Remake, remodel: meet the designers fashioning treasure from throwaways

A coterie of Irish makers who see possibility in discarded things are repurposing vintage finds and instilling them with a modern flair. They’re urging patrons to shop sustainably this Christmas

Jewellery designer Ann Chapman: ‘Our customers love watching our goldsmiths and getting a feel for what it is to be handcrafted’. Picture: Fergal Phillips

There is a mountain of waste in Chile. Literally a mountain. There, discarded fast fashion garments that can’t be resold are piled high. They face incineration, posing multiple environmental threats, including the emission of poisonous gases.

Our voracious appetite for throwaway culture isn’t limited to clothes, however. It extends to many of the other goods we buy, including mass produced jewellery, furniture, household appliances and industrial objects.

While the situation urgently needs change, and Christmas ...