Fashion Design project is anchored in sustainability
ARU students prepare to create clothing from boat sails after successful 2025 pilot
The dinghy sail fabric being used by ARU's Fashion Design students
Fashion Design students at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) are preparing to cast off and embark on a unique sustainability project that will see them design and produce clothes made from reclaimed boat sails.
More than 97% of sails are currently sent to landfill once they reach the end of their life and ARU’s Cambridge School of Art has partnered with not-for-profit organisation Clean Sailors to explore creative ways of reusing this fabric.
Building on a successful pilot project in 2025, first year students on ARU’s BA (Hons) Fashion Design programme will be working with end-of-life boat sails as their primary textile as part of the Sustainable Design and Innovation Practice module.
As part of the collaboration with Clean Sailors – which runs a recycling scheme called ReSail by Clean Sailors – students will be tasked with producing garments using minimal waste pattern-cutting techniques.
Alongside this practical work, the students will critically examine material lifecycles as well as the fashion industry’s environmental impact and design responsibility.
Last year’s pilot involved deconstructing a 30-year-old mainsail and a large spinnaker. Producing clothing using this highly durable material allowed students to assess sailcloth as a technical textile and respond to its physical constraints, history and wear.
This year, the students will be working with kite sails from dinghies, which are smaller boats typically used for day sailing, offering a different set of design challenges.
“Our BA (Hons) Fashion Design degree challenges students to innovate and embed sustainable practice from their first year. Meeting Holly and discovering the Clean Sailors platform gave our students valuable insight into the potential of alternative, sustainable materials.
“Working creatively with sail fabric encouraged them to consider both functional and aesthetic durability in their designs. We’re excited to collaborate with Clean Sailors again this year to further explore the possibilities of this under-used textile resource.”
Sarah Graham, Lecturer in Fashion Design at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU)Second year ARU student Asmeet Kaur Wadhwa, who took part in the pilot, has described how working with the sail fabric was a challenging but rewarding experience.
“Designing my sustainable cagoule from recycled sail fabric encouraged me to let the concept and material evolve together rather than forcing a fixed outcome.
“Working with sailcloth, marked by journeys of its own, taught me that releasing expectations can lead to unexpected results, highlighting the unusual characteristics of the unfamiliar fabric, which felt much closer to how sustainable design actually works.”
Asmeet Kaur Wadhwa
“Bringing this course into its second year so exciting - working with end-of-life sails asks students to design with responsibility in mind, turning what would be waste into objects of value.
“Just as importantly, it gives them a clear, practical vision of a fashion future where creativity is measured not only by aesthetics, but by impact and where designing better systems is part of the designer’s job.”
Holly Manvell, founder of Clean Sailors