Green fashion tips
In an age when we are ever conscious of the organic stamp on the fruits and veg we eat and the free trade requirement of the coffee we drink, it's a bit surprising how little attention we pay to the nature of the clothing we put on our bodies. Much of the designer and high street fashions available today use harmful dyes or other hazardous manufacturing processes to churn out one-season hits that end up piling up in closets until they walk themselves out to the rubbish. And when the clothes are thrown out, they take many years to decompose and emit harmful gases in the process.
Also see: Recycling tips
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[edit] Tips for staying green and fashionable
- Buy your clothes from fashion designers. Today's green fashion is a far cry from the early days of environmentally friendly but drab organic cotton, and hemp that resembled burlap, and combines sustainability with style.
- If you must buy non-organic clothes, choose cottonware, these cause the least harm to the environment.
- Buy hand made and vintage clothes.
- Recycle your clothes. Give your clothes to charity or sell them at thrift shops. Your clothes will be appreciated by someone else.
- Similarly, browse the local thrift shops or go to clothes swap meets etc. You can find almost new designer clothes for a fraction of the original price.
- Torn jeans or Tshirts can be reused as cleaning rags or if you are creative, you can find many craft ideas online for turning jeans and t-shirts into purses, baby blankets etc.
- Make the right choices choose ethical and organic clothing made from 100% internationally certified organic cotton. Certifications for organic cotton include BCS Oko-Garantie, SKAL and OEKO-TEX 100 STANDARD.
- Buy earth-friendly swimsuits for women made of 90% organic cotton and spandex and earth-friendly shorts for men made from cotton and hemp.
- Do not forget mattresses, bedding, pillows, duvets, curtains etc. There are many companies like Gossypium, that offer household materials made of organic and fair trade certified cotton.
- Search online for Eco Friendly fabrics.
- Nowadays there are many magazines dedicated to the green lifestyle. For example, Style is the first ever digital magazine for a glossy green lifestyle. From eco-chic fashion, to luxury organic holidays through to interviews with the good, the green and the glamorous, they bring everything for the green conscious readers.
- Check out The Green Providers Directory for eco-friendly and fair trade clothing.
[edit] Sustainable Fashion
Sustainable fashion is fashion that is designed to be environmentally friendly. It is part of the larger trend of "ethical fashion," and according to the May 2007 Vogue article, 'Earth to Fashion', appears not to be a short-term trend but one that could last multiple seasons. While environmentalism used to manifest itself in fashion through a percentage of sales being donated to a cause, fashion designers have recently adopted the idea of using more environmentally-friendly materials and methods in clothing production. Designers say that they are trying to incorporate these sustainable practices into modern clothing, rather than producing "dusty, hippy-looking clothes." Sustainable fashion is typically more expensive than clothing produced by conventional methods.
Several celebrities and designers such as Bono and Stella McCartney have recently drawn attention to socially-conscious and environmentally-friendly fashion. The "hot ticket" of the Fall 2007 fashion week was the showcasing sustainable fashion while songs about war, change, and gasoline were performed.
Portland Fashion Week, which has featured sustainable designers and apparel since 2005, has also attracted international press for its efforts to showcase sustainable designs in a 100% eco-friendly and sustainable production this year.
Slowly, but steadily, Green Fashion has gained a healthy following as was seen in the Eco Fashion Week in 2010. Even Project Runway featured some collections from Green Designers.
An increasing number of Hollywood celebrities have been associated with sustainable fashion, including Natalie Portman, Cameron Diaz, Alicia Silverstone, Jennifer Aniston and Selma Hayek.
[edit] Green Designers
- Ashton Michael
- Aurali Studio
- You Bright Young Things
- Dress Reform
- Joann Berman
- My Lavuk
- Luis Valenzuela USA
- Milliners Guild
- Samantha Pleet
- Susan Cianciolo
- Go Greener Australia
- Eco Fashion World
- Ecouterre
- Eco Fashionista
- Conscientious Shopper
[edit] Green Fabrics and Fibers
- Hemp- dew-retted, organic, non chlorine bleached.
- Bamboo- a natural textile made from pulp of bamboo grass that is naturally antibacterial.
- Corn-based Polyester- Virgin polyester is petrochemical-based and its production is greenhouse-gas intensive. an alternative is a hybrid of recycled polyester and cornstarch.
- Recycled cashmere
- Organic wool
- Cotton- cotton has a traditionally chemically intensive production. Buying cotton that is organically grown without pestisides, biologically produced with low-impact dye. Biological production refers to how the cotton fibers are purified and prepared for spinning. It is water based and results in no pollution.
- Tencel or Lyocell- a man-made non synthetic fiber made from the natural celluose found in wood pulp harvested from tree-farm trees and produced without chlorine.
- Soya
- Alpaca
[edit] Tips for buying Green clothes
- Check for Trade Certification
- Find clothes that are unbleached or bleached with hydrogen peroxide only.
- Low-impact dyes
- No wrinkle-free treatments
- Shop at vintage or second-hand stores.
- Shop Wholesale Clothing in online store.
- Make your own clothes out of sustainable fabrics.
- Knit sweaters with low-impact yarn.
- Look for clothes that do not require dry cleaning.
[edit] Green products
Below you will find a list of Green brands and companies.
[edit] Clothes
- The social fashion revolution
- Sustainable Fashions Grace & Cello Sustainable Fashion
- Pamoyo - green open source fashion
- Kuyichi
- Noir
- Izzy Lane Sheep-Friendly Clothing
- Gary Harvey Clothing
- Pine IV Denim
- Lizzie Parker Clothing
- Sameunderneath Clothes
- Zooey Organic Tees
- Loyale Vegan Costilla Jacket
- Loomstate Organic Denim
- Deborah Lindquist Clothing
- ecoKashmere Bamboo Clothing
- Sworn Virgins Bamboo Clothing
- Serfontaine Organic Denim
- Viridis Luxe Hemp Clothing
- Kelly B. Organic Cotton Swimwear
- Del Forte Denim
- River Goods
[edit] Jewelry& Accessories
- Toby Pomeroy Recycled Jewelry
- Ash Hilton Recycled Gold Jewelry
- Rust Belt Jewelry
- Jewelry by Jenny Nelson
- Dean Recycled Accessories
- Elva Fields Reincarnated Jewelry
- Nui Organics Scarf
- Lulu Frost Resurrected Jewelry
- Ananas Natural Fiber Handbags
- Organic Omerica Omerica
- Biojoy Jewellers
- Dr. Schollas Sandals
- ecoSkin
- Mohop Shoes
- Simple Shoes
- Mink Shoes
- Simple Shoes
- Charmone Shoes
- Wholesale Shoes
- Wholesale Jewelry
