Thousands of tons of baby clothes end up in landfills every year as children get older and outgrow their former outfits – but this new material, which has been nominated as a Dyson Awards finalist, could change that.

The Petit Pli is a kind of pleated children's clothing that is being hailed for its groundbreaking design that grows with the wearer. The outfits are made out of synthetic, waterproof material that can stretch to fit youngsters from 6 to 36 months old.

The apparel won't just save discarded baby clothes from landfills – they could also save parents hundreds of dollars in children's clothing.

The mastermind behind the ethical clothing design, Royal College of Arts student Ryan Mario Yasin, created the Petit Pli as part of his masters program in Innovation Design Engineering.

"Children outgrow their clothes in a matter of a few months, yet we clothe them in miniaturized adult clothing, as opposed to designing them from the ground up," he told Dezeen. "With 11 million children in the UK, I thought it was time we redesigned children's garments."

With a patent pending on the Petit Pli, he says that he is currently raising investments and looking for manufacturing opportunities.

Yasin is already off to a good start, too – his design was picked out of 2,000 entries as a finalist for the 2017 James Dyson Awards. While Yasin and other national winners of the award are given $2,500 in recognition of their innovation, the international winner of the competition is given a whopping $40,000.

Other designs that have been nominated for the award include a diffuser for wildlife repellant that could be installed along major highways in order to prevent roadkill. Another is Onky: a stuffed toy that moderates children's vitals so they don't have to use anxiety-inducing sensors or medical devices.

Last year's winner of the Dyson Award was the Ecohelment: a recyclable paper bicycle helmet that boasts the same amount of protection as traditional styrofoam and polystyrene bicycle helmets – except it's more portable and environmentally friendly.

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