7 days to sustainability: our eco-fashion crash course
By Florenne Earle Ledger published 17/04/2024
Fashion revolution week is kicking off soon, so what better time to get involved with our sustainable fashion crash course? If you’ve been looking for a sign to take active steps to learn more about how fast fashion impacts our earth and garment workers lives, this is it.
I’ll be taking you through seven small actions you can do over the next seven days to get a clearer picture of how fast fashion came to be, the effect it has on our environment and how it’s linked to so many other important issues our society needs to tackle.
Refer back to this article throughout the week as you join me (and the Whering team!) on a sustainable fashion crash course. Check our socials daily to see how we’re getting on…
Day 1
Starting nice and easy– watch a documentary you’ve not seen before on the impacts of fast fashion. There are so many digital resources out there to teach us about what’s really going on behind closed doors and force us to confront truths we already knew, but wanted to forget.
Before I boycotted fast fashion completely, I wanted to believe that it wasn’t as bad as it sounded, as it seemed too difficult to stop buying from highstreet stores altogether. Documentaries made me realise how important it was to fully commit to my beliefs and say goodbye to first hand clothes. If you’ve not already seen The True Cost or Inside the Shein Machine, they’re a great place to start. If you’ve seen them before, have a browse on Netflix or any streaming service and see what you can find.
Day 2
Read a chapter of a fast fashion or sustainability book that interests you. I used to avoid non fiction because I assumed I would find it boring, but I’ve grown to enjoy learning about topics I’m passionate about. We’re not expecting you to read an entire book in one day, so start with one chapter for day two of this challenge. Find any sustainability book or eco fashion book that speaks to you. Here are some of our suggestions:
- The World is on Fire but We’re Still Buying Shoes by Alex Leach
- Consumed by Aja Barber
- It’s Not That Radical by Michaela Loach
- There is no Planet B by Mike Burners Lee
- Hot Money by Naomi Klein
- Sustainable wardrobe by Sophie Benson
Avoid buying them on Amazon and support small and independent bookshops where you can!
Day 3
Knowledge is so important, but so is taking action. Whether you want to take this day to find a sustainable fashion community group near you, organise a clothes swap with friends or find a protest happening in your city, get involved in something.
For those based in London, there’s a protest on the 24th of April at 6pm for the 1,134 lives lost in the Rana Plaza collapse, 11 years ago on that day. Try and attend if you’re in the area, and if not, why not organise a march of your own? Fashion Revolution has a guide on how to host your own fair fashion event if this is something you’re interested in.
Day 4
Make moves to finally repair an item. We all have those pieces we need to get fixed or altered, but for some reason it’s always one of those tasks we put off for eternity. There are so many accessible online tailor and alteration platforms, like Sojo or The Seam, making it super easy and affordable to get items repaired or altered. You can also go to your local tailors or cobblers to support community businesses.
Mending and improving clothes we already own is one of the easiest and most effective ways to be more sustainable.
Day 5
Attend a Fashion Revolution event. Connect with others that care about sustainable fashion, make friends and learn at Fashion Revolution week events. They have both in person and virtual events, accessible for everyone.
Day 6
Get creative and complete an abstract radical fashion exercise to connect with your clothes in a new way. I’ve been loving the ‘Radical Fashion Exercises’ book, full of unique and fun ways to engage with your wardrobe that you have never thought of. I suggest buying the book to support sustainable fashion creatives, but you can also see some of the exercises in our recent article for Earth Hour, and copied below.
Sound scaping a look
Select one pair of shoes, one accessory and one piece of clothing.
Find a quiet and dark place - maybe this inside your wardrobe?
During the next 3 minutes, record the following:
- Put the garment on then take it off - what does it sound like? Does it go over your head or is there a zip?
- Put the shoes on, then take them off. Do they slip on or do they have laces that need to be tied up?
- Place the accessory on and then take it off. Does it go over the hand, wind through the fabric or suspend on the body?
- Listen back to the recording. How would you describe the ambience of the three experiences of dressing? What’s the most distinctive character and expression of each sound?
- Describe the sound in 6 words
- Has this changed how you see your garment? Did you learn something new about it? How would the sounds change depending on the items you chose?
Discover more exercises in the full article or in the book itself.
Day 7
Share your experience with your community. Everything you have learned from the last 6 days, talk about it online or in person with people you care about. Share your findings and start discussions about sustainable fashion and get those you love talking about why we need a fair future of fashion.
Let us know how you got on with our slow fashion crash course! We’d love to hear from you in our socials, @Whering__ on TikTok, Instagram and Twitter.
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