WTF

[eleven crows]

like what..?

i was referring to more generalised things.

the odd basic or two from h&m, uniqlo or whatever, and most of our electrical goods. got sneakers and/or an ipod? they weren't made with love.

[lowrey]

My sneakers are made in japan and I don't have any apple products

I don't have a lot of insight about how ethical my south korean phone is, so all I can do is echo what zam said about it being extremely difficult to break down a full supply chain for every good you buy. The best you can do, that I think is relatively easily achievable, is to not support companies that clearly and directly do this.

My point mainly was that I think that SZ probably has the least association with these companies out of any fashion communities as a large part of the labels discussed here support in-house or small scale production. even if we don't know where every bit of thread or fabric they use comes from, its pretty likely that the end product is more ethical than anything from H&M.

[mortalveneer]

My point mainly was that I think that SZ probably has the least association with these companies out of any fashion communities

For efficiency's sake, we must at least in part rely upon the assessment of others as to the moral acceptability of every last stage in the supply chain of the goods we get; the more these goods are produced predominantly in developed nations, the lower the likelihood their production involved bribes sustaining a corrupt regime or labor that was exploitative and health-deteriorating.

However, there is still corruption, exploitation, and poverty in the most "developed" of nations, so I do sometimes question how much one can remove oneself from being part of such problems when one continues to bank in large institutions, send payments via paypal, or otherwise utilize the convenient tools provided for us by an elite financial/political/legal coalition.

That being said, I try to rely on products purchased from people I know personally, but it is quite difficult to encounter garments of the standard we know and love on this forum that are also created by people within my social circle. Barring that, I rely on a proxy group whose aggregate expertise and overall judiciousness must serve where mine cannot.

Who might this group be? When it comes to fashion/garments, it is this forum. Because of this place, I know in many cases exactly where the fabric is being sourced from, and can read interviews from, if not interact personally with (zamb), designers of the styles we love. Do I know that in every case every individual along the supply chain can be characterized as morally blameless? Hell no. Do I know of anyone who purchases things internationally whose money isn't at some point outside their literal and figurative control? Also no.

I guess what I'm taking a convoluted way of saying is that for me one of the lowest cost ways of ensuring that the garments I purchase do not embody the cruelty that begat this discussion is to go through designers who are truly passionate about the textiles, construction techniques, and processing that their garments entail. It's still possible, but one hell of a lot less likely, that the linen in my unstructured MA+ blazer embodies the exploitation that the same fabric would imply if used in a garment coming from any multinational fashion clearinghouse.

In many cases, the very textile speaks of an attention to detail that can only come from an artisan, and I truly believe (and hope I'm not deluding myself) that the passion that is part and parcel of these creations is not that which can be easily extracted by the cruel hand of financial necessity.

[christianef]

exactly, i remember when everyone was trippin out cus that Sully fool landed a plane on the hudson and everyone survived and i was like BIG DEAL i buy 2k ma+ notu jofu jackets. you're welcome, Bangladesh.

[Faust]

/\ you are a tool, but you are funny. pass, collect $200.

[Dane]

exactly, i remember when everyone was trippin out cus that Sully fool landed a plane on the hudson and everyone survived and i was like BIG DEAL i buy 2k ma+ notu jofu jackets. you're welcome, Bangladesh.

I just spit out my coffee

[mortalveneer]

exactly, i remember when everyone was trippin out cus that Sully fool landed a plane on the hudson and everyone survived and i was like BIG DEAL i buy 2k ma+ notu jofu jackets. you're welcome, Bangladesh.

defining the title of this thread...

trying to minimize the negatives associated with one's purchases isn't the same as claiming to be a saint...but thank you for the daily dose of asshole...

[cjbreed]

i made a lol. thanks christianef-you

[michael_kard]

I know ripping off Rick is nothing new, but lol

[Patroklus]

Link just takes me to the front page of the US Guess site, which doesn't show the Marciano menswear. Guess refuses to show me the EU site.
Saw some Rickalike jackets in the womenswear though. That compared to the campaign images tells me a lot about how fucking cohesive the whole mess is.

[michael_kard]

Here's a print screen of the link

[Patroklus]

I'm surprised that even Guess would let that Michelin Man shit past prototype.

Speaking of Owens, oh Etsy!

[cjbreed]

Here's a print screen of the link

...WOW...

[tron]

[gavagai]

I'm not big on accessories but the above should be in good finds, No love for the dew?