At a recent Academy Awards® ceremony, Indian actor and model @priyankabose20 showed off a beautiful silk gown created by @viviennewestwood – made almost entirely of recycled materials. The dress demonstrated the designer’s commitment to sustainable luxury fashion by following its own mission statement, which is to “raise awareness of the environmental impact of overconsumption, urging people to buy less and buy better quality clothes while creating collections that meet this standard.” ​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​ In following through, the major independent brand used a jewel-toned silk and lurex floral jacquard fabric, all of it recycled from a past Vivienne Westwood collection. To further save on material, the pattern cutting technique was designed to keep waste to a minimum, which resulted in the use of only 320 cms of material. Other recycled materials included leftover sequin film that normally would have been discarded following sequin production. In this case, the sequin film was embroidered to the bodice creating a honeycomb effect. Swarovski crystals provided additional sparkle. ​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​ Recycling, minimizing waste, and finding new uses for materials takes some imagination, but the result is well worth it. Can you think of ways to minimize and recycle?