(image - Craftivist Collective)A really inspirational evening spent in a vintage shop with the Craftivist Collective, which coincided with the start of London Fashion Week, has left me thinking long and hard about about ethical fashion. The Craftivists have been displaying (beautifully made) mini protest banners at LFW trying to expose, in a non-confrontational way, the true cost of many of the clothes we wear.
I love vintage clothes and I also love a charity shop bargain, I try and buy separates from more ethical clothing companies like People Tree and American Apparrel. But the High Street is so instant and accessible and often meets that 'need' feeling at a low impact on my wallet. However, I have resolved to try to stop and think hard about the wider impacts of my purchases.
An excellent article by Ruth Rosselson on the Ethics Girls website suggests the following principles of being fashionable 'ethically':
Putting ethics into practice – the future for ethical fashion
- Wash all your clothes at as low a temperature as possible. This will not only mean that they’ll last longer, but will also reduce the amount of energy that you use.
- Develop your own style, rather than following the fashion crowd.
- Dress for your shape and ignore impractical and unflattering trends.
- Choose timeless stylish garments that you’ll be able to wear (and look good in) whatever the current ‘fashion’.
- If you’ve got an occasion coming up and want to wear something special, instead of buying something that you’ll only wear once, consider renting or borrowing instead.
- Develop some basic sewing and mending skills to customise your clothes or make them last longer.
- Try vintage fashion stalls, second-hand shops and Ebay for good quality second-hand clothes.
- Use tailors and stylists to help you create stylish, timeless, personal garments. Search out ethical clothing companies that eschew virgin resources and instead customise clothes, remake or recycle fabrics.
There are also countless inspirational blogs out there, that I hope to provide me with the motivation to avoid the instant high street fix:
- The incredible Natalie made all her own clothes she wore for a year as part of her Makeshift project.
- The hilarious Marisa is making a new dress a day for a year out of 365 dresses bought with a budget of $365.
- Countless revamping inspiration on Wardrobe Refashion.
- Plus I will also be looking to vintage, carbooting and thrifting queens like Vix and Jem to learn to stop following the high street crowd.