Sustainable apparel design strategies regenerated from traditional costumes of the Chosun Dynasty

Purpose: This study aims to provide insights to designers for seeking innovative ways to design sustainable clothes and appeal to consumers by enhancing sustainability. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the research purpose, the researchers went through a design process and designed three prototypes. The experts’ evaluation on the prototypes was positive. Findings: Various design strategies derived from the Korean traditional costume were explored. Based on the strategies, three prototypes were developed, and the design experts’ evaluation on the prototypes was positive. Originality/value: The research has implications as follows. The sustainable design process and methods used in this research for developing designs inspired from cultural costumes will provide insights to designers who want to create sustainable garments inspired by a certain culture. In addition, the design and sustainable design strategies, derived from the Chosun Dynasty, will guide apparel designers to create sustainable designs and broaden their perspectives. Furthermore, the research will provide guidance to following researchers who are interested in the topic of sustainability in apparel design. The researchers explored sustainable design strategies from the Korean culture, applied them in their design process and evaluated the design outcomes. By doing so, merits and limitations of the design strategies were more clearly understood.