Buying hand-made ROCKS!

I write this as I sit on the bus on my way home from what has become (to my family’s dismay) my ‘yearly’ trip down to “Circle Craft, Christmas Market”, in Vancouver.

CircleCraft Cooperative is a BC Artists cooperative that is dedicated to helping artisans reach the community and be able to sell their goods in a professional and inviting setting. It has grown enormously since its humble beginnings in 1972 and is now a driving force in the arts and crafts sector providing scholarships and other resources.  You can find their product year round at their Granville Island shop. But every November 11 weekend, they put on one of their biggest events: their yearly Christmas Market.  And for me, this is number 3 – as a spectator.

The first time I went, I was dragged down by my friend M. M and I go back to Fashion School days and we’ve been through lots of things together including being roommates in Vancouver, and now having kids almost the same ages.

I say ‘dragged’ loosely because it really didn’t take much convincing. After all, it was a girl’s weekend away with no kids! What’s not to like? And although she had shown me some of the artists stuff online, I really had no idea of what to expect.

The truth is, I was half anticipating to find the usual array of grandma’s doilies and badly made scarves such as you can find at a small bazaar. But what I did find nearly blew my mind…

I still remember getting off the Greyhound and taking the Sky train with our suitcases in tow because we didn’t want to waste time unpacking where we were staying. Instead we simply planned to ‘check’ our luggage in with the ‘parcel check’ at the fair and spend the first evening there.  So as we stood on the escalator going down towards the Convention Centre, it really hit me that this was a craft fair like I’d never seen before. 

The next few hours kind of flew by as M and I talked to exhibitors and admired every detail of their work.  What is really different about this fair is the sheer caliber of talent and skill in the products being offered. In order to be an exhibitor, you must be approved by a panel, so no “Michael’s DIY” need apply. Every artwork here is an original and many are one of a kind.  Did I mention there are over 300 exhibitors? There are painters, ceramic artists, woodwork and metal craftsmen, jewelry and of course, my favourite: fashion. 

Here’s the sustainable bit about Circle Craft: all of the designers featured must bring product that is hand crafted in order to be part of the show. So you’ll find a variety of small scale designers from Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and sometimes remote areas in Victoria or Nelson. Their angle is: Made in Canada. But it doesn’t stop there, many also incorporate recycled or environmentally friendly materials, so they’ll use organic cottons or up-cycle something from vintage clothing.  There’s a lot of original silk-screening and the weavers are in a whole different category! IT IS AWESOME.

I can’t help but be inspired every time I go. These designers are making a go in a very cutthroat industry by going against the grain. Choosing to make things in Canada is choosing to remain small scale and unfortunately to have a higher price point, which is –I know- not affordable to the masses. The thing to keep in mind here is that their price point is closer to the ‘real’ cost of producing clothing and if one values quality and originality, then this is the place to buy.

New 'old' jeans

Well, I know I’m supposed to move on to another of my Top Ten challenges, but I just had to share my finds today. Last post I told you I had to go out and buy a new pair of ‘old’ jeans. The thing is, I really need to replace my jeans and since I just cut up two of my old pairs to do a new project I was really down to the minimum when it came to bottoms.

My search started by looking into a Canadian label. There are not many jeans that are still made in Canada, but Second Denim is. I knew that Plum carries them, so I tried them. And I really want to emphasize here that I did tried them –I had about ½ dozen in the change room with me. But here’s the thing about jeans: once you find a cut you like, it’s really hard to change. You see, I’m pretty petite (which is just a really nice name barely tall enough to drive!), at five-one and a very important half, I need to make sure that my legs don’t become stubs. Also, when most rises in pants reach ‘regular’ people at a comfortable level, they are too long on me. And believe me I do not want ‘mom’ jeans even though apparently they are coming back in style. So I need to have a mid-rise jean so that on me they are just below the belly button. And I need a boot cut or a straight jean, not a skinny jean (because whom am I kidding, I’m not really skinny). I should actually be buying in petite stores, but there is a really low selection for that.

So to my disappointment in trying to support Canadian made, the Second ‘yoga’ jeans were not a good fit for me. Having said that, they are really comfy because they have a fair amount of spandex in them, and they feel almost like yoga pants –hence the name! Feel free to check them out, they are worth exploring.

Moving on in my search I headed down to ‘Frock’ on Pandosy downtown Kelowna, this is the consignment store I mentioned in my last post.  To my delight, I found a whole rack of designer jeans in many sizes! I tried just about everything in my size range and found about 4 pairs that fit the bill. They had a lot of brand new pairs, some by ‘Cult’ and other brand names including the two pair of ‘Guess’ jeans that I ended up buying. My jeans would have been over $100 brand new, and I ended up paying $50 for one and $40 for the other. I know that some people will gasp at the thought of paying more than $39.99 for a pair of Kirkland jeans, I know my husband does! But even before I was on this challenge I learned that when it comes to jeans, the cut and the fabric are what make the difference and I’ve had the cheapie version of jeans that I can get at the grocery store, they really do not feel the same as the brand name jeans I have bought. I have to give it to the jean designers; some of them do know their stuff. In the end by buying consignment, I ended up paying the price of one pair of jeans and got two!  Not bad for ‘old’ jeans…

Up next in my challenge for November: Buy local. Will keep you posted. 

Consignment vs. Thrift store

I thought I could explore the differences between consignment and thrift stores, and just in case some of you don’t know I will start with the basics. A consignment store is a private business, run by the owner who ‘consigns’ clothing from clients. The process is simple and if you ask me, quite brilliant, there’s no investment in inventory, it almost works like an art gallery where the gallery picks the pieces and gets a commission for showing the work. So in the consignment model, the owner gets to decide what garments she’ll take from the client, and then gives the items a determined time period. In some stores, the longer the item sits on the floor, the cheaper you can get it for, as the price decreases per week. If it’s sold the store keeps a commission and the client gets the rest. It usually works on a 60/40 split with the store keeping the 60 percent –hey they have the overhead right?

A thrift store is usually run by a charity such as the Salvation Army or Good Will. They depend on donations of clothing that gets dropped off to their door and then sorted through in order to go on the floor.

Here are some of the pros and cons of Consignment vs. Thrift stores:

Consignment store Pros:             

1.       Quality: Because the store owner wants to get the best bang for her buck, they are generally quite picky about the quality of the garments she takes in.  Garments that are soiled or worn out won’t be accepted and in some cases they won’t even accept garments that are cheaper made sources. So you are assured that what you buy will be well made and in good condition

2.       Designer brands: Often a consignment store will focus on providing only higher end designer brands. They won’t accept fast fashion sources such as George or JOE. The designer brands that they provide will be available at a fraction of the cost that they would be brand new, so you are getting great quality and fit at a bargain.

3.       Merchandising: Some consignment stores pride themselves in their merchandising and style, their focus is in making the experience feel more like a regular retail boutique. Some great local examples are ‘Frock’ and “The wardrobe” both these stores cater to a funkier clientele and also carry some new items that complement their consignment side.

Consignment store Cons:

1.       Price: Because the point of the consignment model is for both the client and the store owner to make a profit, the price point of consignment is higher than a thrift store. Even at second hand prices you may have to pay $50 for a jacket or a dress, but if you consider that the dress originally may have sold for $200 then it’s still a deal. This is where you need to make a decision of whether or not the item is in fact worth the 50 dollars. Often I hear people say ‘Well for $50 I could go to the mall and get a new dress”. What you need to remember is that a 50 dollar brand new dress is more than likely not made with the same quality as the 200 dollar dress so in fact you’re not comparing apples to apples.

Thrift store Pros:

1.       Price: Because thrift stores rely on donations they can set their prices really low in order to move more merchandise through the floor faster.

2.       Surprise: Often during the sorting of the garments that make it to the floor, certain ‘gems’ get mixed in with the regular clothing, which means that you may find some designer piece marked at $5. Usually these pieces are marked the same price as anything else in their category so whether it was a pair of True Religion jeans or a pair of Reitman’s jeans, they would still be the same price because they are both jeans.

Also, Depending on the location of the thrift store you may get better garments than in other areas of town, simply because a higher income neighborhood will result in higher end donations.

Thrift store Cons:

1.       Merchandising: In a thrift store the main purpose is to get volume so the floor is often overcrowded and hard to go through. It is also not usually well merchandised either because the volume of items is overwhelming or because the workers are often volunteers whose job is mainly to keep things tidy and run smoothly.

2.       Unrealistic pricing: Some thrift stores, (who will remain nameless) have upped their prices so much that they are now competing with places like Wal-mart. The problem with selling a used t-shirt for $7 is that people automatically compare it to brand new. Again you have the question of ‘well, for that price I could get it brand new at Wal-mart’. And you know what? In this case, yes, you could. Because another thing that thrift stores do is they take any clothing as long as it is wearable, so yes it is very possible that the very t-shirt in question did in fact come from Wal-mart and it probably cost $7 to begin with!

So there you have it, I think I can sum it up like this: Consignment gives you the assurance that you get better quality and value every time, but you pay a higher cost. In a thrift store you pay a bargain price but you never know what you will find. You need to be able to make the time investment.

And on that note, I need to make some time investment and check out some of these second hand establishments… I need a new pair of ‘old’ jeans!

Thrifting 101

Lets set the record straight about thrifting: It is not gross! Thrifting gets a bad rap because often the stores that offer second-hand clothing are cramped, not well merchandised and lets face it…there’s a certain odor to them. But if we let go of this snooty attitude and look beyond the appearances, we might see that there are treasures to be found.

Fabulous red shoes I found at a local consignment store -I've worn them to death

I have to be the first to come forth and admit it: I was once a thrift store snob. When we first moved to Canada and were introduced to a second hand store, I did not like it at all. My mom was in seventh heaven filling up her cart with all kinds of goodies and I could barely look in the racks. I was a typical seventeen-year-old mind you and not much impressed me. Eventually mom did convince me and I ended up with a couple of large sweaters to wear over my stirrup pants…(any clue as to what decade I’m referring to?)

It’s taken a long time and some necessity for me to embrace the gift of thrift. I started going to thrift shops to find used furniture and gadgets. I also shopped for my kids, because baby clothes usually don’t get used as long and they were in great shape. In fact, at one of my baby showers one of my friends gave me a huge box of clothing which she decided to buy used, so that instead of buying me one outfit, she was able to buy a dozen! This changed my mind about second hand clothing.

Another great find from the consignment store.

So changing your perspective about the smell and the fact that it has been used is the first step. The second step is getting past the merchandising. Usually these stores are not organized like the box stores where there are outfits put together or many sizes to choose from and everything is in beautiful colour stories. Most second hand stores are simply divided by sizes and category and if you are lucky sometimes by colour.  I know a few people who have told me that they get overwhelmed by the amount of pieces and lack of direction. There’s no clear trend here. You are on your own. You must rely on your own style and flare. And I believe this is what fast fashion has stripped from us, it has taken our ability to decide what looks good on us and dictated what is in style this season or even this week; making it difficult for many to stray from a style that is not flattering or does not fit our personality at all.

In a thrift store, however, once you start really looking it’s amazing what you can find if you have a good eye. And I think that’s the trick. You need to figure out what is worth it and what’s not. You need to look for quality, style and fit. So here are a few tips to happy thrifting:

This one came from Value Village!

1.       Spend the time: First of all, when you are just starting make sure to give yourself plenty of time. Once you become a ‘seasoned’ thrifter you can go in and pick a garment without a second thought, but at the beginning you’ll need lots of time to look through, inspect and very importantly: try on! There’s no point in buying something that does not fit or even worse: does not fit right! 

2.       Look for quality: this is where learning the difference between a good or bad sewing finish or what a high quality fabric content is, comes in handy. Sometimes looking at the brand name will help because there’s no denying that something made by a designer brand is usually better made than a garment from a fast fashion source.

3.       Style: Insert personality here. This is where you get to decide what you shine in. What are you most comfortable wearing? And I do not mean comfortable sweat pants! We are talking fashion pieces here. Things like line and shape or colour and texture. It does not have to be limited to only pants or skirts or dresses, but if you do prefer one of this categories, that says something about your personal style too. So do you like long and lean or do you like flouncy and delicate? Or is it loud prints and bright colours? Dainty florals or basic pieces. You decide. And once you know what happy looks like for you, then make sure it is flattering.

4.       Fit and a flattering look go hand in hand. Proportion plays a huge part in the fit of something being right for you. Look for things that fit your shoulders, torso and waist. Remember that hems and sleeves could be altered and some side seams could be taken in, but unless you have a basic understanding of alterations, make sure that the garment fits before you buy it. Otherwise you’ll never wear it again and you’ll curse your experience.

5.       Bring a buddy: This only works if you like a second opinion. But if you are a ‘solo’ shopper this might backfire especially if your buddy is on a time limit.  So on this note, don’t bring someone who’s not interested in being there: i.e. your children or husband.

   Most of all, have fun with it. In the famous words of Forrest Gump: "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get!"

Full (Closet) Disclosure

I just had three of my friends laugh out loud and give me the roll of the eyes when I told them what I did yesterday. I simply took an inventory of my closet. So I itemized each piece by category, country of origin, source and fiber content. So it is all in a neat 4-sheet excel spread sheet which include really beautiful pie charts and percentages (hey! On the upside I just learned to use a whole new part of excel that I didn’t know existed!) So it took me 3 hours yesterday, a couple at night and most of the morning to do it, so what! So, yes, I might be a type A (which of course I have to google because I don’t even know what it truly means). How I was able to still get the kids from school and make supper is nothing short of a multitasking miracle, but somehow I managed to pull it off. Now, I do not recommend doing this unless you have time to kill and a loose screw somewhere in your head.  But I really wanted to see where I was and what I have to work on. If I’m going to change my spending habits I needed to see what my habits were to begin with.  

I have to say that I expected to find some surprises, but some of the things that actually did, had never occurred to me. Things like the fact that I actually rarely look at the content label in my clothes! I just go by feel, and I was shocked at some of the contents I found in my most basics. There are things like a sweater in Polyester, Rayon and Wool mix that looks more like Wool and a pair of plaid pants that I swore were Wool which are actually a cotton/viscose mix (Apparently I need to review my wool feeler)! My Silver jeans are a mix of Cotton and Polyester and some of my basic T’s even have Rayon in the Cotton/Poly mix.

Why is this important, you ask? Well, I noticed that some of the most recent items have more fibers mixes than the older ones. How does this affect us as consumers? Well, for instance take a sweater that I thought felt like Wool, it is actually 90% Acrylic/10% Wool. Acrylic will pill and it is way less expensive than wool. It is also a synthetic fiber, which means it won’t break down like a natural fibre will.  Fabric suppliers are pushing synthetics with the excuse that it is cheaper and it makes the fabric last longer,  manufacturers like what it does to their profit margins, so they give the consumer the ‘feel’ of something high end at a much lesser cost and quality. Now, don’t go jumping to conclusions here, there is a place for polyester and nylon in our clothing, there’s no denying that it makes the fabric more durable and easier to wash, and there’s a definite benefit from that. But according to an article in 2004 Textile World, polyester production now exceeds 50 billion pounds a year, with China producing over half that volume[1], is it a coincidence that we are seeing it more and more?

That brings me to another finding on my chart. This one was not a surprise. A whopping 56% of my clothing came from China. Check out my chart. But you will notice that the next big number is from Canada and that includes handmade items. This is probably the hardest chart to change but working on increasing local numbers might be a start. 

The best chart by far was the one that outlines where I got the clothing from. It turns out that my frugalness leads up to sustainability. The fact that I welcome hand-me downs (you know who you are…thank you!) and that I occasionally shop at thrift stores, made up a large chunk of my sources for clothing.  Things that I make as well as my favourite pieces from artisan designers go under one of a kind. Chain midrange encompasses anything at the mall and discount/fast fashion are stores like Wal-mart or Superstore. What this chart did show me was that because most of my clothing comes from random sources, it makes it difficult to keep up a certain standard of quality and style. I think I need to be more intentional when making purchases rather than buying what’s on sale or taking everything that comes my way. 

Oh, do you want to know how many items I had? Well, I counted 90 pieces including all light jackets and fashion t-shirts. There were a few tank tops and T’s that were not worth mentioning because they are close to being pajamas. I also did not count any exercise gear or shoes or coats. But I’m guessing that you’re thinking that that’s a lot of clothing…well think again. My closet is barely the size of a hall closet and I have a 3-drawer dresser which houses unmentionables as well. So it is not big. According to Elizabeth Cline in “Overdressed”, the average (US) consumer buys about 60 pieces of clothing a year! She herself had over 300 pieces in her closet disclosure. Where do you rank? How big is your closet? What type of items do you buy? I would love to know…

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[1] Cline, Elizabeth, (2012)“Overdressed: the shockingly high cost of Cheap Fashion”, Penguin Group, NY

Savvy Swapping

My next post was going to be about organizing my closet. But it’s just going to have to wait because I want to share about the event I went to on the weekend. So I’m starting on my 10 month challenge with: Buy used and in this case, swapping. I had only heard about clothing swaps (aka clothing exchanges) in articles and books. The idea of it seems almost utopian: everybody brings clothing items that they no longer use and then swap them with each other. I always wondered how do you make it fair? Who would want MY unused bad clothing?

The first time I went to this clothing swap was three years ago when my friend Carmen invited me. When she told me about it, the first thing that came to my mind was, “Carmen and her friends have excellent taste! There’s bound to be some nice things there!”  But the thing that made this ‘swap’ different from the ones I had heard about is that she was doing it as a fundraiser. Three years ago, there was a famine in the Horn of Africa and the government of Canada was matching donations dollar per dollar. Carmen, being the passionate philanthropist she is, jumped on the bandwagon and somehow (don’t ask me how) came up with this idea. It was an instant hit. She raised $2800 and with the matching funds was able to donate to $5600 this cause. The next year people asked her to do the swap again, and so she did, and this time raised funds for something else. So this is how her ‘little project’ was born. I think it’s quite brilliant really, first, donations of gently used clothing are taken, then people come for the event and pay a donation to attend, then the swap consists of donations of $2, 5 or 10 per item or a bulk sum for a bag full. It is up to the individual what they want to give. The past two events took place at her house in the evening. Every single room of her home was packed with clothing and people trying on pieces wherever they could. It is not for the faint of heart, because things are not merchandised like in a conventional store and obviously there’s no size range. But for treasure hunters it is a dream come true. It is a similar feel as you would get going to a thrift store; it can be overwhelming because you may not find what you’re looking for or you may not even know what you’re looking for. So you must approach it in a different way than if you were at a mall store. You simply must be ‘open’. Open to find that jewel you didn’t know you needed, open to try something different and open to be pleasantly surprised when the something that didn’t look like much, became a new favourite piece once you tried it. Some of my ultimate faves came from the past two swaps. A work skirt that I absolutely adore and a basic spring/fall blazer. I also bought my daughter a spring raincoat that she loves.

So this time when Carmen asked me to be part of her team to help I couldn’t resist. Not only because it is an awesome event where you get to buy nice used clothing, but because there’s an underlying purpose: we are raising money to empower women. Oh and did I mention Carmen’s passion for social justice and fair causes is contagious. When I shared with her about all of the things that were inspiring me and how I felt I needed to make a change, all excitedly and encouragingly she said, “Why don’t you put something together and you can talk about it at the event?” So here we are, now I have a blog!

 This year “Fashion for Freedom” (as the event is now called) was moved from the inside of Carmen’s house to her beautiful yard. It hosted 75 women who enjoyed lovely refreshments and treats as they watched a fashion show put on with the same clothing available. How I ended up on the fashion show line up is simply beyond me. I am no model, but in a pinch, you become one! With the help of a team of very talented and generous women, clothes were sorted and hung onto borrowed racks which were arranged in the garden. A huge selection of shoes and handbags were also available as well as children’s wear. It turns out to be a wonderful afternoon of camaraderie and shopping all for the sake of a good cause. After the fashion show, shopping was open and three hours later $5100 had been raised and a bunch of women were sitting on a pool deck taking a well-deserved rest! This year 'the swap' raised funds for women and girls in Haiti and a special World Vision project for women in Congo. 

The hope for this event is that it will continue to grow and get bigger, but I think the best thing that comes out of it is that it inspires others to do similar things. I’ve talked to two friends since, who have mentioned it to their friends who are very excited to come to the next one or do something similar in their home town. How cool is that? You get a great ‘deal’ you have a fun afternoon with your friends and you’ve raised money for a good cause and hopefully you’ve inspired someone in the process. It’s a win, win situation.

What did I get this year? Well, I had to get the sweater that I modeled on the fashion show, because everyone said it was fabulous. But I also got two pairs of shoes and a couple of tops that so far have been a grand hit! 

Ingrid's Top Ten

Clarity of mind sometimes comes at 5:30 in the morning when I’m still half asleep! This is when some of my great thoughts go on to be forgotten because I don’t get up and write them down…this happened to me today and the only thing left from a brilliant thought was the word: clarity.

So I’m going with it and I’m applying it to the content of this blog because I feel it really relates to it. Ever since I started on this journey towards sustainability, I’ve been trying to figure out what I want to get out of it. What is my goal? I have also been trying to figure out a way to challenge myself into doing it. My first inspiration came from Sheena Matheiken who wore the same LBD (Little Black Dress) for one year in order to raise awareness about over consumption and in the process raise money towards a charity close to her heart. I love that! But somehow doing that again, didn’t seem quite right for me, at least not yet, I might do it later. Right now, my main focus is to explore as many possibilities of thinking slow when it comes to fashion as I can. And so finally I stopped trying to reinvent the wheel and did what comes naturally to me: I came up with a list. 

I love lists, ask my kids; they now make lists of their own. I have a packing list, menu plans lists, I make shopping lists, ‘to do’ lists and so on. So it made perfect sense when my sustainability list came to be.

This list is a compilation of other lists I’ve seen online, and my own.  Many of the articles I read, rang true to me but not everything on their list seemed appropriate, so I took the best of what I have seen and mixed it up with what I have learned so far, a little bit of my own intuition and voila:

INGRID'S TOP TEN WAYS TO BECOMING FASHIONABLY SUSTAINABLE: 

(I get a chuckle out of David Letterman’s top ten lists, so I have to have my own)

1.       Start with quality

           Get reacquainted with good finishes and quality fabrics… ask grandma

2.       Buy Used
           Consignment, thrift or swap

3.       Buy less

                  Quality vs. quantity.  Minimize to maximize: What do you love, what works and what doesn’t?

     4.     Buy Up cycled or recycled

            Re-vamped items or items made with used or vintage pieces

5.       Buy Vintage
           1920’s to 1990’s

6.       Alter Clothing

          Make things fit properly. Salvage broken goods.

 7.        Think Green

          Pick kinder, gentler options? Hug a tree?

   

8.          Get Educated

           Learn about corporations practices, hold them accountable. Find out who is making a difference and who's not.

      

9.        Shop Local

          Support local designers

10.      Make it yourself

          Just start small...

Not necessarily in that order, I will tackle each of these challenges in more detail one at a time and find out everything I can about it each month. And so it is that with the clarity of the challenges comes the clarity of the vision: at the end of the 10 months I hope to have become a better consumer and designer. I hope to be better informed and educated and in turn share that with those who are seeking that information too.

I want to invite you to join me in this challenge if you’d like and choose one of the above options. Send me your experiences and tips and if you’d like I’ll share them in this blog.

Slow it down

“Stop the world I want to get off!” was a lyric from one of my friend’s Steve’s songs. It always impacted me because at times I could totally relate to it. It seems especially true these days, when I feel like there are a million things coming at me and they are all coming at a massive speed. The juggling act that most of us are trying to pull would make a professional performer look stupid with a mere three fire-lit bowling pins.

But in the last few days as I dig deeper into this sustainability concept, it is becoming clear to me that it is not about stopping, but maybe simply slowing. Slowing the pace that we’re all going at. Slowing the need to achieve more, faster and maybe simply looking at what’s important and sitting there for a minute.

The term “Slow-food” has been around for a while now. The first time I heard of it was about ten years ago when my boy was a toddler.  My friend’s husband who is a chef was all over this, and it made sense to me: buy ingredients that are physically close to you and cook them the old fashioned way, do not use any shortcuts, and leave the products as whole as possible.

Professor Guttorm Fløistad summarizes the (slow movement) philosophy, stating:

“The only thing for certain is that everything changes. The rate of change increases. If you want to hang on you better speed up. That is the message of today. It could however be useful to remind everyone that our basic needs never change. The need to be seen and appreciated! It is the need to belong. The need for nearness and care, and for a little love! This is given only through slowness in human relations. In order to master changes, we have to recover slowness, reflection and togetherness. There we will find real renewal.” (from Wikipedia the free encyclopedia, Slow movement article. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_Movement)

The Slow Movement is very popular today and it is influencing other areas including fashion. There are some people who have started calling the sustainability of fashion: “slow fashion”. It is simple, in some ways it is almost just the opposite of fast fashion which dictates a new fad every two weeks and which made cutting corners acceptable in order to keep deadlines. But I think there’s more to it and this is what I’m trying to dissect.

The way I see it there are four different areas that will make a clothing product sustainable:

1.       Economic: How does it affect our economy? Are we able to buy local? Are we supporting our small businesses?

2.       Ethical: If not made locally, is it upholding the dignity of those who make it? Is it providing a job that supplies the person with enough to make a decent living? Is it putting the person at risk by working under conditions we would never tolerate in our part of the world?

3.       Environmental: Is it too much for Mother earth to handle? Does it break down? Is it eating away at the only resources that we have? Does it meet the three R’s (Reuse, reduce and recyle)?

4.       Extra Consumption: Is it serving our needs or our wants? Is it truly necessary? Or is it just adding to our "stuff"?

In some cases we’ll get all 4/4 whohoo! Call yourself a winner. In others we’ll barely scrape by with one. But I think the point is to strive to achieve all of them most of the time. And don’t get me wrong, this is probably the hardest thing I’ve set myself out to do, especially when I have a champagne taste on a beer budget. A lot of people have given me the look, you know, the one of ‘where are you going to buy stuff like that at reasonable price?” And the truth is that I don’t have an answer yet. I have found lots of sustainable fashion sites that have a fair amount of options, but a lot of them ARE more money than what I’m used to.

Yet, I am determined to keep on, to move forward and find answers. I know for instance, that one of the answers is simply to buy good quality used clothing. This is becoming increasingly harder because a lot of the donated items are often from a fast fashion source. But it is not impossible. Another answer is to shop more sporadically and buy investment pieces, something that is classic and will last for more than a year. And then, for some of us lucky ones there’s making our own clothes, starting from scratch, calling the shots of how it’s made and what it looks like.

There are many more solutions and it will only get easier once I start. Yet I think the main stumbling block for many of us is: convenience, it’s this need for immediate gratification and the need for the ultimate and greatest thing as fast as we can without even thinking about it. But the thing about convenience is that it is not always good for us in the long run. You just have to think about the convenience of having fries at a fast food place vs. the work it takes to go buy the vegetables and make something from scratch at home. Not as convenient, but definitely worth it.

Once we change our mindset to think “slow”, to think the way we used to, when everything had a process that we had to wait for, that made things worth it, then slow fashion will make sense.

Yes it is a big undertaking but not an impossible one. When you think of the waves that slow food movements (i.e. Jaime Oliver Revolution) have made in the last few years over the fast food kings, it is encouraging that we might be able to change the status quo in fashion too.

And in the process we might be able to slow down and smell those roses after all!

For more information on the slow movement check out Wikipedia’s description and sources, great information!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_Movement