Passionate about fashion, Caroline Pluvinage changed her way of seeing things after watching documentaries and delving into the figures of textile waste. “The impact of this industry made me nauseous. I said to myself: this is going to be my fight. I love clothes, I love fashion, I love dressing up. But, I can’t do it like before. Once we become aware of the impact of this industry, we can no longer consume in the same way.” According to Ademe (ecological transition agency), the textile industry represents four billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year, more than the impact of international flights and maritime traffic combined. However, insists Caroline Pluvinage, textile recycling does not really exist. “We talk about textile recycling and textile recycling, but textiles cannot be recycled. You don’t make clothes from a sweater that has been unknitted, re-threaded and remade into a garment. This is 1% of textile recycling.” There therefore remain only two solutions to slow down the embolism of textile production. “So either you consume 100% second hand and there you are in a slightly more virtuous approach, or you stop completely to consume.”
Caroline Pluvinage measured the volume of overconsumption physically by opening the recycling center, seeing the donations flow in until it was submerged.. “Sometimes I see so many clothes it makes me dizzy. Some still have their labels! At first, we were happy to have new products. Today, we are trying to do a little education.”
Clothing that does not find buyers ends up in an additional recycling circuit or in Relay containers, which are very present in the city. The same goes for donations that are too damaged to be placed on the recycling shelves. “We only have 26% waste, which means we have a lot of quality donations.” An increasingly rare situation. “Now, quality clothing is sold on Vinted. And, as the majority are fast fashion purchases, the raw material is perishable and deteriorates to the point of no longer being resalable”.
Use new codes
Designed like a classic store, more than a thrift store, Habitudes is dressed to the nines. The new store is located in Bains Douche, a large premises taken over by the city and made available to businesses, associations, artists and craftsmen at moderate prices. “When we sort clothes, we classify them by men, women, children, accessories. Then, by season, by type of clothing, by size. We find ourselves there so it makes us want to. By using the codes of new, we will convince as many people as possible to adopt second hand”, develops Caroline Pluvinage. With an average price of 6 euros per piece, recycling targets all budgets. “As an association, we manage a public problem. We collect because there is a problem with waste management, overconsumption, overproduction and a big recycling problem.”
Workshops to raise awareness
On a marginal basis, certain pieces pass into the hands of the association’s volunteer seamstresses. “When it’s a quality piece: beautiful material, a well-known brand or a fashionable piece of clothing, we’ll customize it.” But this only represents 10% of the pieces because of the time and space it requires.
To encourage this practice, the recycling center organizes workshops to learn how to extend the life of clothing. “By customizing, you can completely transform a garment and make it a little unique. Whether it’s with paint, fabric glue, or just a thread and a needle.”
The recycling center also organizes awareness workshops in middle and high schools in Fontenay-sous-Bois. The goal: to remove the consumer’s “blinders” and explain the negative consequences that a purchase can have on the planet. “I would like there to be a major awareness of each individual, but I know that today there will not be any. This is why I find it interesting to go to middle and high schools to meet these new consumers. ”
KISS: 5 questions to ask yourself before buying
Among the techniques transmitted to his audience: the KISS technique. An acronym inviting you to ask yourself five questions before buying. B: Do I need it? I: Is this need immediate? S: Don’t I have one similar at home? O: What is the origin of this object? U: will it be useful to me? “Before buying, assures Caroline Pluvinage, if you go over this method again, from B, you don’t buy!”
The Habitudes recycling center is located at 1 avenue du Maréchal Joffre in Fontenay-sous-Bois
Other textile recycling initiatives in Val-de-Marne, to read on 94 Citoyens:
Read also: our series on the circular economy in Val-de-Marne
