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Upcycled denim rug

The African Queen dress is a tribute to all the strong women who work in the second-hand clothing industry in Africa. The rug is designed by Eno Andrew Essien from Nigeria and handwoven in Kenya.

Upcycled jeans from Kenya

Upcycled jeans from Kenya
To get straight to the point: the textile industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. It is estimated that 60 billion kilos of textiles and footwear are lost every year.

The vast majority of it ends up in a garbage heap or ends up in nature. Sometimes it is even burned. That also happens in Kenya. And that's where Africa Collect Textiles (ACT) comes in. ACT is a social enterprise with the mission of a circular and inclusive clothing industry in Africa. ACT collects clothing with its own clothing containers, which are located at their collection partners. These collectors are paid per kilo of jeans.

Huge amounts of clothing

Much of the clothing and footwear collected in Kenya is second- or third-hand. Most of it comes from Europe, Canada and the United States. On the one hand, it is good that this clothing is reused. On the other hand, this masks the enormous overconsumption of the western world. It also disrupts the local economy. Since the local clothing products cannot compete with the cheap 'mitumba', which is Swahili for second-hand clothes from the rich west.

Collect jeans to upcycle

The discarded jeans are collected in Africa Collect Textiles' own clothing containers. Sometimes it is necessary to replenish unsaleable jeans (unsaleable because they are too big for Kenyans, for example) from second-hand markets. For example, if certain colors are needed for weaving the design.

The clothing waste mountain in numbers

Millions of items of clothing are added to the market every year. Not only more clothing, but also cheaper clothing, and therefore the clothing waste mountain is getting bigger and bigger. Some numbers in a row;

We produce four times as much clothing as ten years ago
Due to overproduction, 30% of clothes never reach a wardrobe
Textiles account for 10% of global CO2 emissions
Thousands of liters of water are needed for one T-shirt
Polyester clothing contributes to the plastic soup

The African Queen rug is suitable as a floor and wall rug. Each unique rug is provided with a number and the name of the weaver. With an ACT African Queen dress you not only have a unique and beautiful dress, but you immediately make a statement towards the clothing industry and you create awareness about the ever-growing fast fashion problem.

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African Queen - Upcycled denim rug

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