What comes to your mind when you see those words? Certain store names or brand names?
I don’t get those kinds of things in my mind, but I remember the story I read about the piles and piles of brand new clothes that get dumped into the Atacama Desert because they are no longer relevant to what is in fashion. Or I think of the sweat shops where these clothes are made in the first place. A lot of child labor and poor wages to make sure your t shirt can cost you only $5 or $10. I’m not here to bash anyone or cause anyone guilt about consuming fast fashion, because I still do too, although I am trying to be more conscious of my decisions and who is getting my hard earned money. Hello, small shops! Especially Canadian shops.
So where is the balance? I sew a lot of my own clothes and therefore I can choose the type of fabric to use. To qualify as slow fashion do I have to use only natural fibers and nothing synthetic? Or can I use some synthetics, and as long as it is being sewed by me instead of buying from an unethical source that’s all that matters? If it is a thrifted garment does that make it more okay to have synthetics? Does the amount of garments I own dictate anything about fast or slow fashion? If I have a smaller wardrobe of quality ethically made pieces does that make me a better human than someone who has a larger wardrobe that is almost entirely homemade, but with some synthetic fibers included?
I’m asking a million questions, I know. I am trying to find my own way through this maze and minefield. I don’t think there is ONE hard and fast set of rules that dictates if it qualifies for slow fashion. I think that, just like a lot of other things in life, we have to find our own balance of what is okay for ourselves, not what this influencer says or that friend preaches. You are you and you get to decide how you are going to help those mountains of discarded clothes to stop increasing.
I am only one and I can do so little. But we all can make a tiny impact somewhere. And together we can be a force.
Sew long,
Stephanie Jan
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