In this day
and age most of our wardrobes are full of clothes from fast-fashion brands such
as Primark and Missguided. By fast-fashion we mean cheaply made, cheaply sold
clothes that we may decide to toss away after a couple of wears. This is hugely
unsustainable and unethical on the environment and those working to give us the
clothing we wear every day.
You may
think it’s hard to be more ethical without reaching deep into your pockets or
shopping for completely obscure brands but GOLD wants to prove you wrong…
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| Source: Pinterest |
1.
Research!
The main
reason we fall into a trap when it comes to ethical fashion is that we don’t
read up on the background of the brands we’re buying from. If there’s no real
information to be found on where the clothes are made or how they are made then
you should probably question it! Just by doing this you can do your bit and
make up your mind for yourself whether you want to shop somewhere or not.
2.
Swap your wardrobe!
Whether you
attend an organized clothing swap or just swap your clothing with friends and
family, you are helping to keep a sustainable wardrobe. Just because you may
not want to keep or re-wear an item of clothing, doesn’t mean that someone else
won’t find joy in it and you might get something you have always wanted for
free!
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| Source: moneycrashers.com |
3.
Donate clothes
Taking your
clothes to charity shops instead of binning them is one way of being more
sustainable whilst doing something for a good cause. H&M also run a scheme
in which you can drop off any unwanted clothes to any store worldwide and they
will do the rest. Your clothes are then either donated directly to charity or
given a new lease of life instead of being turned to landfill.
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| Source: www.brandchannel.com |
When trying
to be more sustainable it’s important to think about what you’re buying. If you
don’t see yourself wearing an item of clothing on multiple occasions, it’s
probably not worth buying at all. By being more conscious about this we can be
more ethical whilst actually saving a ton of money in the long run!
5.
Look after your clothes
One of the
reasons a lot of our clothing gets chucked in the bin is down to its condition.
Although fast-fashion is cheaply made and therefore more likely to break more
easily, there are ways we can look after and preserve our clothes to limit how
much we get rid of. Just by looking at the washing instructions instead of
ignoring them we can really extend the life of our wardrobe. Also air-drying is
usually better than tumble-drying. Keep it in mind!
Obviously this
takes a bit of searching and browsing but by buying second-hand clothing we are
really helping to be more sustainable and ethical. Don’t give up after looking
in one shop though, persevere and you may be surprised at what you find! London
especially has some amazing vintage shops and with the whole vintage trend
becoming more of a thing at the moment, you can’t really go wrong!
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Quality
over quantity when it comes to fashion any day. By sticking to staple pieces
such as a simple good-quality white t-shirt or leather jacket you will be much
better off in the long-run. Yes, you may spend a little more to begin with, but
by doing this you will actually SAVE money as you will not have to keep
re-buying as regularly.
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| Source: Pinterest |
8.
Buy handmade items
Look at
sites such as Etsy, where you can buy handmade garments, as you can see exactly
where the items are coming from and know they were not made cheaply in a
completely different continent. By doing this you are not only helping to be
more sustainable but helping someone’s small business or side-venture to grow.
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