Slow and Sustainable Fashion

With the rise of collective consciousness and consumer responsibility, there are fashion initiatives that are calling out and making waves. Defying the trends and sticking to practicality, these two fashion movements thrive with style, thoughtfulness, and kindness.

Although commonly interchanged and the movements overlap in more ways than one, sustainable and slow fashion have their differences.

Sustainable Fashion

This fashion statement has a two-peas-in-a-pod mission. It urges brands to produce more sustainable garments, and empowers the consumers themselves to practice more sustainable consumption.

For instance, using recycled materials or sustainable fabrics for production, and using the resulting products with proper care is a manifestation of sustainable fashion.

When the product is out of style, repairing, redesigning, and upcycling through DIY or other methods is sustainable. When the product is no longer wanted, handing it down to another individual who can care for it better is also sustainable.

A stunning representation of sustainable fashion is the brand of Retazo. Retazo reuses and recycles scraps of fabric and produces gorgeous items from tops, to earrings, to scarf bands, to notebooks! You can find them on Instagram and Facebook.

Slow Fashion

First coined in 2008 by design consultant Kate Fletcher, slow fashion is an approach to fashion that stands in blunt contrast to the fast fashion cycle that bigshot brands typically follow.

According to author Elizabeth Cline, “It’s about reconnecting with our clothes, rather than viewing them as quick trends or throwaway items…It’s about tapping into the pleasure of buying a well-made garment with a timeless design…”

A shop advocating slow fashion is Shop Humi, a name that sells handcrafted bags and clutches, with materials such as locally sourced abaca and vegan leather. Their items can be used in most if not all situations, and goes with style without bringing in cruelty.

Time has come when we have to take personal responsibility for the environmental costs of our own consumption habits. Monetary value cast aside, there still remains a price to pay for every product you buy.

Slow and sustainable fashion offers a safer alternative that is better in the grand scheme of things.