The purpose of this study was to examine what consumer characteristics are related to willingness to purchase and selection of children's organic cotton clothing (OCC). A survey was conducted on mothers of pre‐schoolers to collect data on mothers' environmental characteristics, involvement with OCC and children's clothing, children's clothing purchasing behaviour and willingness to purchase OCC. A buying scenario experiment was used to examine whether price and other product characteristics influenced the participants' selection of OCC. It was found that a mother's environmental concerns, environmental purchasing behaviour and recycling behaviour significantly affected their involvement in OCC, which further significantly determined mother's willingness to purchase OCC. However, mothers were not willing to pay a premium for purchasing children's OCC. A majority (59.5%) of the mothers who selected OCC in the buying scenario indicated fabric softness was the main reason for their selection. Preparing environmental education materials for consumers and producing OCC with high quality and good performance would help improve the acceptance of OCC in the market.

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Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to develop and implement a new sustainable apparel design and production model, cradle to cradle apparel design (C2CAD), that provides guidelines for apparel designers and manufacturers to solve some of the sustainability problems related to apparel production. Design/methodology/approach -The C2CAD model was developed by integrating McDonough and Braungart's "cradle to cradle" model into existing apparel design and production models. Knitwear design and production was used to implement the C2CAD model as a proof of concept. The performance and cost of the C2CAD knitwear were evaluated. Findings -The C2CAD model has four main steps: problem definition and research; sample making; solution development and collaboration; and production. Following the four steps and with an international collaboration similar to current apparel industry practices, "Four-season sustainability" children's knitwear prototypes were developed. Produced with an acceptable manufacturing cost, the products have good mechanical and color fastness performance. Practical implications -The C2CAD model provides practical guidelines for apparel designers and manufacturers and allows them to address all three pillars in sustainable development: economic development, social development, and environmental protection. Originality/value -The C2CAD is the first apparel design and production model that emphasizes sustainability in addition to functional, expressive, and aesthetic considerations. The production process of "Four-season sustainability" children's knitwear demonstrated the implementation of C2CAD model in sustainable apparel design and production.

Purpose – Excess consumption of apparel is driven by the apparel industry to offer more styles at lower prices in shorter time and the consumers’ desire to change fashion. The purpose of this paper is to apply adaptable design in apparel as a sustainable design solution for excess consumption problem. Design/methodology/approach – Guided by sustainable apparel design model C2CAD, two adaptable apparel prototypes for female college students were designed and developed. Focus group discussion and wear test were conducted with female college students to evaluate users’ acceptance, fit, comfort, and adaptability of the two prototypes. Findings – Both prototypes were comfortable to wear by users with different sizes, indicating the users could wear the garment when she changed size. The adaptations and conversions were easily and enjoyably figured out by the users. The users would keep and use the adaptable apparel for a long time. The users would also buy fewer apparel if they were to own the adaptable apparel. Adaptable apparel would increase apparel utilization, eliminate the need to purchase unnecessary additional amount of clothing, and reduce excess consumption. Originality/value – This research provided a pilot study on adaptable apparel design as an innovative approach to help solve excessive consumption problem. The adaptable garment prototypes would allow the fashion-forward female college student to easily change the function, fit, and style of the environmentally friendly garments.

This research aims to reduce solid waste, resource depletion, and material toxicity in the footwear industry. Mycelium, the root structure of mushrooms, binds together substrate materials as it grows, offering opportunities for composite development. Mycelium composites were developed using edible mushroom species alongside other natural materials. The 4 × 2 experiment tested four mushroom species (reishi, oyster, king oyster, and yellow oyster) and two fabric levels (with or without a natural fabric mat). Scanning electron microscopy images confirmed mycelium growth within the composite and around the substrates. Two-way analysis of variance tests found that both species and fabric significantly affected the density, and the species significantly affected the compressive strength. A positive and significant linear relationship was found between density and compressive strength, with higher density leading to higher compressive strength. The compressive strength of the mycelium composites, especially those made from king oyster mycelium, provides opportunities for renewable and biodegradable footwear inputs.