Be the Change Blog

Is vegan fashion the next great craze?

The great folks at the hip and zen pen turned me on to an article in the New York Times entitled "Uncruel Beauty," written by Ruth La Ferla.  It seems NYC has caught the vegan craze, not just for food, but also for fashion.  Boutiques are popping up all over the place to sell hipster gear such as vegan-friendly shoes, fashionable hemp and bamboo dresses, and suits made with ahimsa silk, a fiber processed without injuring silkworms.  Of course, being eco-chic in NY comes at a price.  Most of the fashions mentioned in the article carried a hefty multi-hundred dollar price tag.

Is this just a trend, or the beginning of truly responsible consumerism?  By the number of blogs and website cropping up, it looks like the uncruel fashion industry is more than a passing phase.  One of my new favorites is ecorrazi.com, which tracks the environmental hits and misses of today's hottest movie stars.  Another fun new site, global-cool, brings environmental chic to the rest of us in a hip format that makes you feel like an insider.  Ethical design lab is aimed at fashion industry insiders, with interesting new product lines that combine flair with sustainability.   

What does all of this mean to the future of fashion for the rest of us?  I think we are on a slow but steady path to more sustainable fashion.  At Hoopla, our customers have responded enthusiastically to recycled cashmere hats and scarves, organic cotton and alpaca sweaters, and hemp blend skirts.  But they aren't ready to give up luxurious silk blouses, and they don't want to pay $800 to protect the silkworms from harm.  Until there are enough affordable alternatives, our commitment is to find the most sustainable fashions we can, without sacrificing style or affordability.  Virtually all of our fashions are natural fiber, but not all are organic.  Many are made in the US, and if not, we assure you that they are sweatshop free.  With fashion, it is not quite as easy as changing to CFL lightbulbs, but each small choice leads us all to a better world. 

Fair trade style

I just saw The Devil Wears Prada and it was great fun.  Meryl Streep is quite believable as the "dragon lady" who terrorizes her personal assistants, and what's more, she gets to wear yummy designer clothing.  Of course, we all know that the fashion industry is responsible for much of the wretched excess of conspicuous consumerism -- but what's a girl to do?  If you have fashion in your soul, you can't wear sackcloth and ashes for the rest of your life.

Fortunately, the conscientious consumer doesn't have to make that Hobson's choice.  As we discussed in my last fashion post, other people's castoffs make great eco-friendly fashion choices.  But even the most talented thrift shoppers among us sometimes need to buy something new.  When the need for retail therapy strikes, the socially responsible shopper has several choices.  Clothing that is locally made promotes sustainability (less tranportation, less fuel, more contribution to the local community), and all the better if it is made of organic or sustainable fibers.  And don't forget the workers who make your garments.  They deserve decent working conditions and fair wages for their labor. 

If you have to choose between sustainability and fair trade, what is the more responsible choice?  Safia's blog suggests that "fair trade fashion is as green as it gets."  She argues that most fair trade fashions are made of organic (or at least non-synthetic) fibers, and that handweavers replace power looms that are major consumers of energy.  So fair trade reduces the environmental impact of clothing production, while increasing the income of workers who would otherwise be paid slave wages. 

Green LA Girl turned me on to the latest issue of Just Things, the Fair Trade Journal of Applied Counter-Economics.  The entire issue is dedicated to fair trade clothes, and features interviews with Bena Burda of Maggie's Functional Organics, among others.  One interesting article by Brendan Martin and Estaban Magnani of Working World asks the question "What makes trade fair?"  This has been a subject of great debate in the coffee industry, but other parts of the economy are just starting to catch up.

Martin and Magnani suggest a flexible definition "that fair trade is any economic exchange where the ethical standards of the production are more stringent than what is provided in the average marketplace.  This could be about effects on the environment, on the workers, or perhaps even on the way the product is sold."

Others may disagree, but I like their definition because it recognizes the reality that when a retailer wants to procure goods that are fairly traded, there are not always concrete rules and certifications to guide their choices.  Some larger companies may be certified by the Fair Trade Federation, but many of the smaller coops and entrepreneurs that we deal with at Hoopla Traders have not gone through the lengthy process of certification.  We ask a lot of questions about working conditions, wages, and materials, and then decide for ourselves whether the company cares as much about people and the planet as it does about profits. 

Eco-fashion trends

Today's hottest fashionistas have found a way to clean out their closets, be kind to the environment, and save money all at the same time.  According to Treehugger, the greenest garments are those you already own -- and those you re-use or re-cycle from other people's closets.  Budget-minded shoppers have always visited thrift shops and consignment shops for fashionable pre-loved garments, but the latest trend is to turn bargain hunting into a party.

Today's clothing swaps have come a long way from the church rummage sales of the past.  They are shopping extravaganzas, with refreshments, DJ's and plenty of treasures from other people's closets.  Part of the fun is watching your cast-offs become the perfect fit for someone with a different size or sense of style.  But of course the real thrill comes when you find a treasure of your own.  Just read the comments on Pony, Style Tribe, and other websites devoted to the topic of clothing swaps. 

One we get past the dog days of summer, Hoopla Traders will kick off the fall fashion season with a city-wide clothing swap on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.  If you would like to help plan this event, please send us an e-mail or post a comment here.   

In the meantime, if you do need to buy new clothing, your best best is to buy organic, recycled or fair trade.  Hoopla Traders has a large selection of eco-friendly clothing, from vintage Japanese kimonos to organic sweaters, hand-made and fair trade from Indigenous Designs and other socially responsible companies.  If the notion of "responsible" clothing sounds dull, I'll try to dispell that notion in a later post.  For now, take my word for it -- hand-made, fair trade and organic fashion does not have to be boring!