Our Heirlooms: The Role of Legacy in Textile Circularity

Reed McLaren of The Sustainable Garment and the Newport Restoration Foundation will guide an exploration of how stewardship and legacy of our textile belongings influence the greater circular economy. Bring a beloved textile item from the wardrobe or home, and Reed will demonstrate the tools and practices once used to preserve our belongings with her presentation The Lost Art of Garment Grooming. Participants will gain hands-on experience considering how best to care for these items and others, as well as insight from the Doris Duke fashion collection. 

Purchase your tickets here. Includes admission to Rough Point Museum.

About Reed McLaren:

Visual artist-turned-textile enthusiast and sustainability pioneer Reed McLaren’s deep affection for natural materials led her to uncover the lost arts of garment grooming and home textile care. As The Sustainable Garment, Reed investigates the historical tools, techniques and considerations that allowed us to maintain and preserve our belongings when every square inch of cloth we owned was valuable. Through presentations and workshops, she shares with others how we can reclaim this knowledge and adopt best practices that can guide us in our modern day.   

As a member of the recently launched National Textile Circularity Working Group through California’s Stewardship Action Foundation, Reed is honored to problem-solve with other forward-thinking producers, policymakers, NGOs, and reuse leaders across the nation in the strive towards a circular textile economy.