My 5 ways to Shopping Responsibly.

Hello Beautiful People! 
Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend!

How do usually spend your weekend? Would like to hear all the crazy things you all do to de-stress on weekends after a crazy week?

Some might be planning to go shopping.

Shopping. for many, I know is a stress buster or something that makes us feel good. The power of a new dress or latest handbag to dramatically change our mood can't be denied. 

But when we are busy and very often impulsively shopping, just paying attention to a few things can change the way the fashion industry impacts the lives of millions. 

In my previous posts, I had discussed ethical Wardrobe and Sustainable Fashion.

Today let me share (what I know) about Shopping Ethically.

1. Quality over Quantity. 

Chose and demand for quality over quantity.
A garment is Cheap, either when it is made of a poor-quality material or the poor workers or artisans at the grassroots level, are getting underpaid, who dues to lack of knowledge and very often cause of need of employment do not even realize that they are getting underpaid or that they can demand more. Poorly stitched garments will last only 2-3 wears, and they end up in ever-growing landfills whereas when a dress is  Well stitched and made of good quality material it will last long, you can wear as long as you want or donate it. 

Look for quality over Quantity.

2. Go for classic trends. 

Classic styles will Never go out of Style. Invest in classic trends that don't go out of fashion, pieces that are well stitched with material that long-lasting. Owning such a piece in your wardrobe is like an investment. since they don't go out of style you don't have to worry about replacing it every year with a new one.

Choose classic styles.

3 Shop Local.

When we shop local, we are reducing the carbon footprint, by eliminating transportation involved.
We help in creating a livelihood for local artisans and giving them an opportunity to sustain a using their age-old skill and culture.
Which if not promoted, chances are might vanish.

Shop Local

4. Buy from an ethical shop.
Shops from stores that are transparent about their process,  It is not enough that the dress we buy has an international or popular brand name! , We from our end should see if the garment is made to last, made by workers who are paid fair wages under conditions that are safe. E-mail them, tweet or message them on their FB pages or insta pages, ask them.

Buy from Ethical Shop.

5. Shop Second Hand / Vintage Shops / Rent.
Buying secondhand clothes can help save a lot of resources that go into making new garments and also decrease the pressure that manufacturers put on their factory workers to keep producing one garment after the other at a rate faster than they can breathe! 
Some of the websites where you can buy pre-loved clothes in India are Elanic, Etashee or Spoyl
or

Rent from Flyrobe, Swishlist, Wrapd, Liberent or The Clothing Rental

Shop Secondhand/ Rent.

Sustainable Fashion and everything about it.

( That I know, lol ) 

'Sustainable' and 'Ethical' recently, have become popular words in the fashion industry. Every fashion brand,  producer, consumer, right about anyone involved in the process of creating fashion is urged to practice sustainability or put ethical practices into use.

 But what exactly is sustainable fashion?

According to the UN Report to World Commission on Environment and Development Sustainability is, 'meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generation to meet their own needs.'

i.e we conduct our business- production, marketing, transportation etc in such a manner, that, the resources we are using benefits us, without the risk of exhausting it for the future generation. 






Sustainability in any industry depends on the three very significant pillars - Economic, Environmental and Social.
Also called the triple bottom line.

An industry can be regarded as sustainable only when it not only takes care of its economic progress and growth but also the social and environmental effect and wellbeing. 
So when we refer to ethical fashion we also are taking into account the same values as sustainable fashion.

From the cultivation of the cotton crop, for example, if is it free from pesticide and insecticide? is water management practiced? 
and when the cotton goes in for the dying process and other treatments, are the dyes organic? how is the wastewater treated? etc, is it chemical free? 
and then the actual process of garment making, where is it made? is it a safe and clean place for the workers? are they paid fair wages? are they exploited? is child labor involved? what is done with the production waste? are the garments made to last? 
And at each level fair wages have to be paid.
So in the entire process, not only is the economic aspect to be looked at but also the socio and environmental aspect have to be also taken care off in order for the business to be ethical.

These practices have become a very important cause of the pollution it causes which is greatly affecting the environment. Did you know the fashion industry alone contributes to 10% of global water pollution, which affects the marine lives as well as humans equally.

It was a wake-up call for the entire world, when the world 4th largest lake, Aral sea reduced to 10% of its original size cause of the cotton cultivation that started along the bank. 

In order to practice responsible business in the entire fashion industry, as a whole, 

   the Ethical Fashion Forum has put forward 10 criteria which define as ethical fashion and addresses the 3 pillars of sustainability. 

1. Countering fast, cheap fashion. 
2. Fair Trade. 
3. Supporting sustainable livelihoods.
4. Addressing toxic pesticide and chemical use.
5. Using and/or developing eco- friendly fabrics and components. 
6. Minimising water use. 
7. Recycling and addressing energy efficiency and waste. 
8. Developing or promoting sustainability standards for fashion. 
9. Resources, training and/ or awareness raising initiatives
10. Animal rights

A very interesting thing to note is the concept of sustainability and ethical Fashion is open to interpretation. It isn't rigid, in the sense, that only if the above-mentioned criteria are fulfilled by the company or factory or producer doesn't become an Ethical Brand. Fashion Organisations can adopt different ways to be Ethical, be it with respect to minimizing waste or minimizing environmental pollution by doing small and local business, etc.

A brand, if it decided to go ethical can also consider incorporating the following steps into its practice. 

1. Employing women or certain ethnic groups
2. Donating part of the profits to a charity
3. Handmade
4. Contributing to preserve traditions of an ethnic minority.
5. Revealing manufacturing locations and workforce policies
6. Natural Dyes
7. Use of discarded fabrics.
8. Upcycling of used materials.
9. Made with recycled fabrics
10. Garments made to last for a long time.

 An organization can choose to take these small steps in its functioning, if not all, cause we understand that everything can get a bit overwhelming and considering that our economy isn't sustainable yet, very expensive as well. Nevertheless, any step towards sustainability or ethical fashion should be always welcomed and appreciated.






All the given points cover the three pillar of sustainability, economic, environmental and social.
What they choose to follow, be it just one or all, is up to them, the producers.
We, as consumers, on our part have the responsibility to #ask the producer to be transparent about their practice.
Tell their consumers about how are the garments produced? how are the materials sourced? and what are the materials sourced? about worker well fair.




Ethical Fashion has to be a 2-way street,
 the producers need to take responsible steps and
 the consumers practice responsibly.

Plastic Free July!

Well, we don't have to stop just at July, It could become a part of our lifestyle!

That's what I aim to do.

Designed using Canva.

I recently came across the 'Plastic-free July Challenge' organized globally to raise awareness about the harmful effects of the single-use plastic. And found it a very interesting way to promote a plastic-free life. Everyone can try this challenge or take it as a form of a pledge without feeling too much pressure and take baby steps towards a Green living. 

The challenge is pretty simple, nothing hard and fast- we have the freedom to draw our own boundaries, the aim here is more to raise awareness and ultimately adopt a zero-waste lifestyle than to make things intimidating.

We have an option to choose what kind of challenge we take- it could be 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, a year, absolutely anything and also what we choose to stop using- all single-use plastic or the top 4 plastic pollutant- plastic straws, plastic bottles, plastic bag and coffee cups. or to have a plastic-free house, office space or travel. 

It could be also an individual or a group pledge!

you can customize the pledge as you feel convenient, to begin with. 

Designed using Canva.

It's a pretty easy, and very sensible challenging to take, considering the rampant use of plastic in our daily lives, the most harmful and excessive being the plastic shopping bags. 

In India, 20 states have completely banned the use, manufacturing, supply, and storage of polythene bags while 5 states have partial bans though we cant be very sure how far they have been successful, for the lack of awareness and also lack of an equally cheap substitute. 

Challenges or pledges like this will help create awareness and take personal steps to this cause.

 Step 1

Make a list of items that you use that are plastic based or harmful to the environment. 
Use of disposable coffee cups, plastic bottle, use of polythene bags, using disposable cutlery.

Step 2

What are the possible substitutes for it? 

What changes can you bring about in your lifestyle to reduce or avoid the complete use of it?  

Make a list of substitute or changes in lifestyle.  

Step 3
Make actionable plans to incorporate them into your daily life.
Adopting everything all at once might get a bit too overwhelming, and it would be convenient and much effective if actions are taken in small steps.

Step 4
Review. 
Give yourself time after which you can review your progress. And its okay if you are falling a bit behind, don't give up, even the smallest of progress is better than none.

For starters, we can

Reduce, the use where ever possible if not avoidable

Refuse, the use, but substituting it with eco-friendly options.

Reuse, if the item isn't sustainable.  

Avoid product in plastic packages.

Designed using Canva,

5 better places for your pre-owned Clothes.

Continuing with my previous post

on how to have a sustainable closet, in this post are few suggestions ways  our clothes don't end up in the landfills and get a chance for second life!

1. Give it to your siblings.

As Indian I feel every family does this- give away clothes to the younger siblings in the family.

The first line of give away is usually your own siblings, i know mine has been!

and then comes cousins, who ever fits into it. 

We have had this order for a long time in our family! I have clothes as old as 27-28 yrs old which my youngest cousins still wear and its such a joy to see them wear it. 

2. Donate it to the people who come to work at your place.

I feel this also is a common practice in India. We usually give away our clothes- faded, small, slightly torn or just something we don't like, to the people who come to work at our places- them or their kids. Be it the house maid, sweeper, gardener or someone who comes to wash your car once in a while, cook just about anyone who you think could benefit from your   (un)clothes. 
Giving away our clothes to those in need, rather than just throwing it away is a much better option. Sometimes what we easily discard as unwearable can be something, someone desperately needs. 

3. Donate it to charitable institute near your home or in your city.

We can also find a number of orphanages, home for destitute etc who will happily accept your clothes. Please be responsible while donating your clothes to such institutes, as to not give clothes that are absolutely not in a wearable condition.

Our intention here is just not to get rid of any and every piece of clothes that you don't wear but also to be able to be helpful to someone in need. 

or else we can also

4. Donate it here.

seams for dreams

A wonderful initiative by startded by Evelyn Sharma. You can drop off all your excess cloths after washing it nicely and packing it at their drop off centers.  

dream girl foundation
This foundation works for the under privileged and neglected girl child in India. Not only do they help out through the clothes that are donated but also work towards the betterment of the girl Child

goonj
Apart from clothes Goonj also accepts a number of second hand item that could be helpful to those in need.

clothes box foundation
Another option, where we can donate our used clothes.

or

Share at the Door Step

5.You can also sell them here.

sharewardrobe

The arrange a pick up once we get in touch with them, but they also do have pretty high standards as to what clothes they accept for re-sell

coutloot

you can sell your pre-owned high end designer clothes here. 





You can also read more on Sustainable Fashion in my previous posts

Here , here & here !