads of washing
90 garments cut
32 garments made onsite
23 garments sold

Founder Kit Willow continues to pursue her love of creation in harmony with her passion for nature with the birth of KITX, launched in store August 2015.

KITX is born from a spirit of kindness, integrity and transparency. The X represents the future.

KITX strives to be a pioneer in design-led, sustainable and ethical fashion. “We create product love with high frequency wear, superior quality and creative design while consciously sourcing materials that minimize harm to our planet’s previous resources.”

Founded in 2014 after fashion figure Kit Willow departed her long-running namesake label, WILLOW, KITX has been a global leader in moving the needle towards a more circular fashion industry through consciously sourcing materials and KitXchange. The program allows customers to return purchases in perpetuity; the pieces are then repaired, repurposed and resold. The idea of extending a garment’s life cycle for as long as possible is integral to both BETA and the larger STH BNK By Beulah project, laddering up to our objective of reducing waste and lightening our environmental footprint but not at the expense of style.