Remember the story about the tortoise and the hare? If you reach back to the depths of your childhood memory, you might remember the moral takeaway being: slow and steady wins the race. The same mantra holds true for the up-and-coming slow fashion trend.
Food and fashion have a lot in common, or at least fast food and fast fashion do. They may be cheap, but they’re also awful for our bodies, our planet, and the people responsible for producing them.
It was the slow food movement that inspired its clothing counter-part. Credited to author, designer, consultant, and professor Kate Fletcher, she believed the fashion industry could use a “Slow Down” sign. But exactly what is slow fashion and how is it related to the larger sustainable fashion movement?
Join us on a leisurely stroll down the runway to find out.
Contents: Examining The Slow Fashion Movement
- What Is Slow Sustainable Fashion? Jump to section
- Why Slow Fashion Matters Jump to section
- Buy Less Jump to section
- Buy Differently Jump to section
- Buy Better Jump to section
- Consider Human Rights & Supply Chain Transparency Jump to section
- Read Labels Jump to section
What Is Slow Sustainable Fashion?
The most accepted slow fashion definition states it is a “facet of sustainable fashion and a concept describing the opposite to fast fashion, part of the ‘slow movement’ advocating for clothing and apparel manufacturing in respect to people, environment and animals.“
If it’s a response to fast fashion, then what is the difference between slow fashion and fast fashion?
To answer that, let’s get a little history. Prior to the industrial revolution, what we wore was sourced locally and produced out of nearby textiles and resources. Durability was the main priority when shopping, clothes needed to last a long time. Trends were slow-moving because clothing for the majority served as a utility or function, not a luxury. The rich few aside, there was no need (nor the means) to have a continuously-evolving wardrobe.
The slow fashion movement takes us back to these simpler, more sustainable times—without all the plagues and cholera.
Characteristics Of Slow Fashion
It starts at the manufacturing level, with brands considering what goes into their garments and who makes them. Instead of cheap, virgin synthetics, slow fashion clothes are made from durable and sustainable fabrics. Garments are produced in small batches, and only have a few styles for each collection.
Most importantly, the designs are timeless and the craftsmanship high-quality. Longevity is crucial.
The slow fashion movement asks you to take up your own mantle of responsibility, too, namely by:
- Adopting a non-consumerist mentality
- Shifting toward shopping habits that benefit the planet and the people who call it home.
Put simply, fast fashion encourages constant consumption, through cheap short-lasting garments designed to fit “micro seasons” so they’re no longer in style after a week or two.
Slow sustainable fashion, on the other hand, promotes timeless garments made with durable designs that can be used for years.
Why Slow Fashion Matters
What do BOGO sale signs and that peplum dress for $10 in a shop that changes its stock every week have in common?
When framed that way, the answer, we know, is obvious and it’s the same as why we should avoid fast fashion. It’s critical that we stop chasing trends—or we’ll end up paying a lot more than just the price of that cheap peplum dress.
We’re Buying More Clothes Than Ever.
In 2014, we bought an average of 60% more clothes than we did in 2000. We were much quicker to ditch each garment too, keeping it for just half as long. Part of that blame lies on our fickle sense of fashion and impulsive buying habits.
The rest should be put squarely on the shoulder pads of fast fashion, whose ever-changing styles convince us that the blouse we bought last week is no longer hip. Let’s not forget the cheap manufacturing and planned degradation that keeps us going back for more every time those short-lived leggings get a new hole (which is too often).
More Clothes Are Ending Up In Landfills.
Every single second, the equivalent of one garbage truck of clothes is making its way to a landfill or to be burned. This is enough to fill up 1.5 Empire State Buildings each day.
Most of our clothes are made of plastic, too, which means they’re non-biodegradable, which also means that they can remain in landfills for up to 200 years.
That doesn’t mean natural fibers are immune to landfill waste. While the likes of cotton and wool are biodegradable, they can’t biodegrade properly when buried under mounds of plastic. Instead, they’ll break down anaerobically (or without oxygen) and release methane gas, the most potent of all greenhouse gases.
Fashion Is Thirsty.
It requires around 2,700 liters of water to make just one cotton shirt. That’s enough water to support a very hydrated person for two and a half years. That sassy graphic tee better be worth the global water shortage we’re facing in a few decades.
Cheap Fashion = Unfair Wages.
Garment workers are notoriously exploited. One study found that Bangladesh garment workers (primarily women) only make about $96 per month. A measly sum for working in dangerous factories on the verge of collapse. Don’t forget, it was in Bangladesh that the infamous Rana Plaza garment factory collapse happened, waking the world from its sweet style dreams.
Not to mention that $96 is when they are paid. A 2018 report found that child labor and forced labor were rampant in the fashion industry, and reported in countries like Brazil, China, Argentina, Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, Turkey, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Doom and gloom, it seems, is the new black.
But it doesn’t have to be. We’re at the beginning of a radical transformation of the fashion industry and anyone, on any budget, can play a role. Let’s talk about some ways you can get involved.
Buy Less
Let’s face it, we don’t need six pairs of jeans, three winter coats, five fair trade hats, and oh-so-many pairs of shoes. An overabundance of clothes causes commotion in our closets and isn’t a great look for our planet.
Take a good, hard look at your closet and pull out the pieces you love and actually wear. Then, ditch the rest…doing your best to rehome, recycle, or rot (aka compost) them, of course.
Take it further and try a minimalist wardrobe on for size. This collection of just 37 (give or take) items for each season minimizes your wardrobe to versatile pieces you actually enjoy wearing.
If that feels a little too extreme, start small. When you feel the “need” to buy something new, appraise what you already have. Yes, we all love shopping therapy but when you consider the consequences of our spending habits (see tip #1), you’ll see what’s therapeutic for you might be torture for someone else.
At the end of this exercise, you’ll also realize you likely have more time, energy, and money for things that truly matter. After all, a minimalist wardrobe makes getting dressed a much simpler process.
Buy Differently
When you do shop for something “new”—explore alternative ways of finding something to wear. You don’t need to go to the mall or shopping center to spend your hard-earned cash. Nor do you need to head to the online shopping behemoth (ahem, ahem, Amazon) to order something to fill that gap in your wardrobe.
Get conscious, get creative, and vote with your dollar in a way that won’t just support large clothing corporates.
Shop Small & Local
It may be hard to find small, local boutiques and fashion brands buried underneath the big names in fast fashion, but they exist—and they need our business!
Check for an independent clothing brand in your area or, if you want to stay socially distanced, turn to one of our favorite online marketplaces for small businesses: Etsy. They offset all shipping emissions and allow you to search by town or state to support makers in your area.
Host A Clothing Swap
For new-to-you fashion finds and a great way to reconnect with old friends, host a clothing swap. Have everyone bring a bag of old clothes (and maybe a bottle of wine), then you can all try on “new” duds to your heart’s content. One friend’s fashion faux pas is another friend’s favorite fierce getup.
Go Vintage
If the thrill of shopping just isn’t something you can shake, turn your attention to thrift stores and vintage shops. This is one of the best options for finding affordable and unique garments, and it helps to keep valuable clothing out of landfills. You can do this from your own couch, too, thanks to online second hand stores.
And remember, this is a two-way street. To sell used clothes online is now easier than ever and diverts your own textile waste from hitting the landfill.
Try Renting
Online clothing rental is also becoming increasingly popular and offers a streamlined way in which to solve one of life’s greatest enigmas: figuring out what to wear. With these websites, you’ll be able to don garments from some of the world’s most luxurious designers, at a price that makes it accessible to nearly anyone.
We’ve tested out sites like Rent The Runway and Nuuly and love how easy the whole process was, and how we got access to really unique things we wouldn’t necessarily wear enough to justify the permanent purchase.
Repair Instead Of Replacing
Few things are worse than finding an unfortunate hole in your perfectly broken-in blue jeans. Don’t fret and start searching for sustainable denim just yet. Take some time to determine if a replacement is actually necessary. If not, earn a new skill and repair it yourself. You can accomplish a lot with just a needle and thread.
If you don’t have the tools (or patience) to fix the zipper or mend the tear, find a local seamstress or tailor (or mom) to do it for you.
For those without these resources, numerous online clothes repair services are popping up around the globe. Clothes Doctor, for instance, can repair, alter, and mend most flawed fashion pieces. All you need to do is pop them in the mail.
Buy Better
It’s hard to not fall for price tags that are equal to a few cups of coffee. But when we’re saving $10, $20, or $100 at checkout, someone or something else is picking up that cost.
And frankly, you get what you pay for. Dirt cheap means dirt quality (though frankly, dirt i.e. soil is amazing, so not a fair analogy, but you get the point). Lower prices start with cheaper fabrics, like polyester, which is made from fossil fuels and makes up more than 50% of all clothing we wear today.
Like most plastics, polyester can vary drastically in quality and durability, and the cheapest poly won’t last more than a few workouts.
Cheap fabrics need to be processed cheaply to keep prices down, too.Hence why we outsource labor to poor countries with low minimum wages and paltry workers’ rights protections. Instead of manufacturing in the US (like the majority did before 1994), more than 97.5% of what we wear is made outside of the US.
Unfair labor practices aside, greater shipping distances across the supply chain contribute to a larger carbon footprint associated with the fashion industry—which makes up 10% of global emissions.
Slow fashion asks us to buy fewer things, and the few things we do buy, it wants us to buy better, by way of higher quality, natural fabric that have better end-of-life outcomes. And while yes, this typically means a pricetag much higher than the likes of Shein, it’s something you’ll be able to wear and treasure for decades to come.
Consider Human Rights & Supply Chain Transparency
Fashion Revolution’s #WhoMadeMyClothes movement asked a question we should have been asking all along. Inspired by the Rana Plaza building collapse, which killed 1,138 garment workers in Bangladesh, this simple question has shed some light on the faces behind fast fashion.
When all we see is the end product, we’re unaware of the people involved and how human lives are impacted by our wear-once fashion trends.
The fashion industry is tarnished by exploitation and abysmal working conditions. It’s not difficult to find reports of insane working conditions and cases of physical or sexual abuse. Then there are cases of child abuse, forced labor, unfair pay, and exposure to toxic chemicals…
This may seem like an insurmountable problem, but with slow fashion’s demand of traceability and transparency—i.e. brands knowing where their goods and materials are coming from and sharing that information directly with consumers—things are looking up if only just a little.
More and more brands are publishing lists of their manufacturing partners, sharing details about their workers and wages, paying for third-party audits, and rolling out Codes of Conduct that ensure fair wages and healthy working conditions.
Get out your magnifying glass and read through the details on a company’s website. The more they share, the better—especially awareness of shortcomings and plans to address them. If you aren’t satisfied with what you see, let a brand know. Ask them questions to get to the bottom of their supply chain. Asking also tells brands we as consumers want to know those details because transparency is a must.
Read Labels
Every garment has a label, and learning how to read them (or really, just taking the extra 30 seconds to do so) means you can identify whether your product has been made with a material you and Mother Earth can be proud of.
Rather than adding more nylon, polyester, acrylic, spandex, and lycra, to your wardrobe start actively seeking better fabric alternatives. These include natural (i.e. organic cotton and hemp fabric), responsibly-produced semi-synthetic (i.e. lyocell and modal), or recycled synthetic fibers.
And fortunately, because the slow fashion trend is, well, #trending, there are plenty of slow fashion brands popping up in the wild that specialize exactly in these types of clothes. If you find reliable brands you trust to make the right choices, you won’t necessarily need to read every single label.
I loved your piece on slow fashion. So many things in there that should get us all thinking and changing our mindset. Some of the stats you included are truly concerning, but it’s encouraging to know we can choose better starting tomorrow.