Slow design brand Povera is providing a solution to the huge amount of polyamide tights that get thrown out as waste France each year, by turning the tights in to a yarn for use in creating rings, bracelets and hairbands.

Around 104 million polyamide tights are thrown away each year in France – approximately 7,315 tonnes of waste.

Povera founder and self-proclaimed “slow designer” Hélène Verhelle has set up collection points in Paris and her hometown of Lille, to give new life to the used tights.

The tights collected are sorted by colour, texture and density and then cut by hand and transformed into spools of cord or ribbon of different widths, which are then knitted, crocheted or woven by hand to create the accessories.

Povera have recycled 12 pairs of tights per day since 2019, transforming them into rings, bracelets, hairbands, plant hangers and headbands.

Hélène Verhelle said: “If we cannot recycle or biodegrade nylon, how about still using it?”

Povera

Rosa Medea is Life & Soul Magazine’s Chief. She writes about lifestyle including sustainable and green living.