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It’s starting to get mighty chilly and one incontrovertible Autumn/Winter must-have item is the neck warming scarf. It’s fairly easy to unearth some wonderfully soft wool, alpaca or cashmere scarves, but for the veggies amongst us we want something animal-free. Whilst it is often believed that animals such as sheep and cashmere goats do no suffer for their coats the reality is frequently quite different, with animals being kept in cramped, unhealthy conditions, being ground up in a mincer if they fall ill, or otherwise killed off at a very young age if their coats aren’t up to scratch. Certain ethical fashion companies may gather animal’s coats in more humane ways, but I’d rather skip an animal coat as a winter warmer. So, I’ve been on a vegan scarf hunt and here are a few of my favourite items, to keep that winter wind at bay.
1) Tanjuv Scarf, chocolate, fairly traded cotton, £11.99, Ganesha.
2) Circle Scarf, pinks/browns or blacks/beiges,100% acrylic, £35.00, Bourgeois Boheme.
3) Antonia Grey Scarf, 100% acrylic, $19.99, Alternative Outfitters.
4) Hemp Shawl, black, £19.95, Ethical Wares.
Ethical fashionistas no longer need to spend hours combing the internet for fashionable and environmentally sound fashion purchases. Whip out your diaries, because on 24th September the very first issue of nu magazine will be lining the shelves of London's shops. Founded by social entrepreneurs Amisha Miller (22) and Lauren Maleh (24) nu is offering ‘fashion laid bare’ and flying in the face of the mainstream fashion industry, showcasing only the most stylish ethically produced clothes and accessories. It hasn’t come a moment too soon, launching at a time when the world is beginning to wake up to the ethical fashion world and realising that glamorous mainstream garments come at a cost to individuals and the environment.
Nu will be offering up only fair trade, organic, recycle and vintage, UK-produced and cruelty–free products, encouraging consumers to shop ethically whilst acknowledging that people have the right to remain supremely stylish.
Pearl Lowe, ex-Powder front woman turned fashion designer and cover star of the first issue, says:
“I've always been interested in ethical fashion, something that inspired me to create my own line of vintage dresses. It's great to see nu showcasing the very best of ethical fashion, making consumers aware they can be responsible shoppers without comprising on their style. I'll definitely be picking up a copy!”
Nu magazine is funded by UnLtd, a charitable organisation established by leading organisations that promote social entrepreneurship and Miller and Maleh have opted to invest 10% of profits to aid new ethical fashion designers in their bid to break into the UK market.
Hopefully nu magazine will demonstrate how effortlessly stylish and wearable sustainable fashion can be. Hurrah!
For budding and ethical fashionistas alike, bags are vital accessories that add something extra to a stylish outfit. Finding fantastic, chic, cruelty free and eco-friendly bags is getting ever easier. HER Design contemporary bags by Helen E Riegle are winning over celebrities and the general public alike, combining inspired design with conscious sustainability. HER Design was launched in 2004 with the aim of promoting cleaner, greener living that embraces style. Helen Riegle makes the most of organic and sustainable materials, producing bags with that wow factor, but without leaving a huge imprint on the planet.
It’s clear that innovation is key at HER Designs, with novel materials such as EcoSpun (made from recycled plastic bottles) and Treetap® (“wild rubber,” a sustainably made, fair-trade leather substitute from the Amazon) showing that we don’t have to rely on bog standard run of the mill fabrics.
Here’s a rundown of my top 3 HER Design bags. Relatives and boyfriend note, these are on my Christmas list!
1.’Iris’ - in microsuede with vegan leather trim, $118 (out of stock at HER Designs but available at Thegreenloop.com).
2. ‘Lily’ (md) in Linen – in natural, with vegan leather trim and EcoSpun lining, $129.
3. ‘Lily’ (sm) in Organic Cotton – in turquoise, with Treetap®, $69.
After a Guardian report revealed that factory workers who make clothes for high street retailers are being paid as little as 13p per hour for a 48-hour week, two of Britain’s major high street chains, Primark and Mothercare are launching enquiries. India’s biggest ready-made clothing exporter, Gokaldas Export, supplier of brands such as Marks & Spencers, Mothercare and H&M, verified that wages paid to garment workers were as little as £1.13 for a nine-hour day. This falls below the minimum international labour standards established by the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), whose members include Marks & Spencers, Mothercare, Gap and Primark.
Employees of factories owned by exporters who supply Gap and Matalan claimed that were forced to work overtime without pay to meet unachievable production targets. Allegedly the largely female workforce was harassed and bullied by male production managers and supervisors for failing to achieve targets and were not allowed sick leave.
John Hilary from War on Want said, “Exploitation of workers in developing countries such as India is standard practice for British retailers right across the spectrum. This just underlines the urgent need for Gordon Brown to step in now and stop these abuses once and for all.” The retailers in question have promised to look into these issues, but it shouldn’t take media reports for them to take action on worker exploitation. Fair, just and safe working conditions should be a basic minimum standard for all employees, anywhere in the world.
[via The Guardian]
The summer sales will be ending soon, so for those who are desperate for affordable ethical fashion, get in quick and purchase some goodies from fairtrade and organic fashion company, Tam & Rob. The 100% fairtrade and organic cotton wrap dress on the left has been slashed from £85 to £63, the organic bow neck shirt is half price, cut from £50 to £25, the organic twin pleats skirt has been cut from £55 to £32 and the jersey v-neck top has been slashed from £40 to £18. There are more great buys on the Tam & Rob website.
Tam & Rob’s (Lucy Tammam and Lucy Robinson) fashions are crafted from organic and fairtrade cotton certified by SKAL and the Fairtrade Foundation. Their factories have been accredited by independent third parties through the International Fair Trade Association (IFAT). If you are concerned about potentially toxic azo-dyes, rest assured that Tam & Rob’s garments are azo-free. They also use recycled products and packaging, make the most of vintage buttons and work with Carbon Clear to offset carbon emissions.
Distressed denim may be all the rage in the fashion world at the moment, but the style comes at an environmental and human cost. In Tehuacán in Mexico it is the local people that pay price for our fashion. Once famous for its mineral springs and spas, Tehuacán, the ‘City of Health’, is now home to around 700 clothes manufacturers, many with little or no environmental controls or standards. Workers are routinely exploited, their employee rights ignored. The worst environmental culprits are the dozens of factories that make the faded or distressed denim that is so fashionable right now. The chemicals used in the process are discharged into the rivers and streams around the factories, turning the water blue and damaging the crops that depend on the water systems.
The main chemical used is potassium permanganate, a strong bleaching agent that was once used to induce abortions. Mariano Baragán, a local farmer said: "As well as being blue, it burns the seedlings and sterilises the earth." The government agencies that should be monitoring the factories are allowing this to happen, probably because the local economy depends on the factories, and their foreign corporate customers. It is these corporations that should be enforcing stricter controls on their client factories to protect both the workers and the environment. We as customers ultimately have the power to change this with our buying power. We chould only buy products from ethical and fair trade companies.
Ethical fashion brand Onagono is introducing a new collection called Shining, designed by Tomomi Kojo Robertson, which will be unleashed in September. This simple, high quality and incredibly stylish jersey wear collection reveres the planet, having been constructed from 100% organic fair trade cotton and featuring nature inspired printed artworks by Phoebe Eason, Rohan Daniel, Rupert Smyth and Richard Ardagh. Garments from this new collection will not break the bank with t-shirts starting from £23 a piece. 
Onagono was born out of Tomomi’s desire to fight against the unfair cotton trade, by providing an ethical alternative. Recognising that her background in mainstream fashion and interest in creative cultures and the environment were at odds, Tomomi developed an ethical label that makes the most of organic (certified by SKAL) fair trade cotton. Onagono will be showcasing a full Spring/Summer 2008 women’s wear collection at the September Pret-a-Porter exhibition in Paris.
Stockists of Onagono have included Topshop, Behave and Family Tree in London, Beams and Ma in Japan, The Rise and Fall in New York and 90sqm in Amsterdam. For more information check out the Onagono website which will have an online store up and running shortly.
Stylish and ethical fashion need not come with a hefty price tag. Organic and ethical fashion label Under the Canopy are having a summer sale and you can pick up some great buys for as little as $19. Under the Canopy was established in 1996 with the intention of making a positive impact on the planet and utilising sustainable materials. Their products are crafted from innovative organic fibres and fibre blends, such as: organic denim, organic cotton and soy. Last year in the U.S. alone, over 84 million pounds of toxic pesticides were sprayed on conventional cotton crops. The production of conventional cotton results in poisoned people, plants, soil, air, waterways and ultimately a poisoned planet, so I applaud UTC on their ecologically sound practices. UTC's Ecofashion® line offers luxurious and high quality fashion, minus the pollutants and harsh chemicals that put producers and consumers at risk. Along with garments for men, women and children, UTC also produce organic household products, footwear and accessories. If you want to check out UTC's eco-credentials, just ask and they will forward you a certificate of authenticity for every garment labelled as organic. The brand use low impact dyes, which are less damaging to the environment and their dye factory is powered with rice husks instead of fossil fuels. What is more UTC's garments are produced under fair labour practices and their factories in India and Peru use fair trade certified cotton, with products produced in fair trade certified factories. This means that their producers are receiving a better wage, healthier working conditions and a percentage of profits to re-invest into community development.
Get in the mood for your summer holidays (if you haven’t already been and come back!) with some gorgeous hand-made, ethical, Hawaiian themed outfits from Muumuu Heaven, a family run business based in, you guessed it, Oahu, Hawaii. Muumuu Heaven began with the concept of creating beautiful, high quality products, whilst maintaining corporate and social responsibility and without creating a detrimental impact on the planet.
Muumuu Heaven contribute 1% FTP to help preserve Hawaii’s coral reefs, use vintage and recycled materials to avoid wasting fabric and the brand is a favourite with the Hollywood rich and famous. You can purchase items from the label online at BTC Elements and Shop Equita.
Dorothy Perkins may not be number one or even 100 on anyone's list of ethical fashion brands, but they are beginning to produce more ethical items. In 2006 they introduced their O Line consisting of a small range of organic vests and tees. This year Dorothy Perkins signed a deal with the Woodland Trust to launch a collection of organic wellies, cotton T-shirts, vests, bags (and more recently flip flops!), with £5 from the sale of every T-shirt, vest and pair of wellies and £1.50 from each bag sold, going to the Woodland Trust. The overall aim of the collaboration is to plant 40,000 trees in the UK next year.
More recently Dorothy Perkins has introduced a range of recycled bags made from rubbish by a collective of over 200 Filipino women, who grouped together to tidy up the neighbourhood, collecting 50,000 packs a day. After collection the packs are sorted, clean, sanitized and woven together into rather interesting and fetching bags. Profits from this venture are divided between the co-operative.
Dorothy Perkin's endeavours are still a drop in the ocean and as part of the powerful Arcadia Group, they could do a hell of a lot better. Labour Behind the Label, No Sweat and Tear Fund have plenty to say about Arcadia's use of cheap labour and Lite Green who rank major brands based on their ethical endeavours and policies have not furnished Dorothy Perkins with a Lite Green rating (which indicates good ethical practices.) However, in optimism (which is quite unusual for me!) I am hoping that this situation will improve as consumers begin to demand more ethical fashion. Going organic is not enough, we need to push for more fairly traded items and hopefully big guns like Arcadia will respond with a more environmentally friendly and compassionate approach.
Below are three great ethical goodies from Dorothy Perkins. If you are going to shop on the high street, register your vote for organic and earth conscious fashion by making ethical purchases.
1) Green Woodland Trust Cami, 100% organic cotton - £12.
2) Woodland Trust Chocolate Flip Flop - £8.
3) Multiweave Tote Bag, 100% plastic - £15.
Ethical clothing retailer Adili have a summer sale on with up to 50% off some of their stock. I have suggested some great buys below. Bag some bargains soon whilst stocks last!1) Kuyichi Jersey Cross Back Dress, fairly traded, £55, now £38. 2) Kuyichi Casual Summer Jean, fairly traded, £85, now £60. 3) Del Forte Denim Short, organic cotton, £85, now £55. 4) Alchem1st Sweetheart Top, ethically traded, fine jersey cotton, £70, now £45.5) Kuyichi Harpoon Print Top, fairly traded, 50% cotton, 50% polyester, £40, now £28. 
Functional fashion is the agenda for German designer Alice Kaiserworth, who has created a nifty two-in-one product called Dos Caras. One minute it's a sassy little jacket, the next it's a...erm, bag. What's even better is that everything you have stored in your pockets will remain there during the transformation, so no well-used tissues tumbling onto the pavement as you look around you in a state of sheer embarassment. It's great for the UK when the sudden change of weather from flood to searing heat requires an outfit alteration. Instead of lugging your jacket around trying to awkwardly drape it over one arm, you can simply morph it into its bag alter ego and away you go! 
The London College of Fashion is currently in the process of establishing a new 'Centre for Sustainable Fashion,' which aims to unite sector experts in sustainable fashion practices and intends to foster existing partnerships. The project is expected to be launched in April 2008. The Head of the London College of Fashion, Dr Frances Corner said, "London College of Fashion is committed to drive up the quality of advice, information and support surrounding issues of sustainability and climate change. Environmental and ethical concerns should be high on everyone's agenda, as fundamental considerations for any forward thinking fashion organisation."The London College of Fashion launched its ethical fashion campaign, 'Is Green the New Black,' this year and is developing a postgraduate degree in sustainable fashion, as well as working towards featuring ethical and sustainable fashion in its undergraduate courses. It's great to see this world-renowned educational fashion institution promoting more ethical and sustainable values. Hopefully this will lead to more graduates from the establishment setting up ethical fashion collections and this will improve the credibility and style stakes of earth conscious fashion. [via Ecotextile News]
Today I have put together an ethical outfit for you that is a combination of organic high street and ethical brand items. It’s great to see the high street producing more ethical collections, in line with consumer demand. However, we have to be aware that they don’t always practice the ethics they preach. Many high street retailers are making efforts at improving their ethical policies but there is still a long way to go.
The high street brands I have sourced products from for the outfit below are Laura Ashley and Monsoon. Laura Ashley is a relative latecomer to the ethical fashion market, but they do have quite a few pieces, including the Archive Collection of vintage, organic retro, seventies garments. The organic cotton used in Laura Ashley’s small organic range is sourced from cotton farmers in Turkey who receive 1/3 more for their crop, plus their mills are organically certified. Laura Ashley could also do with paying a living wage.
Monsoon traditionally focused on clothes of ethnic origin and in 1994 established the Monsoon Trust, which aims to improve the lives of children, young people and women in South Asia, via projects that concentrate on education, health and activities to foster more income. Monsoon is also a founder member of The Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), an alliance of companies non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and trade union organisations, established to improve corporate codes of practice covering supply chain working conditions.
Monsoon could do better by increasing their organic and Fairtrade products and making more solid environmental commitments, but they do have higher standards than many other retailers. In reality all high street retailers need to be making more concerted efforts to improve their track record for producer working conditions and increasing their organic and fairly traded ranges.
The other items below are from Fifi Bijoux who produce jewellery using ethically mind gold, Novacas (sold at Moo Shoes) who produce vegan, cruelty-free footwear and Bourgeois Boheme who sell vegan, cruelty-free bags and footwear.
1) Fifi Bijoux, Starfish Pendant, made from ethically mined gold, £130 – Adili.com.
2) Novacas, Angel Beige Shoe, $95 – Mooshoes.com.
3) Valencia Small Beige Tote Bag, £19 – Bboheme.com.
4) Jersey Grandad Top, made from 100% organic cotton, £7 – Lauraashley.com.
5) Abigail Organic Regular Length Jeans, made from an organic cotton mix, £45 – Monsoon.co.uk.
I should be thinking about the autumn/winter season right now, but I am still hanging onto the hope of a summer arising out of the dreary gloom. Monochrome was a key spring/summer trend and the colour black is filtering through to the autumn/winter season (albeit minus the white!). So, just enough time to grab a few black and white ethical fashion pieces that will see you through the rest of summer. Enjoy your hols!1) TUK Houndstooth Flat, $36 - Moo Shoes. 2) Vintage Zebra Dress, 450 kr - Mint & Vintage. 3) Edun Damas Organic Tee, $60, 100% organic, Fair Trade and sweatshop free cotton - Equita. 4) Ecoganik French Terry Bermuda, $75, 100% organic cotton - Couture Candy. 5) Black and White Bag, £9.95, fairly traded from India - Natural Collection. 6) BKMHattitude Not So Plain Jane, $25, linen - Etsy.
Ethical fashion newcomers, Si:su, established in July 2005 by Helen Stew, Hanneke Van Ryswyk and Rachel Bryan, have just launched their brand spanking new website at Si-su.com. Si:su was born out of the desire of its creators to launch an organic empire, which eventually manifested as an Oxfam Originals collection, crafted for their local store from vintage materials. The label is currently producing a range of womenswear, accessories and interior collections, entirely from vintage and recycled materials. Si:su are passionate about producing eco-friendly products from sustainable fabrics. On 8th July they took part in the Sustainable Urban Styles Today (SUST) show in Manchester, which featured a host of established ethical and aspiring ethical designers including: People Tree, Enamore, Think! and Snood. Si:su womenswear consists of two ranges (Pure and Bijou) with their own customised collections. The earth toned Pure range is, nostalgic, simple, pretty and practical to wear. The Bijou range is feminine and romantic, utilising luxurious satins and cottons, detailed with ribbon and lace. Si:su's designs are available at Allthingsgreen.net.
When you think of ethical clothing you might not automatically consider an outfit with the ability to transform into another outfit, but DePloy's approach to sustainable fashion is just this. With a unique popper system and detachable parts, each of their items of clothing can adapt into at least two different outfits. When the fashion tides turn you simply acquire new garment parts, to attach to your old ones and by doing so, you can enjoy contemporary fashions without contributing so heavily to landfills. Bulging, heavy suitcases with an overabundance of items can be a thing of the past, as you relish the ability of your dress to morph into a new set of rags. DePloy's Creative Director, Bernice says, "My aim is to change the fashion process to make it less wasteful, more sustainable, and more interactive with the end customer." You might be sceptical of the style merits of attire with a popper system, but DePloy's Autumn/Winter 2007 collection, with its muted autumnal palette, feminine structures and sophisticated sensibilities, makes multifunctional apparel an aesthetic, sensible and seamlessly more ethical fashion choice than non-modular clothing. I am not aware of DePloy's approach to fabrics, but hopefully we will also see the brand using more recycled and vintage materials in their future collections.
If you are searching for ethical fashion to get excited about, look no further than Canadian based Thieves, by eco designer Sonja den Elzen, who effortlessly evokes cutting edge style and sophistication using a range of sustainable fabrics, including: organic cotton, organic bamboo, linen, organic soy cotton and lyocell. Sonja is as passionate about the environment as she is about producing meticulously designed clothing. Her love of fashion began at a very young age and eventually led her to create an urban street wear line, Jystijls, that was available in various boutiques worldwide from 1996 - 2002. Thieves arose out of Sonja's desire to combine her fashion designing with environmentally friendly principles and practises. Thieves spring 2007 collection is stylish, thoughtful and earthy, using putty shades that evoke the imagery of nature. The fall 2007 collection literally takes us back to black, with a simple and refined collection that borrows Japanese detailing. 
As thick as thieves, Sonja den Elzen and Dana Takeda established an online boutique for men and women in May 2007, called League of Lovers and Thieves, which sells the Thieves range and Dana's League of Lovers organic intimate wear and re-worked vintage pieces. Both women believe in using environmentally sound processes and materials, with the intention of, "taking the fashion world by storm and turning everything green one dress, one shirt, one jacket and one pair of pants at a time." With their beautifully created pieces, the outlook looks very promising.
We all want to be a one-off and now you can be with Armour Sans Anguish (clothing without sorrow), the brainchild of two fashion forward girls called Tawny Holt and Julie Edwards, who are both passionate about one-of-a-kind, recycled and sweatshop free clothing. Deconstructed vintage style is their forte and looking through their collections (which get snapped up pretty quick), Armour Sans Anguish excel at it. Julie is a consummate pro when it comes to repurposing old items, having acquired the skill of thriftiness from a very early age. Tawny majors in Cultural Anthropology and Feminist Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz and has always loved making things. Online eco-store BTC Elements are currently selling a beautiful Armour Sans Anguish, 'Layered and Lovely' reconstructed tulle dress, created from reclaimed and secondhand fabric, for $200. If you're a fan, get purchasing now, before it sells out, like all their other beautiful creations.
Eco-conscious fashion needs a dose of avant-garde innovation, cue Gary Harvey, who produced a collection of vintage couture inspired dresses from recycled garments, which were showcased at London Fashion Week this year. From a towering bridal gown constructed from 10 wedding dresses, to an aptly named, military dress, made from 28 army jackets in various shades of olive green camouflage, Gary's collection is a striking and pioneering move for the ethical fashion world. Gary says, "By sourcing fabrics and raw materials that have literally been thrown away, you can look good and be good too." Gary Harvey was the creative director of Levi Strauss for almost 10 years and his earth-conscious designs were born out of creative frustration. Since then his passion for recycled couture has prevailed and Gary has designed a range of conceptual eco-couture outfits. He is now taking private commissions for his unique socially conscious designs. It's exciting to see originality and great concepts filtering into the ethical fashion arena. Hopefully this will be a growing trend rather than a passing one!
