Fashionable and vegan, there is absolutely no reason why these two words should not go together. There are new ‘tribes’ of vegans appearing; goth, punk, environmentalist – veganism is no longer sole reserve of hippies.
To find out why vegans avoid fabrics such as silk, wool and leather go to [intlink id=”114″ type=”post”]Why Go Vegan? [/intlink]
Where to buy alternatives:
- Faux UK
- Knit For Brains (check this American site to get an idea of wool alternatives)
- American Apparel (pleather leggings!)
Organic/Fair Trade
Other issues when it comes to clothing industry are the human and environmental impact. Consider fair trade or organic which is better for both the farmers and the planet. Some well known brands and most of the high street shops like Dorothy Perkins, TopShop and New Look now do organic or ‘eco’ fabric (like bamboo) lines and America Apparel are also sweat shop free.
Read more:
- [intlink id=”387″ type=”post”]The Rough Guide to Ethical Shopping[/intlink] by Duncan Clark
Where to buy:
- Seasalt
- People Tree
- Fashion Conscience
- Gossypium
- Green Knickers
- Pants to Poverty
- The Green Apple
- Finger Prints (water based ink t-shirt printing)
- Monkee Genes
- Get Cutie (quirky fabrics used to make sweatshop free tea dresses and skirts)
Vintage
The probably the greenest way to go is to buy second hand or vintage, as this will ensure no new resources are utilised. With all the potential harm that can be caused when manufacturing clothes, we now have to consider what happens to them when we don’t want them anymore. Some would say we are forunate to live in a world where fashion is so readily available and now so cheap that we can literally afford to by something, wear it once and throw it away. But it still comes at a price. Unfortunately these items are most likely going to be man made fabrics which will take hundreds of years to break down in landfills. Obvious places to shop are charity shops and Ebay although you should note vintage has become very fashionable so it’s not always cheaper.
Also look out for companies that use recyled materials or cut offs from the fashion industry.
Read more:
- [intlink id=”387″ type=”post”]Green is the New Black[/intlink] by Tamsin Blanchard
Where to buy:
- Beyond Retro
- Rokit
- Absolute Vintage
- Kingly Court (shopping centre housing several vintage shops)
- Portobello Market
- Love Miss Daisy
- Matha’s Closet
- My Vintage
- Ooh La La! Vintage
- It’s Vintage Darling
- Buy My Wardrobe
- Traid (clothes made from second hand textiles)
- Junky Styling (decontructed and re-cut second hand clothes)
- VInspired (recycled/customised clothes)
- Inkeri (one off pieces hand made from recycled materials)
- Spinsters Emporium (get your vintage fabiric and other supplies here!)
Swishing
Swishing has emerged in the last couple of years, this entails getting together some of your preloved but now no longer worn clothing items and swapping them for someone else’s. You can either hold a swishing party with your friends, attend a swishing event or simply register with one of the many swishing websites and do it all online.
Where to swish:
- Swishing
- Whats Mine Is Yours
- Big Wardrobe
- Rehash Clothes
- Posh Swaps
- In your very own home!!
DIY
If you’re handy with a needle and thread you could always customise what you have (to give it a new lease of life) or make your own from scratch. Find vintage and designer patterns on Ebay or Etsy and combine this with vintage or retro fabrics, and don’t forget those knitting needles – it doesn’t have to be wool from a sheep (see top of page)!
Here the Twin and Tonic ladies are sporting their home made army dresses using an original 1940s pattern.
Where to buy:
