Each new season calls for a closet cleanout. As you switch over to your Fall Winter wardrobe it’s the perfect time to assess what you don’t need anymore and how you can make more room in your life to breathe. Here’s 5 companies helping you clean out your closet, you can thank us later.
By Megan Dawson-Elli, Business Development Manager, THR3EFOLD If you’re new on the sustainability scene you may find this idea of conscious fashion to be completely new, when in fact, momentum has been building for years. From the groovy hippies of the past to the Green Carpet Challenge at the Met Gala, take a look at our cheat sheet for critical events that have shaped sustainable and ethical fashion.
Fall is full speed ahead and showing no signs of slowing down. So if your busy life isn’t changing, how can you create space to keep your zen? Here’s 5 zen giving practices you can implement to be a conscious consumer this fall.
In 2015, I watched The True Cost documentary, and like many other people have since then, I learned that fashion is the largest labored industry, employing 1 in 6 people in the world. This may seem impossible so let me offer some food for thought:
When it comes to the diamond industry, the definition of the term “conflict-free” has become blurred over recent years. It is not uncommon for traditional jewelers to claim that their diamonds are conflict-free when they truly are not. As a result, consumers are intentionally mislead. While this alleviates consumer buying doubts, it has consequentially sold countless unethical diamonds. Here’s the breakdown on “conflict free” diamonds and where you can shop instead.
For the past five years, I’ve been in the business of working with new designers. And one of the questions I hear most often is this: “I really want to start a clothing brand, but I don’t have a fashion background.” And every time, my answer is… “Who cares?!” (Okay, that’s not my actual answer but it’s always something along those lines.)
Going to fashion school, or having worked in the fashion industry, has very little to do with how successful you’ll be at launching your own apparel brand. And I’ve witnessed how true that is -- over and over again. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs I’ve worked with through my online accelerator program, Factory45, couldn’t have told you the difference between a serger and a die-cutter. What did they have on their sides instead? They understood the value of hard work, grit, creativity and resilience. And believe me, those skills are far more valuable in starting your own brand than knowing how to draft a pattern or sew a garment. I’ve worked with massage therapists, Wall Street bankers, stay-at-home moms, humanitarian workers, executive assistants, advertising execs, and the like, none of whom had any real knowledge of manufacturing or running a fashion brand. That’s all to say, anyone can learn new tricks as long as they seek out the education and are willing to learn. So, with that said, if you want to launch a fashion brand but don’t have any experience, then here are the first three things you need to start: Just because you believe in ethical fashion doesn’t mean you have to give up on style, wear a potato sack spun from cat hair, stop shaving, and live in a comune. Fall has some hot trends coming our way and as long as they pass the #30wearschallenge test (which we recommend shopping by) here’s the ethical brands bringing you the good stuff.
Ready to dive headfirst into ethical fashion? We warn you it’s a lot to take in so get a fresh notebook and sharpen your pencil because you’re going back to school! We’ve rounded up some excellent podcasts that bring great content to their listeners weekly and educate everyone on this growing side of the industry. Here’s the top 5 ethical fashion podcasts to subscribe to now.
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