Fast fashion has always been an issue. However, it has received more awareness with the rise of social media activism. One Instagram account that comes to mind is @RemakeOurWorld. They started an amazing campaign in March called “PayUp”, to shine a light on major fashion corporations and hold them accountable for their continuous detrimental efforts in this industry. Just a few notable brands they’ve named are Urban Outfitters, Free People, Anthropologie, and Primark, along with many others. It can be overwhelming to try and decide which ways to be ethical in this fashion world and how your contributions matter. Here are a few do’s and don’ts I’ve come up with to help guide your way through understanding this!
Do: find ethical brands
It can be hard to see some of your favorite brands as contributors to fast fashion. However, there are some great alternatives to these brands! One of my favorites is Los Angeles Apparel, which has similar clothing styles to that of American Apparel. From biker shorts to tennis skirts, you can find some of the best options, ethically! Another notable sustainable brand I’ve been into is the Girlfriend Collective. They create sustainable activewear sets in a wide range of sizes! This brand is a great dupe for Nike and Lululemon. With just these two in mind, there are tons of others that can be great alternatives to your wardrobe!
Don’t: feel bad if you have to support fast fashion brands
Shopping ethically is a great alternative but is not necessarily as affordable for everyone. Since there are more guidelines to meet to ensure the brand can produce clothing in an ethical as well as a sustainable way, these clothes tend to cost more than fast fashion brands. Which is how these fast fashion brands can be extremely inexpensive (ex. Shein). Keeping that in mind, it’s important to recognize that shopping from sustainable brands can be more expensive, but they are an investment and are made to last a long time.
Do: thrift!
If you can’t afford to shop your whole wardrobe sustainably, let me introduce you to the wonders of thrifting! Thrifting is a more accessible way to start shopping with an ethical mindset. Thrifting and shopping second-hand saves tons of clothes from ending up in landfills. From Goodwill to Savers, there are tons of options of thrift stores to choose from. There are even some great online alternatives such as Depop and Thredup. Be sure to check these out!
Don’t: succumb to popular trends
One of the many reasons fast fashion brands remain popular is because of the current trends they set. By using influencers to represent their brand, these companies create trends in themselves. By doing this, they can create relatively cheap clothing and shuffle trends along to keep you buying more. Think about how long clothes you own typically last. Do you see yourself cycling through new items a few times a year? Be mindful of the capitalistic tricks many of these companies tend to follow in order to sell items all throughout the year.
Do: What’s best for you!
All in all, do what’s best for you! If your wardrobe calls you to change it anytime there’s a new trend, it’s ok to cave. It’s also ok to not shop all your items second-hand. There’s a balance to find within starting to create an ethical wardrobe. With that, keep in mind there are other alternatives for your shopping endeavors that can help a larger issue at hand! You can set the trend.