Sustainable fashion term refers to clothes that are created from the beginning including designing, manufacturing, and distributing in environmentally friendly way.

There is also ethical fashion which refers to clothes being made in ways that respect and value workers rights, and social welfare.

Environmentalism and socially fair practices are connected what makes sustainable and ethical fashion tied together.

Sustainable fashion is a process and a movement of changing fashion products, and the system towards ecological and social justice. It is addressing the whole system of fashion including social, ecological, cultural, and financial.

Sustainable fashion is also called eco fashion.

What we have to look for when supporting sustainable fashion?

Natural and organic materials like hemp, linen, silk, wool, leather, and cellulose fibres are generally preferable over synthetics like polyester, nylon, and acrylic. Natural fibres are biodegradable and can be a clean compost back into the soil. On the other hand synthetics will not biodegrade but just sit on landfills and emit toxin chemicals and fumes.

The most sustainable materials are linen, hemp, and organic cotton.

TIP : Keep an eye out for organic certificates for plant based fibres like GOTS, and ethical indicators for wool like ZQ-certified wool. When it comes to cellulose fabrics always prioritize lyocell or Tencel.

Always a good idea is using pre-existing materials to create new pieces of clothing simply because it doesn’t require taking new resources from the soil.

So re-use materials when possible instead of waste.

TIP: Look out for fabrics made of recycled fibres like recycled nylon, recycled polyester, recycled cotton, clothes made of up-cycled materials, or clothes made from so-called dead stock fabric which are simply materials produced, never sold, never used and would otherwise be thrown away.

Another issue in manufacturing clothes are dyes used in the process.

You may be looking for natural fibres or synthetic ones, but always consider the environmental impact of the dyes. Many of them involve use of toxic chemicals.

TIP: Look for eco-friendly dyes like the ones from digital printing that requires less water, natural plant based dyes, OEKO-TEX certifications, and BLUESIGN.

OEKO-TEX means that clothes are tested for any harmful substances.

BLUESIGN is a system providing safer and more sustainable environments for people to work in and others to live in.

Fashion industry is wasting a lot of materials mainly from cutting out patterns, but there are sustainable brands that design patterns with no waste of anything.

Other waste is water. Some brands minimize the amount of water and energy used in the manufacturing process. Companies reduce excessive plastic packaging when transporting from the manufacturer to warehouses, and finally to the customer by using recycled or biodegradable shipping materials.

Manufacturing process with all the dyeing, sewing, and shipping is leaving behind high carbon footprint. To tackle this some brands are making clothing closer to where it will be sold, rather than shipping from overseas, some are installing solar panels and wind turbines to provide renewable power for their factories and offices.

TIP: Support local companies that source material from the region.

We all should try to be more sustainable consumers. Instead of buying cheap clothing that will be thrown away quickly try to buy second hand sometimes and always look after your clothes properly to prolong their lives. By buying higher quality clothing they will last you for longer what means less is on the landfills.

TIP: Choose second hand clothes, prioritize high quality clothes that will last longer, wash them in cold water, and hang them to dry.

Sustainable fashion should be every manufacturer prioritize as it helps the environment and us all.