The crazy wonderful world of fashion is constantly evolving, and that’s a really good thing. Trends come and go, and the ideal classics maintain their place in style for decades. Materials are key when it comes to clothing, shoes and accessories, and caring about our planet can also play a major factor.
Ethical fashion allows us to look stylish, feel comfortable in pieces that wash and wear well and do our part in protecting the environment. Some might believe that since cotton is a natural fiber, that it’s the perfect material for everything fashion.
These days, those who create ethical fashion are looking at more sustainable alternatives like organic cotton. The way cotton is processed now, is a strain on the planet in terms of forced labor in the cotton fields of poor countries and the huge amount of water to produce the cotton needed to make a single shirt. The gallons come out to roughly 713.
Materials like hemp, bamboo, recycled polyester, linen and organic wool are all examples of sustainable fabrics used in fashion today. These materials feel good on the body, are attractive and do much less harm to our environment than traditional fabrics used for years.
A sustainable business in the fashion industry zeros in on the versatility of eco-friendly fabrics, because most of them are highly productive, easy to cultivate and pest tolerant. There are plenty of designers located around the world who also share a passion for slow fashion, because they believe in social responsibility and the role that we as human beings play in impacting the environment.
The slow fashion movement has been gaining momentum around Asian nations and across Europe lately, as people realize that establishing more sustainable business avoids the cruelty found in many sweatshops and factories. It adds to the economy, keeps us away from the overload of cheap, synthetic materials used in the clothing we buy and forces us to look at the genius and availability of sustainable material in ethical fashion.
It’s horrifying to imagine the waste going on, as people toss out multiple pounds of clothing in the trash yearly. People in the United States appear to be among the worst offenders, filling up their landfills daily. That makes the fashion industry the second largest cause of pollution globally.
Slow fashion has a conscience, and that means, developing stylish quality sustainable garments with a long shelf life.