Architects have proved they can build environmentally friendly houses. Gardeners have moved away from spraying environmentally dangerous poisons. Even car manufactures are trying to find a way to reduce their carbon footprint. Now the fashion industry is going green and aiming for both ethically and environmentally friendly products.
The industry is playing catch-up, but is this just a trend like plus-size models, Capri pants, side-shoulders, low-crotch pants, and slogan tops?
Retail expert and founder of Country Road, Steve Bennett believes this isn’t the case. In an interview with The Age he says, “Green is not a trend… Over the next 10 years the focus will be even more on sustainability and the planet.”
Fashion festivals around the world have started to produce entire runway shows devoted to designers creating eco-fashion. At the 2010 L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival there was an entire runway show devoted to “slow” fashion. New York, London and Paris Fashion Weeks also have a show for designers who blend ethical production with high craftsmanship.
Lesser known designers such as Elsom, Good Society, Cylk and Minna are heading up the eco-fashion world, but it’s not just for the smaller companies. Nike completed a line of sportswear made from 100% recycled polyester. They also created shoes from environmentally friendly materials that eliminate toxins. New Zealand fashion designer Kate Sylvester has used organic cotton and eco-Marino fabrics in her collection. In Australia Elle Macpherson Intimates and Gorman are also doing it for the team and using eco-friendly materials. Elle Macpherson’s collection Procession makes use of bamboo cotton and sea cell, while Gorman uses organic-certified yarns and recycled fibres.
With so many designers and shows backing-up eco fashion perhaps the ‘green’ trend will be more than a fleeting presence within the industry.
I definately think that eco & fair fashion is more than a fad. In all aspects of our lives, we are moving towards being more sustainable, but sometimes we don’t really realise! We are all recycling (well nearly all) & we to recycling into a structured way via our local councils fairly quickly.
Re: our clothing – our ideas and our shopping habits around fashion probably are still needing a little more thought & having the fear of more recessions/double dips we don’t really have a great time to try & change things dramatically. Vintage & 2nd hand shops & ebay are all doing well. So the next step is actually starting to support the ethical fashion brands & investing in a new pair of organic jeans or a smart new dress. Most of the ethical fashion brands are still small businesses and in the next few years, they all need our help. It would be great to know that as we get to the end of these really tough times for retail, that these great brands are still alive & thriving.
As much as we need fashion brands to be ethical & sustainable, what we also need is a customer who values these things. The brands and the thoughtful shopper need each other. The future of ethical fashion will depend very much on both brands & consumers waking up to the fact that buying a new top for Saturday night, might not be the best thing to do.
I agree fully that we are slowly being more eco-friendly in our day-to-day life. However I believe many designers and fashion magazines are exploiting the very concept of eco-fashion. By making it as popular as they do, they get away with selling clothes for a lot more than they normally would have. Still, eco-fashion helps creating a better environment so we would be stupid not to embrace it…even if it might just be a trend..