Some of you have been asking, what is Slow Fashion?

In this blog, we dive deep into the concept of Slow Fashion, why it is important and what you can do to promote it! Read more to learn about Slow Fashion and ways you can support the Slow Fashion movement.

What is Slow Fashion?

Slow fashion, a term coined by Elizabeth L. Cline is the awareness and approach to fashion which considers the processes and resources required to make clothing. It advocates for buying better-quality garments that will last longer and for the fair treatment of people, animals and the planet.

The slow fashion movement, also known as sustainable fashion focuses on creating sustainable standards for the fashion industry by moving away from the mass production of poor quality non-biodegradable fabrics and exploitive production. Slow fashion is the antithesis of fast fashion.

What are the Principles of Slow Fashion?

Elizabeth Cline (2013),a sustainability expert (and fellow Vancouverite!) outlines 4 main principles of Slow Fashion:

• Small Batch Production - Producing collections in small quantities to avoid overproduction.

• Sustainable Materials - Materials that are biodegradable, recycled or dead stock. To find out more about slow fashion fabrics check out our blog posts about sustainable fabrics here.

• Timeless Designs - Having timeless designs is important, as this effort helps decrease the brand’s collections turnover, which in turn decreases over production. Timeless designs is also an important principle, as it promotes creation of garments that can be worn for longer periods of time without being deemed unfashionable.

• Ethical Means of Production - Ensuring that the product are manufactured in safe, non- exploitive and fair environments.

In the coming weeks, we will focus on each of the principles within our blog! Find the efforts that we at Charlie Paisley do to be sustainable here.

The Importance of Slow Fashion

Slow fashion is often seen as the better alternative to fashion fashion but why does this matter to the consumer?

Slow fashion is important as this sustainability centred movement changes the way that fashion businesses operate by leading businesses to prioritize the environment and the ethical treatment of workers.

While fast fashion is often synonymous with highly profitable businesses, the success often comes at a environmental and human rights price. Currently, most fast fashion companies create their products from poor quality non-biodegradable fabrics and by the means of exploitive production. As well, many of the products manufactured do not follow the timeless design principle (see last section) and therefore, will likely go out of style very quickly and are sent to the landfill shortly after; where they take years if not decades to decomposed; or if incinerated it will create carbon emissions.

Slow fashion is an effort to change the existing harmful fashion business model pattern by creating a new sustainable standard for what products are made from, how they are made, by whom and in what conditions. The slow fashion movement promotes the use of only sustainable fabrics, the increase of product quality, fair trade means of production, and timeless designs.

To summarize, slow fashion is about being mindful of the impact that fashion has on the environment and about the ethical treatment of the workers involved in the fashion industry. Slow fashion is important as it is an effort to create a new standard for the fashion industry and as it is a sustainable framework to operate a fashion-focused business.

What can you do to support the Slow Fashion movement?

Recognizing that the existing fashion standards need to change is the first step. The next step is taking action! Here are some suggestions on how you can support the slow fashion movement:

• Support local makers / brands / designers: Buying from local businesses helps support small batch production, which in turn decreases overproduction and ensures that the products are one-of-a-kind and often exclusive creations! Local makers also tend to have full oversight over their production cycle, which allows them to ensure that the process is ethical. As well, smaller businesses tend to use sustainable materials more often: as their production batches are smaller, it is easier to opt for a sustainable materials, as opposed to mass producers, who tend to opt for cheaper materials, which are often not sustainable, in order to safeguard their profit margins.

• Buy vintage: Buying secondhand or vintage clothing eliminates garments from filling the landfills and discourages the production of more throw-away fashion. Plus, vintage is awesome as it is often one of kind and unique!

• Be conscious of the garment fabric: Choosing garments made from sustainable fabric contributes to waste reduction, water conservation and lowers emissions and soil regeneration.

• Be aware of the production cycle: Knowing where the fabric comes from and who has sewed it is important as this allows you to know if the garments are produced ethically. Find out more about sustainable fabrics in our blog post.

• Participate in Fashion Revolution Week: Fashion Revolution Week is taking place from April 19 to 25 2021. During this week you can use social media, emails and product reviews to hold brands accountable by asking #WhoMadeMyClothes and #WhatsInMyClothes.

We hope you enjoyed this read about Slow Fashion, what it means and why it is so important. Stay tuned for our next blog post, which will focus on the four pillars of Slow Fashion (Small Batch Production, Sustainable Materials, Timeless Design and Ethical Means of Production).

Here at Charlie Paisley, our mission is to create a new sustainable standard for hair accessories. Feel free to reach out to us at contact@charliepaisley.com if you have any insights or tips!