Every year, the U.S. generates 17 million tons of textile waste that ends up in landfills according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Out of the total amount, 11.3 million tons goes straight to landfills.

SUAY in Los Angeles is attempting to cut into that waste through the reuse and repurposing of old and discarded textiles. From sweaters, to overalls, to pillows, SUAY hopes to create new lives for old textiles.

“We are constantly working to figure out ways to create a product out of essentially what someone else considers trash,” said Lindsay Rose Medoff, co-founder and CEO of SUAY. “In our environmental crisis, we have to have more attachment to what happens to these textiles.”

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Inside Suay Sew Shop

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