What Is Sustainable Fashion And Why It’s Important

The new Netflix series Our Planet scared the s***t out of me. Basically, I saw how day by day we are ruining the planet sending animals to death. To these days fashion industries have their guilty part as well. It is important to do our small part to make the planet better again.

You have probably noticed that after buying an item from a fast-fashion brand, you wear it one or two times, if you are lucky it survives the first wash, before falling apart.

What is it sustainable fashion?

Well, there is no set meaning, which is why sometimes it can be confusing. Let’s say that involves how we make and intake fashion. Green Strategy states: “More sustainable fashion can be defined as clothing, shoes and accessories that are manufactured, marketed and used in the most sustainable manner possible, taking into account both environmental and socio-economic aspects”. Fashion designer Stella McCartney never used animals’ materials on clothes like leather or fur and it is one of the first to promote sustainable fashion. She wrote on her website that the word sustainable shouldn’t make us “immediately conjures up images of oatmeal-coloured fashion or garments that are oversized or lacking in any sort of luxury or beauty”.

However, I hate to break the bad news, there is no such thing as being 100% sustainable with fashion, unless of course, you stop using all the electrical devices we have. Washing clothes, for example, has a cost on the environment for the usage of water and electricity. We can improve this by using eco-friendly detergents.

Why is it important?

While the planet is hurting so are many people along with it. The last thing we could have thought was that fashion could actually help the Earth. Yet ethical, sustainable fashion can actually help on many of these issues. If we think about it, how many clothes do we used every year? And how many do we actually keep? Clothes can be recycled and sold again to someone else. Buying ethical clothes online or on the stores can make a difference. The world’s second most polluting industry is the throwaway nature of fashion plus each year tonnes of plastic microfibres are realised from washed clothes, incrementing the ocean pollution.

Fast Fashion

There is no exact term to define this industry but it is essentially the creation of cheap clothes or items based on speedy production. Along with being created in not ethical conditions, these clothes also contain harmful dyes, toxins and pesticides that once you throw away the item will drain into the Earth. Now, how do we recognise ethical clothes from no-ethical clothes? Fairtrade is a global movement that promotes trade that is just and equal, by doing so you know that when purchasing clothes, they are made in ethical ways.

Look for these garments:

Organic

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Naturally Dyed

Recycled

Sustainable Brands

Now more than ever fashion brands are taking a new sustainable twist. There is a bright light in every dark story, in fact, more and more designers are taking into account that we need to build a better future. Companies like H&M, Nike, Adidas and Zara who are known for creating fast fashion collections are turning green. But there is a brand that wins all the prizes: Veja. Since 2005 the company is making completely sustainable shoes.

Our planet needs us and if each of us will start turning into sustainable fashion we could make a great impact! It is not as hard as it sounds. Today you can find sustainable clothes everywhere and instead of throwing your clothes away, you can start giving them to charity. Small steps in the right direction always make the change.