EcoZeal

From the largest fashion houses in the world, right down to the local street fashion of any city, sustainable fashion has become the underlying thread in the style that is emerging in the 21st century.

There are many things that can make apparel or accessories sustainable. Take, for instance the choice to use recycled or upcycled used or otherwise “vintage” clothes to create new and modern styles. This can take the form of clothing that is lightly altered or repaired to be salable, or a complete transformation that can turn something that wasn’t even meant as clothing into the height of sustainable fashion.

Another thing to remember when choosing clothing according to a sustainable fashion ethic is the source of the raw materials. Consider that over half of the pesticides used in the US are applied to the domestic cotton crop. Even when using new materials, you can choose natural, organic fibers that do not use petroleum derived nutrients and don’t pollute the land and water with pesticide residues.

Consider also the fate of those who have to work in mills that process, spin and weave fabrics that contain high levels of pesticides. The suffering and work conditions of the people who make sustainable fashion is also important. Workers rights at factories that manufacture materials or apparel are just as important in this movement as the composition of the garment or accessory.

Of course, synthetic fabrics are made from petroleum, further adding to your personal carbon and waste footprint. By way of comparison, natural fibers are not a waste disposal problem or a toxic threat to anyone. Among the most popular natural fibers are silk, linen (made from flax), cotton, wool, hemp, sisal, bamboo and jute.

The sustainable fashion movement also strives to eliminate unnecessary carbon emissions wherever possible. This can mean choosing a synthetic fabric over a cotton that would otherwise be shipped for 10,000 miles. Tough choices have to be made between what is the greatest sum gain for any piece of clothing.

Clothes swapping, for instance, is a popular new trend where people either get together online, at giant swap meets or at intimate parties and trade their unloved clothes for better and “new to them” sustainable fashion.

The only carbon that is burned in such exchanges are the electrons that keep the computers running and postal delivery. A party where the participants took their bicycles would eliminate carbon emissions (besides breath) entirely. In comparison to the multi-national game of shipping materials between foreign countries with poor human rights records, this practice is particularly gentle.

Upcycling is also a benign way to use items and apparel that would otherwise go to waste and turn it into something uniquely fashionable. An emerging trend is to have garments sewn especially for you, and some people are doing this with recycled clothing. This type of sustainable fashion mixes creativity with necessity to create style on the cheap and save the planet.

Fashion isn’t going away and there’s no reason it should. People may have to change a few ideas about what constitutes a shopping excursion, but sustainable fashion is part of a much larger commitment to a sustainable lifestyle that is conscious of the ecological impact of all our actions, right down to our closets.

Source: Sustainable Development