Fashion Blogging with Ethical Fashion in Mind
I’m not going to lie, this whole fashion blogging thing, I really love it! It’s been so fun exploring my own style and connecting with other women on social media just owning their looks and spewing inspiration to us all!
It’s always been a dream of mine to one day have my own petite clothing line, and up until a couple of years ago, sustainability has been a core value that I knew I needed to carry with me as I embark on the fashion journey, but I didn’t know how. I’ve listened to a couple of intelligent people like journalist David Wallace-Wells, Hasan Minhaj fast fashion episode on the Patriot Act and The United Nations Environment Programme talk about the real global crisis we are in with regards to global warming, pollution and how the fashion industry plays such a huge, important and unfortunately negative roll. It’s truly terrifying. If I’m going to be in the business of fashion, I have to do my very best to avoid contributing to pollution, unfair labor laws and labor abuse and textile waste and instead provide an eco-friendly alternative for my future customers. But since I am just a fashion blogger for now, I keep asking myself this question, “Can you truly support sustainable clothing while simultaneously being a fashion blogger?”
Disclaimer:
To preface this post as it relates to sustainability, I have to acknowledge my privilege first and foremost. I understand I’m in a place of privilege to be able to shop sustainable or to shop at all. I also understand that sustainability as it relates to fashion is not a “new trend” and should not be treated as one. I’m simply exploring this avenue for the first time myself, and wanted to share what I have found as I try and figure how I can leave less of a footprint. This will be the first of many posts as I continue to learn.
Getting To It
For right now, I am continuing to learn about different fabrics and grow within the fashion community. I’ve been active on Instagram posting petite fashion inspiration, sharing my own style, mindfulness tips that help with self-esteem and writing these blog posts. After 2 months of posting almost every day, sometimes I get nervous that I’m running out of content (shit, already?). My first instinct is to say to myself, “I need to buy more clothes.” Okay, that’s a problem within itself. How do fashion bloggers keep up with new content and trends and keep it fresh to show their followers and (a) not go broke (I’m not making money from this right now) and (b) not contribute to the already abundant fast fashion brands which are ultimately hurting our planet and adding to the already enormous piles of clothes in landfills around the world. I needed to educate myself ASAP and determine how I wanted my voice to be heard as a fashion blogger on social media.
To be completely transparent, I don’t currently own anything that is considered ethical fashion (YET), although I try to shop locally as much as I can and I try to stay away from fast fashion brands. I’m not going to lie though, it’s kind of tough just because it’s what I’ve been used to for so many years. The relationship with fast fashion brands is a slippery slope because there is no denying their clothes are super cute, affordable and on trend. V tempting but I have to resist. Clothes this easily accessible come at a detrimental price. Trying to navigate these waters is intimidating because it means ditching all the brands I currently shop at and love but I believe the solution is rooted in a mindset shift. It has to be more about what the environment needs and less about what we need and the amount we need!
Here are some alarming statistics to start…
This article from Gippsland Unwrapped sheds some light on “maximizing resources and minimizing waste”
“To reduce the amount of clothing ending up in landfill, we can limit our consumption of clothing, choose natural materials wherever possible, wear it out, repurpose or upcycle the fabric and haberdashery, recycle the fibres if you have this option, and compost biodegradable clothing – in that order. If you are doing this well, you shouldn’t have to donate clothing to charities or others (which is reuse, not recycling by the way), except perhaps for children’s clothing which can be grown out of long before it is worn out.”
Another article from the United Nations Environment Programme states that
Newsweek wrote an extremely informative article and points out that hat the average American throws away 80lbs of clothes per year. Now multiply that by approximately 300 million people. Like whattt????
Also be sure to check out the Patriot Act episode on fast fashion which I’ve linked above in the first paragraph. It was very informative and helpful to understand exactly how fast fashion effects the planet and how brands get away with claiming to be sustainable or coming out with “conscious” fashion lines, but this information can be deceptive without doing a deep dive.
After some research and I’ve come up with 8 ways we can limit our carbon foot print as fashion bloggers, fashion influencers or just people who love to shop.
1. Wear it More + Forget the Trend-Chasing
This has become more apparent to me that this way of thinking has to stem from a mindset shift. I don’t know if you can relate, but I used to think if I wore a piece of clothing and people saw me, or even worse, I wore it and posted it on social media, then it was SOCIAL SUICIDE if you caught me wearing it again. I think it’s an immature mindset I had when I was young tied to the fear of people judging me, my monetary status and my fashion sense, that has carried over into my adult life. I’m not going to lie I don’t think I’m 100% detached from this mindset yet, but just recognizing it is a start. If anything, it has challenged my creativity to try and pair the same top or bottom in a different way to keep the same piece “fresh.” If you haven’t seen the 10-day same top/bottom challenge I participated in to help bring awareness to sustainable fashion go check it out on my Instagram!
According to an interview the Patriot Act episode referenced, which was conducted by San Francisco’s Kron 4 News, “just by wearing a piece of clothing for 9 months longer it can reduce your carbon footprint for that garment by 30%” and “if everyone bought one used item a year instead of new, it could save as much as 6lbs of C02 emissions, which is equivalent to removing half a million of cars off the road for a year.”
2. Look for eco-friendly clothing when shopping
This has been a challenge for me mostly because of budget purposes, since fabrics that are better quality come at a higher cost and therefore have a higher retail price, but I believe with a little money managing and by reducing how much I shop overall, I should be able to make the switch. I’m going to continue to research and find brands that align with my style and small size while also integrating ethical fabrics and fair labor laws into their mission. So far, I’ve come across:
A. Reformation
B. Petite Studio NYC
C. Tentree
D. Mate the Label
What are other sustainable brands you guys know of that we should know about? Please tell me in the comments!
3. Exchange Locally
Kind of like the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, right?! But what if we could link up with other fashion bloggers locally in our area and swap clothes? I came across a very influential influencer by the name of Venetia La Manna based in the UK that offers this through her Facebook group called Slow Fashion Exchange but have yet to find one here in Miami. Once the pandemic is over this could be a good option. This way you are getting something “new and fresh” for your photos without spending money on something you probably don’t really need.
4. Rent
Options such as Rent the Runway and Le Tote are alternative options to staying “on trend” without feeling the guilt of buying unnecessarily. But this comes with a caveat. Although this may be a more environmentally friendly option, it’s not completely sustainable. We still have to be mindful of the transmissions released from the vehicle that delivers and picks up that item.
5. Reuse / Upcycle
Learn to sew! This is definitely a goal of mine. If I feel I have an outdated item in my closet I am putting it to the side and seeing how I can make it into a scrunchie or a scarf or a crop top! The opportunities are endless and this is a great creative outlet to reuse something that would have otherwise been throw away.
6. Sell over donate
This may seem odd because we want to help those in need of clothes. But so many people are donating these days even charities are giving away clothes they cannot sell at an alarming rate and thus, the items are still ending up in landfills. If you can sell to someone who you know actually wants that item, this seems like the better way to go. We need to let go of the notion that second-hand clothing isn’t “cool.”
7. Line Dry Clothes
Every time we wash and dry our clothes there is a large amount of carbon dioxide that is released into atmosphere which doesn’t help the climate change crisis we are in. According to this article by The Guardian, by line drying clothes can help reduce your carbon footprint because you are lessening the amount of energy that is being used.
8. Compost
But only if the clothes don’t contain any synthetic fibers. From what I’ve gathered from this Compost This article, this should be your last option when trying to get rid of your clothes in a sustainable way because the process of these clothes breaking down still takes a very long time. You shouldn’t compost clothes that have synthetic fibers in them because then you are just allowing those chemicals to be released back into the earth. No Bueno. Another blog I found about minimizing waste shares that you should always shred clothes into smaller pieces beforehand and remove materials such as buttons, zippers and clips before composting.
A List to Reference
Finally, write this list down and look at it next time you are about to buy something. These are the fabrics that are sustainable and can break down more easily:
1. Pure Wool
2. Organic Cotton
3. Silk
4. Linen
5. Hemp
6. Tencel
7. Cashmere
8. Bamboo
9. Jute
These are some synthetic fabrics that are ruining Mother Nature and have harmful effects such as water pollution:
1. Polyester
2. Nylon
3. Spandex
4. Viscose
Here is a list of Instagram Influencers interview by Elle Magazine that are using their voices to continually educate us on how to live our most sustainable lives in fashion and beyond:
1. Venetia La Manna / @venetialamanna
2. Tolmeia Gregory / @tollydollyposh
3. Lauren Singer / @trashisfortossers
4. Dominique Drakeford / @dominiquedrakeford
5. Mikaela Loach / @mikaelaloach
I would love to know your thoughts on this article, if you actively have a synthetic free closet or if you have other good articles to share. Spread the knowledge! This is my first dive and I hope to continue the conversation.
