Sustainable fashion

[Ahimsa]

Onemoment


In theory, a fast fashion answer. 100% biodegradable and only 10 euros a pair. Now all we need to do is make clothes like this, minus the very unattractive appearance.

[Ahimsa]

anyone has any clues on winter coats or jackets that'd fall under this thread? i know this label Vaute Couture to be vegan, made of recycled materials and also sweatshop-free, but i'm not sure i like the designs... anyone had any experience with their (or some other) jackets?

I found this in my bookmarks...
Camilla Wellton

Eco Couture
"We have a 100% organic line in our label: our Eco Couture line.
Here only organic materials are used for our customers whom wish to own a garment made especially for them. Design process with the customer needs in focus, Choice of material, Made to measure pattern, Fittings and Tailoring."

She uses wool in some pieces but you can opt to get cotton moleskin as well.

She also does custom jobs:

Eco couture: For the Style conscious
"Your very own Custom Made Design
A garment made specifically to suit You,
(or Your Loved one)
Your lifestyle or a special occasion in Your measurements.
A wearable piece of Art in Ecological textile designed just for You!
We custom design for men as well!
Email Camilla directly to discuss ideas and get a quote:
c@camillawellton.com
Delivery time for an Eco couture garment is on average 4-12 weeks.
Subject to the complexity of the design
and the number of fittings required.
The "toiles" (fitting garments) will be sent to you
if you can´t make it to the showroom for a fitting
(Everyone can´t live in Stockholm)"

[Ahimsa]

^I love that jacket's lines. It radiates a simple elegance.

It is a tough decision between new and secondhand when it comes to sustainability. On one hand there is no (generally) ecological impact buying secondhand (short of transportation, etc.) and the possible support of a local business, but at the same time one is not supporting one who does design with sustainability in mind, nor funding fairly paid/treated workers who would otherwise get paid. There is so much more to it but it is such a perplexing situation from a sustainable/ethical perspective. Though one might suppose that upcycling/recycling is always a good alternative, though no farmers/textile workers paid etc. Just leave it up to whimsy at this point I guess, the most ethical choice is quite the conundrum.

Now for an random eco-fashion designer.

Not sure what to think about it.

[Ahimsa]

I do wonder about the likes of Yves Saint Laurent's collection "New Vintage". It's made entirely from recycled fabrics/garments from their archives and sold (exclusively I believe) at Barneys at a luxury price. Would supporting this be similar to supporting, say for instance, Green and Black organic chocolate, which is now owned by Kraft (hence why there is now suddenly dairy in their chocolate -_-) ? Or should this just be left to those who would normally buy from them who just want to feel better for having purchased recycled/eco-fashion? I personally wouldn't put Yves with the likes of buying organic from H&M (who killed 21 Bangladesh employees in a factory fire last year), but I still consider it something of a large corporation and am therefore reluctant to financially support such a collection.

[Ahimsa]

again, i know what you're talking about, been thinking of similar things myself as well :) maybe a good reason for buying eco-friendly products from bigger companies is in case they don't sell well, cause then there should be a sign and a support for such projects so that they actually make more such things in future. for example, there was a time when starbucks had usual and fairtrade coffee, and while i dislike the whole idea of a cafe-chain with workers stuck behind the bar, all day being super busy, giving you the overall atmosphere of fucking mcdonalds, i was sometimes wondering whether it's maybe good to at least support their fairtrade offer so that they switch to it completely. on the other hand, supporting smaller local cafes (which may have coffee that is based on direct trade) is also important and something i prefer in general.

This reminds me of the Groenteburger(veggieburger) in the Netherland's McDonalds. Even though it is vegan, I doubt a vegan would ever eat one on the basis that it is probably grilled on the same grill. Similarly how a Starbucks soy latte is probably made in the same containers as the regular milk ones. So who in fact is their targeted audience here? I want to believe that corporate responsibility plays a part in deciding upon these options but I know better.

Ahimsa, I saw you mentioned in "random fashion thoughts" thread you pay a lot for the underwear, so I thought it'd be good to share some info on that too (as long as you aren't tired of it, of course :P). that's the part that irritates me a lot because there's not a single shop in my town that has an underwear that is not made in Asia, i.e. that is not clearly sweatshop-free. For a while I thought buying at least organic cotton may be a good idea, but sure, that's not the only aspect of the whole production. So where do you guys buy stuff? And what do you think of the pricing in this case? I saw recently a UK underwear label that had some semi-ok stuff, but simple pants were already 15-20 GBP. Is that pricing really OK, taken into account we are talking about a simple daily underwear? What do you think?

The underwear that I was particularly talking about in that thread were ones I picked up in Quebec earlier this year. I can't remember the name of company at the moment...but for men I have found Nudie's new "Backbone" collection which is entirely organic and fair labor. One can also buy from Designers Against Aids which sources from a fair trade Indian community (organic).
For women I'm mostly familiar with Enamore, who apparently in July announced that they are now doing underwear (previously just lingerie). This ecouterre list may help you though.
As for pricing I think the big issue is obviously that one must pay fair wages to the workers as opposed to cents on the hour to young girls in Bangladesh. That and organic obviously costs more due to being work intensive. That aside, I do think that some designers do charge some oddly exorbitant prices on eco basics, such as the $44 underwear in the Nudie Backbone mentioned. It's one of those things that I wonder if it's because of the market. Are we so small in number that they require to charge as such in order to stay in business? Though Katharine Hamnett mentions how one only needs to pay 1% more for an organic t-shirt in order to properly pay said worker, so it really makes me doubt such the price hike that we so often find on organic anything to be truly justified.
I feel like I could rant about this forever, but in the end all we want is a decent pair of underwear! So basically what I'm saying is that I agree with you. Organic/fair underwear is oddly really hard to find. Apparently the last thing on eco-designer's minds are undergarments.

Rilu, since you seem to be located in Belgium, I was wondering if you were familiar with ParisVeganDay? They have an eco-fashion show too...

[Ahimsa]

Another from my personal archives...
Mandula

[syed]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15017790

Article on the damaging health effects sandblasting jeans has on workers. According to the Clean Clothes Campaign Dolce and Cavalli refuse to stop or have an open dialogue about the damages it does Although looking at the crap they churn out, it would probably damage their sales too much.

[Ahimsa]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15017790

Article on the damaging health effects sandblasting jeans has on workers. According to the Clean Clothes Campaign Dolce and Cavalli refuse to stop or have an open dialogue about the damages it does Although looking at the crap they churn out, it would probably damage their sales too much.

Thanks for the article. Even though I don't wear either of the above mentioned brands, I will be sure to tell people about it that consider such in their purchasing. The fact that Dolce and Gabbana charges upwards of 500+ for denim makes this even worse. One can definitely now see the quality of their workmanship...=/

[Ahimsa]

Speaking of human rights violations...Uzbek Princess Gulnara Karimova's NYC fashion show was canceled due to public outrage (not by her). http://www.guardian.co.uk/fashion/bl...rimova-protest

[Ahimsa]

Sosume
"SOSUME IS AN AUSTRALIAN BRAND WITH A MAJOR SOCIAL-CONSCIENCE.

SOSUME DESIGNS COMPLETE WOMEN'S READY-TO-WEAR COLLECTIONS THAT ARE MADE OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY ORGANIC AND NATURAL FABRICS. THE BRAND GOES BEYOND EXPECTATIONS TO SOURCE MATERIALS THAT PRESENT THE LOWEST ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ON OUR SOCIETY.

SINCE ITS INCEPTION IN 2008, SOSUME HAS DEVELOPED AND EVOLVED INTO A COMPREHENSIVE, WEARABLE COLLECTION FOR THE MODERN, SOPHISTICATED WOMAN. SYNONYMOUS WITH STYLE AND SUSTAINABILITY, SOSUME SOURCES ONLY THE FINEST ECO-FRIENDLY FABRICS FROM THE MOST ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE MILLS AROUND THE WORLD. AS A RESULT, EACH COLLECTION'S AESTHETIC TRANSCENDS THE INDUSTRY'S CURRENT FAST-FASHION ATTITUDE AND CREATES LONG-STANDING, WEARABLE PIECES RELEVANT FOR SEASONS TO COME.

ALL GARMENTS ARE MANUFACTURED IN AUSTRALIA."

[Ahimsa]

Thieves

"Like Thieves in the night we move
The casual outlaws of a slumbering realm
With eyes sharp and steps light
We reclaim our sense of expression
In unity with our landscape"

[ErnstLudwig]

First of all vegan says nothing about sustainability. Polyurethan shoes are completly vegan, hail to organic chemistry and (our limited natural resource) oil.

Overall I try to buy "environmental", since I can afford it.
A) I buy quality, so that it lasts longer (and if something happens: repair)
B) Of cause I choose materials and fabrics properly; I prefer wool, cotton or sea island cotton and leather (nothing non-natural comes close half-life wise, additionally I try to go for vegetatively tanned and skip Chrome because of the toxicity)
C) I try to buy items with transparent line of production, because not only the fabrics count but also the how (or the "made in"). The EU/US at least have some environmental protection laws that prevent extreme contaminations or natural disasters. Otherwise this contamination could negate all the advantages gained from the usage of the material.

In the end I don't make a pass on all animal products. However I do have a moral problem if the main purpose of the death of a (feeling) animal is my piece of clothing (no eating involved like with calf leather).

[Ahimsa]

First of all vegan says nothing about sustainability. Polyurethan shoes are completly vegan, hail to organic chemistry and (our limited natural resource) oil.

Overall I try to buy "environmental", since I can afford it.
A) I buy quality, so that it lasts longer (and if something happens: repair)
B) Of cause I choose materials and fabrics properly; I prefer wool, cotton or sea island cotton and leather (nothing non-natural comes close half-life wise, additionally I try to go for vegetatively tanned and skip Chrome because of the toxicity)
C) I try to buy items with transparent line of production, because not only the fabrics count but also the how (or the "made in"). The EU/US at least have some environmental protection laws that prevent extreme contaminations or natural disasters. Otherwise this contamination could negate all the advantages gained from the usage of the material.

In the end I don't make a pass on all animal products. However I do have a moral problem if the main purpose of the death of a (feeling) animal is my piece of clothing (no eating involved like with calf leather).

I'm glad you do! This thread most definitely could use more contributors as I believe our kind are somewhat scarce on this forum.

As to your point about vegan products...I would agree that the label "vegan" in and of itself does not mean sustainable (kinda like how Oreos are technically vegan), but the act of being vegan and living the accompanied lifestyle is very sustainable. It's more sustainable than switching to a hybrid car even. Though my main point would be that none of the vegans I know really buy PU products. I think that might be more popular with the hipster brand of vegans (merely speculation). The idea is that PU, in theory, is extrinsically good, in that no animals are harmed directly and is good by those means, but that does not mean that it is intrinsically good, because the act in itself harms the environment and thus harms animals and ourselves. For the utilitarians, it hurts more than it saves, thus vegans generally avoid it.
This is all of course from my personal encounters and those I am familiar with through their celebrity, I am not sure how the ones you have encountered may act in such regards.

[Ahimsa]

Titania Inglis
"A strong believer in craftsmanship, Titania drapes each piece by hand in her Brooklyn atelier, and has them sewn in a small factory in New York’s garment district. The line’s materials are selected with thought to their environmental impact as well as their quality, and include organic cottons from Japan, vegetable-tanned leather, and dead stock fabrics from the local garment industry."

[ErnstLudwig]

As to your point about vegan products...I would agree that the label "vegan" in and of itself does not mean sustainable (kinda like how Oreos are technically vegan), but the act of being vegan and living the accompanied lifestyle is very sustainable.

of cause you can also argue that all living things (and products consisting of them) are sustainable, because they only need the proper "food" for reproduction. However that ignores the moral obligation...

The idea is that PU, in theory, is extrinsically good, in that no animals are harmed directly and is good by those means, but that does not mean that it is intrinsically good, because the act in itself harms the environment and thus harms animals and ourselves. For the utilitarians, it hurts more than it saves, thus vegans generally avoid it.

that is how I see it, especially since leather is merely a by(waste)product of meat mass production. That is also the reason why leather nowadays is impaired in quality/durability.

This is all of course from my personal encounters and those I am familiar with through their celebrity, I am not sure how the ones you have encountered may act in such regards.

Unfortunately most people I know don't care at all and they live by a) the cheaper the better or b) consume as much as possible (fast fashion, more or less seasonal restocking of the wardrobe).