By now you may have heard the issues with fast fashion. Millions of discarded articles of clothing wind up in dumps and even in our oceans, workers are treated unfairly and chemicals are injected into the outfits that you purchase in what might seem like at the time to be a great deal.ย
An article by BBC notes that “as for carbon emissions, the industry is responsible for about 8% of the total worldwide. That’s more than all international flights and shipping combined, the UN says.” The United Nations also states that “it takes around 7,500 litres of water to make a single pair of jeans,ย equivalent to the amount of water the average person drinks over a period of seven years.”
Being a conscious consumer is time consuming for sure, but thatโs why I started this blog!
Similar blogs that advertised ethical companies helped not only open my eyes to the destruction that the fast fashion industry has on the planet and on peopleโs lives, but also that we are literally putting toxic chemicals on our bodies with that $5 dress.
My issue with some ethical companies is typically the style because I am very picky, but Iโm also a regular person who cannot spend $80 on yoga pants people!
So, hereโs my vetted list of ethical & sustainable clothing brands that I love and admire that have cute looks that I would actually wear and some with clearance prices that I can afford (you might be fancier than me so I also included brands I canโt afford, but do admire):
1. Mandala ($$)
5. Pact ($)
7. Paka ($$$)
8. Boody ($)
9. Etiko ($)
10. Dharma Bums ($$)
Something to know about ethical brands is that they are proud to be transparent about their product.
If the site does not have an โabout usโ be weary because itโs easy to say โnaturalโ or seem earthy in the nature of the clothing without actually treating people fairly, caring about the planet and the health and wellness of the consumer who wears the product.
I canโt possibly end this post without talking about the high prices of ethical clothing because it has been such a bummer for me to not be able to buy all the cute outfits I see when shirts are $100 or more. This is a reflection of the price that it costs to pay workers fairly and to produce quality products, but it doesnโt make them accessible. I hope that in the future we can find some way to bring these prices down, however for now I think of two books that I once read that helped me see less is more.
The books The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Stores by Cait Flanders and Soulful Simplicity: How Living with Less Can Lead to So Much More by Courtney Carver gave me a new perspective on shopping and what I own.
After reading these books I purged my wardrobe and although I am not the person who can only own 33 articles of clothing, I can now say that I am able to be conscious of what I buy. If I buy an organic, ethically sourced shirt or yoga pants than thatโs only one item instead of maybe 3 or 4 items from Amazon, which come from who knows where and I do not know where my money actually goes but I can imagine it (cringe). Supporting ethical companies just feels good and wearing the products feels good too. And you know what? Being able to close my dresser drawers is also a plus!
I challenge you to stretch your mindfulness practices to our planet, fair pay for workers and the #whomademyclothes movement and to the self-care that goes along with living with a little less quantity and a little more quality.
Namaste friends! ๐๐ป