FIVE WAYS TO LOOK GOOD AND FEEL GOOD ABOUT IT
- Erin Sullivan
- Oct 24, 2018
- 6 min read
Updated: Dec 4, 2018
For most people, ethical fashion is a foreign concept. But for someone who loves fashion and clothes like I do, there is nothing more upsetting than to learn that my favorite sweater has a price on it that's higher than what I swiped my card for. Did you know a 2017 report showed that the volume of water used for apparel production each year is equivalent to 32 million Olympic swimming pools? Or that another report stated approximately 715 gallons of water, which is the average amount of water one person drinks in 3 years, is used to make just one cotton t shirt?
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently came out with a shocking statement: that if we don't reverse climate change in the next 12 years, that there's no going back. With a warning such as this, it's impossible to not feel like you're drowning. One of the easiest places to start changing the world is with the shirt on your back or the shoes on your feet. Today I'll be sharing with you five ways that you can look your best while also feeling good about it.
1) HEY MACKLEMORE CAN WE GO THRIFT SHOPPING!
Although thrift shopping doesn't always sound as glamorous as shopping at a high end store, it's definitely the most sustainable not only for the planet but your wallet as well. There's so many misconceptions about thrift stores but in reality not only will you save money but you also keep other people's clothes out of landfills which are harmful to the planet. There's always that saying: one man's trash is another man's treasure.
One of my favorite past times with my friends is going thrift shopping together. Even if you don't find something you'd actually purchase, you can laugh at the t shirts with the funny sayings or the funky jackets on the racks. I've found so many high end brands at thrift stores that I would've had to pay over double the price at a department store. I found Nike Air Force 1 sneakers at a thrift store for $9 when really they're $90 everywhere I was looking to buy them new. My best friend Sam found a Levi's denim jacket for $50 that was sold everywhere else for $130. From Plato's Closet to Salvation Army there's so many options for name brand thrift shopping as well as local places where you live. Clothes are donated to thrift shops every single day, yet only 10% of the clothes are actually sold and the rest goes to landfills. Shop at thrift stores so this statistic becomes non existent and help better the planet.
2) VEGAN LEATHER, FAKE FUR, & SOY SILK, OH MY! (THE WONDEROUS WORLD OF
By far, probably one of the most trendy ways to be ethical is by investing in the same trends that you already love but in the "right" way. Leather, fur, silk, and cashmere are always in style but are never beneficial to the planet. Not only is it horrible that cows have to die for fashion lovers to have the leather they want, but it's also detrimental to the environment. PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, found that factory farms where cows are raised in order to produce leather, account for 70% of the water pollution in the United States. The same story goes for fur, silk, and cashmere. It's clearly no secret that making fur clothing harms animals in the process, but it was news to me that silk and cashmere also thrive off of animal cruelty, according to PETA as well.
This is why it's so important to participate in alternative for these popular trends whenever possible. Most people don't even know that vegan leather exists. The jacket above is made of vegan leather, and although it's listed up on the pricier side, if you look at the bigger picture you're paying a bit more out of your pocket to save the planet. Also an ethical jacket like this is sustainable and will last a really long time in your closet. I also found a link to the perfect fake fur coat for the cold weather that's approaching quickly. It's easy to participate in the teddy bear coat trend without having to risk the lives of any actual bears. This is just another way that you can be a trendsetter while also being ethical and sustainable in the process.
3) STAY OUT OF THE FAST FASHION LANE
For me personally, fast fashion is by far the most difficult to stay away from. Fast fashion is easy for it's consumers to attain because it's just what the name says: fast and it's also inexpensive. As a broke college student I'm embarrassed to say that I have fallen into the trap. I've actually linked to pieces on my blog before from Forever 21 and H&M who are two of the most well known perpetrators of fast fashion. They have hundreds of thousands of clothes in store, all on trend, and all so cheap that it's hard to believe. At first glance, it seems like a dream. When you look below the surface it's anything but.
These are the brands that make you wonder: "Do I really need it?". But the deal is so great and the clothes are so cute that you stop questioning it. But what you don't realize is that the clothes are so thin that they'll rip after the 2nd or 3rd use and will only last you a season. Look even deeper and you'll see that fast fashion is one of the leading causes for environmental distress and is a huge violator of labor laws. In the Netflix documentary, The True Cost, they found in countries such as India and Bangladesh workers are paid as little as $1 a day. The Elle MacArthur Foundation, a charity focused on building toward a circular economy, discovered that 25 billion gallons of water is used for one year's worth of global textile production. Yet the idea of breaking the bank to spend money on quality clothing items scares even me. That's why I'm going to share with you a quick list of the ten best affordable brands to shop for ethical fashion on a budget:
Next time you're strapped for cash but want to buy some new clothes, check out these sites before you get sucked into your usual trap of fast fashion.
4) USING APPS TO MAKE IT EASIER TO SHOP ETHICALLY!
With everything you wear, you're making a statement to the world about who you are. Don't you want to show the world that you care about the environment and being ethical. Although I just gave you a list of some ethical brand you could check out, you don't always have the time to figure out what brands are sustainable or not. That's why there's this new app called "Good On You".
"Good on You" is a free app that is helping people make better choices when it comes to fashion which is now the 2nd largest industrial polluter behind oil. The application was founded in 2013 Gorgon Renouf and Sandra Capponi. It first launched in Australia in 2015 and moved over to Europe where it's quickly become the largest app of it's kind. It stores the data from more than 2,000 brands and allows the users to type in the name of any product. From this search they can instantly see a rating out of five as well as see a summary about how ethical and sustainable this company truly is. The brands are also ranked on many different areas from workers, the planet, and animals. The more public information that's out about the brand the better the app can rank them. So if a brand decides to withhold information about themselves they get a lower score. Next time you're out shopping, it's awesome that you can use this free app to help make your ethical search easier without you having to do all of the behind the scenes research.
5) TAKING ADVANTAGE OF SMALL BUSINESSES
As I mentioned earlier, fast fashion is rampant in today's society. We're being bombarded with all these brands and the need to purchase from them that we forget the small businesses that are quietly thriving in our cities and on the Web. From local shops at home or sites such as Etsy on the Internet, there's a thousand ways to support local artists that won't hurt the planet.
Shopping on websites like Etsy is one of the more effective options. Artists can make and design their own crafts and sell them on the Internet for whoever wants to purchase one. If you're someone like me who can't sew or paint for the life of her, Etsy is perfect for supporting someone who can! Not only are all the products eco-friendly but they're also handmade and special to each artist rather than a print from Target that everyone and their mother has. Shopping through a small business near you or artist on Etsy or other sites such as Society 6 is just another way for you to embrace your unique individual by also saving money and the planet. Shop small and stand tall knowing you're making a difference in more ways than one.
We only have 12 years to reverse the damage that we've done to our planet before it's too late. With 80,000 pieces of clothing being consumed each year globally, it's amazing that with such a big problem that it's possible for us to start small. Take these 5 tips to heart and start making your mark on the ethical and sustainable fashion industry while you still can.
These are great tips. I never knew that so many thrift store items end up in landfills. I also didn't realize so many stores are now emphasizing ethical fashion. Seems like there are a lot of good options out there!
I recall going to a thrift store when I was younger and not being able to find anything I liked. Perhaps the store I visited wasn't very good, but regardless, I never went thrift shopping after that. However, reading this post sparked my interest in thrift shopping once again. Not only are the prices incredibly low, but there are also apps and websites that make the process easier. I won't even have to go to the store. Hopefully this will help me save money and contribute less to climate change.
Wow! I never really knew that making clothing contributes to climate change. I know a lot of my friends shop at thrift stores and there are not too many where I am from, but I feel now I must check them out. I have used apps like Poshmark and ThredUp to sell some of my clothes that I don't wear anymore. I originally did it just to make a little money, but I am glad that it helped our planet, too.I try my best to help the environment out as best as I can so I will definitely be trying out your tips.