From Sea to Sustainable Style: Cambridge-based Uni teams with Clean Sailors to deliver sustainable Fashion Design

Cambridge School of Art, Anglia Ruskin University, has teamed up with Clean Sailors on the University’s Sustainable Design and Innovation module where students explore sustainability within fashion, using old sails.

Whilst spent-sails may no longer be any good for sail, they retain inherent value as a textile, Currently, over 97% of all sails ending up in landfill or incinerators, globally, and the fashion industry is one of the largest global contributors to both industrial water pollution and microplastics. 

The course aims to raise awareness of particular social, cultural and environmental issues and the student’s final design and outcome for the project is to create garments using a zero-waste pattern to form a contemporary patchwork made from recycled, end-of-life sails.

For the 2025 course, Clean Sailors have donated a 30-year-old mainsail and a large spinnaker for students to evaluate as textiles and re-create into garments.

“It’s poignant for me as the mainsail was my Grandfather’s – it was about 10 years old and had taken him across the Bay of Biscay, Azores and down to Cape Town and back before losing its integrity as a mainsail” says Holly Manvell, founder of Clean Sailors.

“Protest through fashion has a powerful history. I spent my late teens in the fashion industry and at the time designers such as Henry Holland and Katharine Hamnett were using slogans across garments to raise awareness of political issues, a movement of which Vivienne Westwood was really the queen of. So, it’s a beautiful full-circle moment for me personally whereby a family mainsail is now being used by students in the renowned Cambridge School of Art to explore sailcloth as a textile and through zero-waste patterns."

“Since the 1800’s, Cambridge School of Art has been inspiring creativity – thousands of students have studied with us and have become the next generation of artists, storytellers, policy-shapers and change-makers.

Fashion is a trillion-dollar market globally, with a host of environmental challenges of its own.  In this course we provide students with sustainable creative practices e.g. zero-waste design techniques and through our use of seemingly ‘waste’ textiles, we aim to encourage an innovative way of thinking about the future of fashion design” explains Sarah Graham, Lecturer in Fashion Design at the Cambridge School of Art.

“Having previously worked with recycling tents into clothing, we were looking for a new perspective on sustainable fashion and textiles. Sail fabric as a textile resource is even more hard wearing than the fabrics we have previously worked with, and we were interested to see how this versatile and underused fabric could feed into our student’s sustainable practice and make clothes more durable. We reached out to Clean Sailors after seeing the ReSail platform and how they were connecting the sailing community with project partners to upcycle sails into a range of lifestyle products. We were delighted when Holly replied with such enthusiasm and support for our project.”

The ‘Sustainable Innovation and Design’ module is available to first-year students on the Fashion Design undergraduate course at the Cambridge School of Art, running from January 2025. At the end of the term, Clean Sailors will award a prize for the highest-marked project as evaluated by the University, as well as choosing a winner for the ‘Clean Sailors prize’ for the most inspiring project.

“I’m so excited to see what these budding fashion designers create!” smiles Holly.

ABOUT CAMBRIDGE SCHOOL OF ART

Opened in 1858 by renowned art critic and social reformer John Ruskin, Cambridge School of Art has remained at the heart of Anglia Ruskin University and creative education in the city ever since. Combining the traditions of the past with the possibilities afforded by the latest technologies, CSA nurture creativity through experimentation and risk-taking to empower the makers and creators of the future. With a history of inspiring creativity, focussing on social purpose and care for our global communities and environment. Students are encouraged to experiment, innovate and collaborate to bring about positive change – for themselves and the world around them.

ABOUT RESAIL BY CLEAN SAILORS

ReSail by Clean Sailors is a global platform connecting sailors and their spent sails with business and organisations around the world who repurpose sail material.

The platform, which follows a successful pilot launched in the South West in 2021, allows sailors to search for and find local drop-off points and gives them the opportunity to upcycle a range of products such as sails, bags and sheets, so that once their time on the water has come to an end, they can help give them a new life and purpose.

Whilst most materials used for sailing are built to withstand some of the toughest conditions on our plant including UV light, saltwater and wind, they don’t last forever, and they all have a time limit on their initial use. Currently, for example, 97% of all sails end up in landfill and here at Clean Sailors, we are determined to bring that number down.

Clean Sailors is a not-for-profit founded in 2020 by sailor, environmentalist and ocean appreciator, Holly Manvell. Through its projects Clean Sailors raises awareness of ocean conservation issues and opportunities within the global sailing and marine communities. In 2022, Clean Sailors partnered with Italian boatbuilder, nl comp and OneSails to launch the world’s first fully recyclable Optimist, and the project has a 5-star rated podcast featuring conversations with industry innovators and figureheads engaged in building a more sustainable marine industry.