Why Not Change?

On the 24th of April, the Rana Plaza in Bangladesh collapsed costing the lives of over 1100 garment workers, mainly women from rural areas. The incident is the worst disaster ever to have occurred in the global garment industry. News of the tragedy travelling around the world lead to a media frenzy and as global attention focused on the substandard and dangerous working conditions in factories in the fashion industry, big retail brands were quick to issue statements and promise change. But have not such promises been made before? Visit the website of any given highstreet fashion label and you will most likely find a section on 'sustainability', 'corporate responsibility' or 'ethical trading' where the company pledges its support for a better world in beautifully worded promises about company values and videos show happy workers stating how much they love working for this particular company. Why then can something like the Rana Plaza happen? Or should we ask why do we keep letting it happen?

Picture from the wreck of the Rana Plaza (from National Post)

Although the largest so far, Rana Plaza is only one event in a chain of disasters that have taken place in garment factories and sweatshops over the past few years. Only six months ago, over 100 people died in a fire at Tazreen Fashions in Ashulia near Dhaka and seven years ago 64 workers were killed in a similar building collapse. It is estimated that since 2005 at least 1,800 people have died in fires, stampedes, building collapses and other incidents in garment factories in Bangladesh. But once the river of media coverage dries up, how easy is it to forget any of this ever happened? Holding that £5 H&M t-shirt in our hands at check-out, do we ever remember? I cannot help but wonder, if a similar incident had happened in a UK factory, what would the consequences have been?

The garment industry in Bangladesh accounts for 80% of the country's exports and provides employment for roughly four million people. This makes for a complex situation and as everyone is busy playing the blame-game, I fear that very little again will change.

What can I do?
So rather than pointing fingers and finding scapegoats, maybe we had better thought about what we can do to help change happen. Here are a few suggestions:

Sign a Petition
Since the internet, petitions appealing to authorities, companies or industries for change have grown exponentially in size and number. A petition is an easy way to put pressure on an organisation to achieve change. You simply sign on with your name and email to demonstrate your support. There are even websites, like change.org, that are specifically tailored towards creating and sharing petitions.
And apparently, they work!
The petition by the charity War on Want to get UK retailers to take responsibility for the Bangladesh disaster was signed by over 80,000 people and on the 16th of May over 30 companies signed the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, among them H&M, Primark and Marks & Spencer.

The accord commits the retailers to ensure and financially contribute to the building safety in the factories used by them. You can still sign the petition here.
I recently also signed the 1% Let's Fix Fashion campaign by UK ethical fashion blog Ms Wanda's Wardrobe. The campaign asks big fashion retailers to invest at least 1% into solving problems in their supply chain, making working conditions save, more ethical and environmentally friendly. 1% doesn't seem like a lot when you consider how much companies such as these must spend on marketing.


Get involved with a Charity
There are numerous charities out there fighting for change and justice. Find one in your local area and get involved with it, or support a big international organisation. For instance you could volunteer in your local Oxfam shop or get involved with the Fairtrade Foundation, War on Want or Action Aid (to name but a few). Charities always need support, and you can donate your money, time or simply your voice to their cause. To make it more fun, why not be creative about it? You can turn pretty much anything into a fundraiser, so why not a zombie march on Halloween, a glamorous tea party in the park or a local fashion show?

Shout loudly
Thanks to the internet, you can not only sign petitions, but actually contact companies directly. Nobody likes bad press, so why not tweet or facebook some of these retailers asking them to change and showing them that their consumers care? War on Want has made good use of this strategy, organizing people to harass  companies en masse using social media. If this is a bit too aggressive for you, then why not talk to family and friends about these issues and get them to think about it. Who knows, they may well feel the same and you may be able to support each other...

Buy differently and use differently
It is a fact that the garment industry employs millions of people and some argue that boycotting these products would destroy their livelihood. However, garment workers are often payed less than a living wage and are perpetually kept poor. So, if we never buy differently, how are things ever going to change?
Fair trade and ethical clothing brands provide great alternative options to highstreet fast fashion. Check out my links page to find a list of just a few or snoop around some of my old posts...
Other than buying more ethically, maybe it is time we had changed our attitude to fashion and clothes as a whole. Rather than 'just' buying something because its cheap, letting it drown in the depths of our wardrobe once we no longer like it, or throwing it out when it has lost its shape, why not think twice about the next item of clothing we buy? Think about how huge the effect could be if we were to revamp or restyle our old clothes rather than always buying new ones. Maybe it is time we started valuing the quality of a piece of clothing over its bargain price and invest in items that will last and come to define a part of our lives.

A Little Daydreaming...

I have caught myself daydreaming a lot lately, thinking about the future and dreaming about opening my own little shop, selling fair trade and sustainable clothing and accessories somewhere in Switzerland... you know, just as a back-up, in case the whole heritage and museums career does not work out...

I'm imagining something along the lines of a charity shop, but in a boutique style with a really beautiful design and a curated selection of clothing. See, there are plenty of charity shops here, but they don't exist like that in Switzerland. There are vintage shops and second hand furniture stores, but barely any second-hand clothes shops and the whole charity-shop concept just isn't around.

It could be a little shop somewhere in the historic downtown of Zurich, selling a range of vintage, second-hand and fair trade garments as well as accessories with part of the proceeds going to charity. I catch myself dreaming about what it would look like... For instance, I love these romantic shop-exteriors. I am infatuated with the pale mint greens or light blues at the moment!

Pictures from: top: Shy Violet, bottom left: Pinterest, bottom right: Fade

What do you think? The interior could be in the same whimsical style. Something along the lines of this, maybe, with lots of whites and greys and period furniture...

Pic on the right from  Shy Violet

Or it could look more rustic and industrial. I love the industrial look of this AllSaints store in Chicago.

pictures from glamshops

To make the shopping an even more enjoyable and relaxing activity, there would be a little cafe in the shop. Maybe something to match that rustic, Victorian feel... with lots of chunky wooden furniture, a retro coffee-machine and an antique cash register...

pictures from Pinterest

Oh and of course, there would have to be books! Walls full of books to inspire people... My customers could sit with a cup of coffee and read and feel good about themselves and all their ethical and sustainable purchases. We could run events aswell in the space, exhibitions of local artists and designers, talks, wine tastings and cookery classes, poetry readings, film screenings...

pic from pinterest

But along with clothes and books and coffee there would naturally have to be cake. We could not go without cake, surely.

Carly Cakes

These dreamy creations are made by my very talented friend Carly. I think they would fit wonderfully into my hypothetical dream shop...

As you can tell I'm getting just a little bit carried away here... There's value in dreaming though,  and who knows? Maybe my career really won't work out..  The more I think about it, the more I'm left wondering whether that would truly be such a bad thing.

Can you see it, my dream shop? Would you make any additions? Do you have dreams of your own you'd like to share?

With Kindness in Mind

Kendall Benton with rescue cat Teddy

I'm very excited to be sharing this week's blog with you. For my first ever blog interview, I'm talking to Kendall Benton, creator of Kindness by Design, an awesome blog that champions fair and ethical design. Read all about Kendall's work and be inspired by Kindness!


Sarah: Kendall thanks so much for agreeing to be interviewed for my blog... Could you tell me a little more about yourself?

Kendall: Thanks so much for having me Sarah! I grew up as an only child in the Far North Queensland region of Australia, right between the rain forest and the Great Barrier Reef. After graduating high school I moved south to study at the University of Sydney, majoring in Environmental Politics and Archaeology, which was such candy for my brain! I started working for WWF-Australia while writing my honours thesis on tiger conservation and continued to work there for more than ten years! My roles with WWF have taken me all around Australia and my partner (who also worked for WWF at the time) and I were based in the Fiji Islands for three years working for WWF-South Pacific. About a year ago we moved back to Australia and I now work as for myself as an environmental consultant, Co-Founder and Director of Strategy for ScienceRewired, as well as Creator of Kindness by Design. I adore reading, writing, scuba diving, and playing with our little one-eyed rescue cat Teddy, who we brought to Australia from Fiji.  Teddy has an extremely well-developed vocabulary, so we have many an enlightening chat.

Sarah: What's your favourite thing in the world?

Kendall: Kindness!!! In all its forms.

Actually I always struggle with “name your favourite x” questions. Even in primary school when I was asked what my favourite colour was I would answer “multi-colour”. I love so many things (including love). I have many many favourites!

Sarah: What's your least favourite?

Kendall: Cruelty. It makes me feel physically and emotionally ill. The world needs to utterly reject it.

Sarah: Tell me a little more about Kindness by Design, what is the blog about?

Kendall: Kindness by Design – both the blog and associated social media accounts – is my platform for championing ethical and sustainable designers, brands and retailers. My goal is to show how amazing, stylish and fashion-forward ethical products can be! I am also committed to helping emerging designers and brands to reach a wider audience.

Sarah: You have been writing Kindness by Design for over two years now, why did you start it? What are you hoping Kindness by Design to become?

Kendall: The name “Kindness by Design” has a two-fold meaning for me: one is of course about designing items that are created in kind ways i.e. socially and environmentally ethical; and the second meaning is about deliberately choosing to live your life with kindness at the core. I truly believe in the power positive messages and I want Kindness by Design to be somewhere that people can go to feel empowered by the good being done in the world. I hope for Kindness by Design to become a catalyst contributing to the greater good. I want to continue to connect with and support designers both on and offline. I also would love to use my experience in working on issues such as: sustainable livelihoods, marine protection, threatened species conservation, climate change adaptation, and fresh water ecosystems to help create a better fashion future.

Sarah: What was your best "Kindness by Design blog moment"?

Kendall: Oh another “best” question! I’ve been very fortunate to have met some astounding people thanks to Kindness by Design. One of the best moments was being the Official Blogger for Fiji Fashion Week 2011. It was such a great experience getting to go behind the scenes and helping to promote a fledgling but overwhelmingly talented pool of designers. In October 2012 Kindness by Design was named by the International Fashion and Beauty Bloggers Organization as one of their 50International Bloggers to Watch & Learn From which was such an amazing surprise! And in January 2013 I was honoured when Kindness by Design was accepted into the Ethical Fashion Forum’s Fellowship 500. 

Sarah: What do you find most difficult?

Kendall: Working for yourself and starting projects from scratch is so exciting and incredibly rewarding from a creative standpoint. However, it’s also a really hard slog and you don’t have the benefits you get when you’re part of an established organisation. It’s been a real learning curve!

Sarah: Do you think a revolution in the fashion industry towards a more sustainable and ethical business model is possible? Have you seen signs of this happening?

Kendall: I’ve absolutely seen an increase in the depth and breadth of ethical fashion options and green-minded businesses. However, it still appears that fast fashion is firmly entrenched within the industry. I do think it’s possible for a sustainable fashion revolution to succeed but it won’t happen without support from designers, retailers, policy makers and consumers. Everyone has a part to play in creating a fair and ethical standard of doing business.

Sarah: What do you think would that look like?

Kendall: Every business would adhere to strict social and environmental guidelines and legislation while ensuring that their entire supply chain was transparent. Ideally all businesses would be certified Fair Trade, use cruelty-free, recycled and certified organic materials, operate in a zero-waste and carbon neutral environment, and somehow benefit the wider community.

Sarah: As you have been doing this for a while, you must have encountered a lot of great ethical and eco-friendly design initiatives, could you highlight your two for us?

Kendall: Oh my goodness. I am head over heels for all of the designers and brands featured on Kindness by Design! Two amazing initiatives include:

    Peace Cords by ARZU STUDIO HOPE are bracelets hand-woven by women in Afghanistan from authentic U.S. military parachute cord and fatigue or dress uniform buttons. This amazing fair trade fashion initiative has created employment for over 1,000 Afghans (95% of whom are women) and is providing the wider community with access to education and healthcare. Find out more here. 

Peace Cords bracelets

          

      Hearts is an ethical fashion brand founded on the idea that conscious minds create change. Their vision is to “create a legacy through which people understand that they need not sacrifice quality of life for beauty, and that true beauty emerges when we hold the vision of the highest good of all”. Their online store is amazing and allows you to shop via a number of categories including: materials; world causes; process; style; and how the product gives back to the community.

ethical fashion by heats

Sarah: Alright, last question: what are the top three things people can do to make this world a better place?

      Kendall: 

      1. Be kind to YOU! It might sound saccharine but I am learning that it’s a vital step in making the world a better place.

      2. Practice empathy as much as possible towards both humans and other living creatures. It’s an old adage but a vital one – treat others as you would wish to be treated.

      3. See something or someone that inspires you? Share it with the world…or at least with your loved ones. Spread the good stuff around :D.

I     Is there anyone that you find particularly inspiring? Who is it? Share it with us!

Make Do and Mend: How to revamp your old clothes

Original cover of the "Make do and Mend" 

booklet first published in 1943 by His 

Majesty's stationery office

This week on the blog we are trying our hand at some DIY clothes altering! If you're like me, then you have lots of clothes clogging up your wardrobe that never see the light of day... but rather than throw them away the next time you clean our your wardrobe or move house, why not turn them into something useful and wearable? It's all part of a more sustainable way of living, and it also saves money! So for this blog I was inspired by the old war time slogan to Make do and Mend.
I didn't quite do it on my own though, I have to admit. Luckily, the lovely Emma from Recycle Boutique NI was hosting a pop up shop and DIY fashion workshop in Cafe Wah in Belfast. So apart from getting expert advice, I was also fueled with excellent and incredibly cheap coffee!
Recycle Boutique Northern Ireland is a great initiative that helps to reduce waist by re-selling and re-cycling your old clothes. Emma will take on your once-loved garments and sell them on at her pop up shop events or recycle them into something new and exciting. And here's the best bit: 50% of the profits from your clothes go directly into your pocket!

Here's the dress I decided to upcycle. I bought this dress a few years ago in Dunnes, but I very rarely wore it. It was just too much powder pink all at once. So I decided to turn it into a skirt.

What I used:

All I needed for this revamp was:

- elastic band

- white thread & needle

- pins

- scissors

- use of a sowing machine

- cream elastic lace

What I did:

I simply cut off the top half of the dress above the waist line, making sure to leave enough room for a hem. I then measured and cut off a strap of elastic band to be fit inside the new top hem and pinned it in place. Next I sowed on the elastic band (not having the hem folded over yet). Big thanks to Emma for letting me use her sewing machine! Unfortunately my sewing skills proved a little rusty and the stitching turned out rather wonky... I then pulled the rest of the fabric over the elastic, pinned it and stitched it to form the hem. 

To cover up the wonky stitching on the hem I got some elastic cream lace and hand stitched it over the hem. And voila: one dress turned into a skirt with elastic waistband, that I can now combine with a variety of different tops and colours! Like this white blouse for instance:

To link in with creativity month Recycle Boutique NI are hosting some more free DIY fashion workshop throughout March. Check their facebook or follow them on twitter to find out more.

But let's not stop there. Here are some more great recycle and DIY fashion tips...

Don't know what to do with that pair of white pants you never wear? My beautiful and very creative friend Emily decided to give hers some funk by printing diamond shaped polka dots on them. Go over to Emily's Blog From China Village to find out how she did it!

Emily wearing her funky polka dot pants

Got a bunch of old T-shirts lying around? Head over to Brit + Co to learn how to turn them into these awesome tote bags:

And if you really just have unusable clothes and scraps of fabric left over, why not try and make them into a cute heart shape garland? It's dead easy, check out this article to find out everything you need to know.

DIY garland by Kirstie Allsopp

Do you feel inspired? I certainly do! I had a great time at the recycle workshop... Although I doubt that mending and making do was as much fun during World War II as it is today... in case you're interested, you can find some fascinating memories of what it was like on BBC's website.

Fair Game

It's that time of year again... with Spring lurking just around the corner comes the threat of short skirts, sleeveless t-shirts and - to be dreaded most - bikini season! After having hibernated for three months, five if you live in Ireland, we wake up and realise our bodies are completely inadequate to be exposed to daylight and the public eye. So we make our yearly resolutions to "get out more", go to the gym, run before work and just "be active".

Now, I don't know about you, but when I go running it does not look like the lovely lady in this picture... There is nothing serene about me running. I'm a graceless, fat-wobbling, huffing and puffing, red-faced, sweaty mess... But alas, if we can't look good while doing sport, at least we can feel good about the clothes we do it in. So here are some of the brands that not only care about selling neon coloured sweatbands and stretchy pants, but also about the people that made them and the world they're made in.

Outdoor and Running

Patagonia

Patagonia produce outdoor and sportswear to dress you on your rock-climbing, off-piste skiing, or fly fishing adventures. From as early on as 1985, they have invested in protecting and rebuilding the world we're destroying. Patagonia are open about the footprint of their goods, support local and international initiatives, such as the World Trout Initiative, and they invest 1% of their sales back into our planet. Over the years, they have invested over $46 million in grassroots environmental groups and are encouraging other businesses to do the same. 

Patagonia also pledged itself to the Common Threads partnership in an attempt to work with its customers to reduce waste and bring about a more sustainable way of living. Watch this beautiful video, to find out more:

Yew

Yew create women's and men's running and active wear out of 100% recycled polyester and organic cotton. The polyester is recycled out of post-consumer waste, meaning the t-shirt you buy was probably at one point a soft drink bottle!

Their prices are very affordable and they do free UK delivery. Unfortunately their range is quite limited and they mainly sell t-shirts, tops and jumpers. 

Nike, Puma & New Balance

Big brands such as Nike, Puma, New Balance and others have since jumped on the eco-bandwagon and are investing in more sustainable business practices. You may have seen this yourself, but some of the Nike gear now has tags on it claiming that 70% of the materials used in this garment are recycled. Both Puma and Nike have launched shoe recycle campaigns; Nike's is called Worn Out. Play On. and Puma's is the Bring Me Back campaign. The idea behind both is the same; you drop your old runners or trainers into the recycle bin provided in their shop, they are sliced up, ground up and the materials re-used to build athletic tracks, football fields and playground surfacing. 

The sports label New Balance has taken steps against the trend to manifacture cheaply in Asian countries and are producing part of their line in the US and the UK. Their Made in UK sports shoe collection is produced in their factory in Flimby, Cumbria, which employs over 210 people. Unfortunately, the collection is limited to men's shoes only so far.

With big labels such as these, I always find it difficult to know how much of it is just paying lip-service to a current trend, but at least the big ones are aware that eco-friendly and ethically made goods is what consumers want. 

Yoga

Asquith London & Gossypium

Among other things, Asquith and Gossypium sell a range of organic and ethically made yoga clothing. These mainly consist of stretchy and very very comfortable looking pants and tops in various colours. Compared to Asquith, Gossypium's range is a bit more limited. Asquith's garments are all manufactured in the family-run factory in Southern Turkey and they guarantee fair wages and treatment of employees. Gossypium work with various fairtrade enterprises and factories in India and England. Both companies use sustainable fabrics, such as organic cotton and bamboo.

Football

We live in a nation of football lovers. Football is truly everywhere. However, the sport, and the balls in particular, have attracted a lot of negative publicity in recent times, when it was revealed that the millions of sports balls we kick about daily are hand-stitched by children in in-human conditions. So here are two alternatives where you can purchase your football and keep a clean conscience: 

Senda Athletics and Fair Corp both produce fairtrade certified sportsballs. While Senda seems to only focus on footballs, Fair Corp also sells volleyballs and rugby balls. 

So this year why not purchase some ethical and sustainable sportswear to help you on your way to fitness and that bikini body? Consider it your first step and you won't have to train for the rest of the week!

Do you know any other ethical or sustainable sports labels? Let me know!

Introducing People Tree!

One of my first discoveries when looking into buying fairtrade clothes was Peopletree.co.uk. You may have already heard of them... Safia Minney has been making her fairtrade fashion business a huge success and names such as Orla Kiely, Vivienne Westwood and Emma Watson have all designed for the brand.

Peopletree have been selling faitrade fashion and accessories in the UK since 2001 and their clothes are stylish, fashionable and great quality. Here are some of my current favourites:

Marie Cream Dot Dress

Orla Kiely Cardi

They also have...

and...

To Peopletree, faitrade means more than just paying a fair price. It is about a radically different business model, where profit is not the only aim. Peopletree tries to support and help disadvantaged communities to reach sustainability. 

Alongside its fashion business, Peopletree has set up the Peopletree Foundation, an independent charity that works to provide farmers, artisans and communities with training, education and practical support and raises awareness for fair and sustainable fashion.            
Peopletree try to produce their products as environmentally friendly as possible, using organically grown cotton and avoiding damaging chemicals. To reduce the carbon-footprint, a great number of their garments are hand-made. 

And they don't want to keep it to themselves! As part of their mission statement, Peopletree aims to:

"set an example to business and the government of a Fair Trade model of business based on partnership, people-centred values and sustainability."

Imagine, if every business did this! The world would look different, for sure... but enough talking! Want to see an example? Watch how Peopletree works with Bombolulu Workshops, a program for people with physical disabilities in Mombasa.

So why not fill someone's stockings with gorgeous goodies that make everyone feel great about themselves?

Yes the prices are higher than what we are used from the Highstreet, but they have frequent sales on. My suggestion: sign up to their email newsletter and you'll always be informed of the latest promotions. Peopletree do deliver to almost everywhere, however, their delivery charges to outside of the UK are a bit of a hindrance and have caused me to back away from purchases before.
Not to despair! Check out their stockists, you may well be able to buy Peopletree clothes conveniently in a shop near you. In Dublin for instance, you can get them at the lovely Bow and Pearl in Ranelagh.

Have you ordered anything from Peopletree? What were your experiences? Or do you know of any other great fairtrade fashion houses?