The Environmental Cost Of Red Carpet Fashion

This story is featured in The Hollywood Reporter's Sustainability 2023 issue (click here to read more).

Luxury brands often describe the effort it takes to create a red carpet outfit . Take Zendaya's Rose Strapless Valentino Pack, designed by now-retired designer Lou Roach for the SAG Awards last month. As Valentino's designer Pierpaolo Piccioli noted in a recent Instagram post: “1230 hours of work around the world, 190 hand-embroidered roses, 5 hours of sewing each, 42 people sewing, 1 van in Rome with Z and Law and the last beautiful red carpet".

But what we don't hear about, and rarely ask the stars about, is the environmental impact of the can. And in the age of climate change, we have to. Fashion is one of the biggest environmental polluters in the world. According to the United Nations, the fashion industry is responsible for 8-10 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. Conventional cotton farming uses 4% of the pesticides and 10% of the herbicides in the world. And fashion accounts for about a fifth of the 300 million tonnes of plastic produced worldwide each year.

What kind of plastic is this? Primarily petroleum-based synthetics such as polyester, nylon, elastane (like spandex), neoprene, and wool. Two-thirds of our clothing contains petrochemical fibers. Like plastic, this plastic is not biodegradable and every time we do a large load of laundry, nearly a million plastic microfibers are released from the material and washed into our waterways. While the majority of petrochemical materials are used in fast fashion (think Zara, H&M, and Forever 21), there's a fair share of red carpet apparel, particularly spandex, that lends the stretch to suits and dresses. .

And then there's PVC, or polyvinyl chloride, which Greenpeace calls a "toxic plastic" and which has been linked to cancer and infertility. PVC is used for a wide variety of fashion items, including sequins, vinyl, heels, and plastic tubing in bag handles.

Yes, couture employs talented artisans who perpetuate beautiful traditional crafts that could easily get lost without red carpet orders, and produce pieces that are held in archives and museums. But how many luxury brands calculate their red carpet carbon footprint as carefully as they track the hours spent in craftsmanship and brag about it? Based on the amount of plastic glitter gleaming in the Oscar spotlight this year, I wouldn't bet too much.

"The fashion industry isn't ready to be fully sustainable," says stylist Elizabeth Stewart, whose clients include Cate Blanchett and Julia Roberts. "We just need to show the right direction and move forward."

Here are some ways red carpet attire can be more eco-friendly:

to continue

Cate Blanchett, who made the gowns she wore the centerpiece of her performances during the 2023 awards season, has long been a fan of the outfit. When she was president of the jury at the Venice Film Festival in 2020, she preferred to stock up on her wardrobe rather than order new dresses, and last year in Cannes at the 2016 BAFTAs she wore an elegantly revised Alexander McQueen embroidered gown with feathers . skirt under pants

Catherine, Princess of Wales will also be bringing recycled items from her wardrobe, I call them Royal Rewear. Check out this year's BAFTA looks: McQueen's white one-shoulder dress and long black gloves; She originally wore it to the same event in 2019, bare-armed, with floral shoulder appliques and a diamond bracelet. The same goes for accessories: Viola Davis owns a pair of Stuart Weitzman pumps that she's worn on countless carpets.

"When you know that consumers buy 80 billion fashion items a year, which is 400% more than 10 years ago, you realize that this system is not good for the planet or for humanity," he said Blanchett at THR . "Repurposing what you already have is an easy fix."

ancient thinking

According to the United Nations, 85% of all clothing ends up in landfills; The Ellen MacArthur Foundation reports that every second a truck is landfilled or incinerated. What's the best way to deal with it? applied wear.

For this year's Academy Awards, Blanchett pulled a sapphire blue blouse from the Louis Vuitton archives instead of ordering a new item. "And Everything Everywhere and All At Once" co-director Daniel Scheinert bought his Oscars tuxedo from Scottsboro, Alabama-based retailer Unclaimed Baggage, which sells luggage that has never made it back to its owner. (Scheinert is from Birmingham, a two-hour drive from Scottsboro.)

"The surest way to get the most out of your carbon footprint is to buy something local rather than ship it around the world," says Cameron Silver, owner of Decades, a vintage fashion boutique in Los Angeles. "You have the benefit of getting something that's probably unique and with a lot of energy because it was probably used for a holiday event. So it's not only good for the environment, but also good for your juju."

Shop eco-conscious designers

In March, Heidi Klum turned to established Dutch designer Ronald van der Kamp for her look at the Green Carpet Fashion Awards: a cropped Prince of Wales jacket, a reimagined denim miniskirt, and heels made from upcycled American flags.

"Ronald has been doing it for years," says Livia Firth, director of the Green Carpet Fashion Awards, co-founder and creative director of consultancy Eco-Age and the Green Carpet Challenge Style Handbook. "It's very important to support independent people who are trying to make a difference."

Avoid plastic glitter

Besides being made from toxic PVC, they never decompose. Fortunately, trendy tech startups are proposing alternatives. On the April cover of Vogue , Cara Delevingne wears a Stella McCartney jumpsuit made with Radiant Matter BioSequins, cellulose sequins of vegetable origin that are plastic-free, non-toxic and biodegradable.

Bioflashes are "even more impressive than traditional options," McCartney explained. "Who said resilience can't be sexy?"

Choose ecological fabrics

Linen with rain cover, pesticide free organic cotton. And there's Tencel, a silky bio-based synthetic material. At the Oscars, RCGD Global Ambassadors Bailey Bass and Chloe East chose Tencel: Bass in a white column by Zac Posen and East in a strapless black gown by Monique Lhuillier.

"Many celebrities are living greener lifestyles," says Susie Amis Cameron, co-founder of RCGD Global, which has put together a free style guide for green clothing. "This is a journey for all of us."

Dana Thomas is the author of the podcast and newsletter Fashionopolis: Why What Clothes Matter and The Green Dream, which explore sustainable style.

The evolution of super stylish red carpet fashion from Emma Watson