March 3, 2020

Eco-fashion: how to have and maintain a sustainable wardrobe

Happy March everybody! Feb was an incredible month and a time of love, collaboration and coming together for me but most of all it was a month of introspection and self-reflection.

If you read my last post about going zero-waste this year you will know that I have just begun my journey of zero-waste living. As a planet lover, I feel like this journey is super important and while that keeps me motivated, it doesn’t make this journey easy. So I have decided to change my life step by step focusing on different spheres in my life each month that I can revamp and renew in an eco-friendly and sustainable way.

I ended 2019 feeling like I needed a fresh start and that I wanted EVERYTHING in my life to feel fresh and different. This didn’t mean getting rid of everything I already owned, instead it meant having a long hard look at what I already had and finding ways to make it feel brand new.

I dedicated my first two months of this year to my clothes. I have always loved owning beautiful clothes and a lovely wardrobe but before this year I hadn’t really taken the time to think about whether what I bought and had in my closet was earth friendly or not. So, this seemed like the perfect start to my zero-waste journey.

STEP 1: THE PURGE (1-2 days)

The first thing I decided to do was to declutter. I spent two days at the start of 2020 piling all of my clothes on my bed and slowly and carefully sorted through each individual item. I decided to follow the Marie Kondo philosophy of only keeping things that sparked joy, to safe guard against the “I’ll need them for some imaginary event in the future” moments.

I held each item in my hands and observed the emotion it made me feel. Some clothes made me feel safe and cozy, others made me feel nostalgic. Some stirred up no emotion at all and some made me feel like I was smiling from the inside. Although it was a long and tedious process, I connected with every single piece of clothing I had. I thanked them all for all the memories we had shared and gave away all of the items that didn’t spark joy. I sorted the items I was giving away into a pile of clothes to give to family or friends and another pile I would donate to charity. In total I cleaned out about 2/3 of my wardrobe and at the end I felt exhausted and extremely proud of myself.

De-cluttering and giving away your clothes is probably the toughest part of renewing your closet but it is by far the most rewarding. Here are some tips to make it easier:

-Set aside a full weekend to do your clean up and if you have a spare room – do it there so you still have a tidy room to sleep in at night. It will definitely take longer than you think it will.
-Pile ALL of your clothes, shoes and accessories up and begin sorting the giant pile only after you are sure everything is there (don’t forget your laundry)
-Create three different spaces to pile up; clothes you are keeping, clothes you are giving/selling (my family have a little tradition of clothe-shopping at every visit) and clothes you are donating
-Play some good tunes and enjoy yourself throughout the process. Better yet light some incense and have some tea!
-Don’t be too hard on yourself. If there are some items you have an emotional connection with, allow yourself to keep them. As long as they spark joy.
-Take your time. Try to be slow, mindful and steady with your decluttering.
-Thank each item for everything it has done for you (gratitude is part of the gold of this experience).
-Reward yourself at the end by giving yourself a treat, having a hot bath or doing something you enjoy.

STEP 2: TIME TO TIDY (1 day)

Next its time to tidy and organise your closet. This part is super fun. I visualised shops that I knew I loved browsing through and copied how they organised their clothing to give my wardrobe a fresh feel. I arranged most of my items according to use (ie. sleep and lounge wear, active wear, shorts and skirts, jeans, hanging items etc.) and then organised those piles according to colour. The result was a wardrobe that was super easy to navigate and that felt like my favourite stores 🙂 I used shoe boxes to organise my socks and underwear and made sure that I could see every single item in my wardrobe when I packed them because I knew that if anything was out of sight, it wouldn’t be worn.

I finished off my tidying by carefully placing some scented laundry sacks in between my clothes (a nice trick is to use scented soaps instead – it does exactly the same thing) and at the end my clothes smelt and looked amazing! My wardrobe felt brand new even though I hadn’t bought any new clothes. Magic!

STEP 3: BUYING SOMETHING “NEW”

The next step of achieving and maintaining a sustainable wardrobe is by changing your shopping habits. Here are a few tips to keep you on the right track:

Before you buy anything ask yourself if you have it, or something like it already. If you do, don’t get it. Your mind will always tell you that the new item is a slightly different colour, print or material and as soon as you catch these thoughts coming up, view them as a sign that you have it already and move on.

SECOND-HAND SHOPPING

Try to buy second-hand clothing instead of new.
Thrift store shopping is so fun and more often not you will find incredible pieces that you would never have found if you were buying them new. Its also really economical and super light on the planet. My top tip for thrift store shopping is to know what sort of thing you are looking for before you go into the shop (otherwise prepare to be overwhelmed!). Next browse according to material or texture and NOT according to colour. For example if you are looking for a white linen shirt, as you browse look for items made of linen and thereafter narrow things down using colour. This method not only helps bring clarity to your shop but more often that not it’ll lead to you skipping over cheap and fast-fashion items, allowing you to find quality items made from quality fabrics. I’m a regular shopper at all the Melville thrift stores. Take a Saturday morning off , head to Melville and explore Bounty Hunters on 4th Avenue (do NOT go if you are allergic to cats) and Junkie on 7th Street. I doubt you will be disappointed.

NEW ITEM SHOPPING

When buying new items use a checklist to ensure that the brand you are supporting is ethical, eco-friendly and sustainable. Questions you should ask are:

-What fabric are these clothes made from? How is this fabric made? What toll does this fabric have on the planet in terms of water, soil erosion, manufacturing, degradability etc? These questions can be quite hard to answer off the top of your head so I would highly recommend googling the carbon footprint of various fabrics to help you establish this. As much as possible aim for natural fabrics such as cotton, linen, bamboo cotton and hemp as these will biodegrade, thereafter take your time to differentiate between them based on the factors mentioned above.

-How long will this item last? Try to buy items that you know will last almost a lifetime. While they will likely be most expensive, they will probably cost you the same compared to if you recurrently buy shorter-lifespan items. I have chosen not to buy any new leather goods because of the ethical implications, however I have kept the leather items I already own (and that my mom has handed down to me) purely because they last so much longer than anything else.

-How is this fabric dyed? Synthetic vs Natural. Most brands use synthetic dyes to dye their clothes and if they use natural dyes this will probably be a big part of their brand story and message. If you are unsure and really looking for 100% natural clothing, take a moment to contact the brand and ask them. You will probably be the first customer to ask them that and in doing so may be the reason they start to be more conscious about their manufacturing.

-Where are these clothes manufactured? Locally manufactured clothes are generally more eco-friendly than imported items purely because of the effect transporting the goods (often by air) has on carbon emissions. Try to support local manufacturing as much as possible and know that you are likely making a small business owners day, growing the economy and saving the planet all in one go!

-How are the people who manufacture these clothes treated? This is another question that you will likely have to talk to the particular brand about to get an answer. Ethically produced products shouldn’t just be kind to the planet but also kind to the people making them. Don’t be afraid to ask the brands you are buying from these tough questions. It’s your right to know.

In general, know that you buying anything means that you are supporting the way it was made from start to finish. Imagine yourself walking the journey of your item’s manufacturing process with it (all the way to you disposing of it) and if there is any point on the journey that you know makes you feel uncomfortable or that you would want to ignore, don’t buy it.

Lastly, for every item you buy, give away at least one (but ideally two) thing(s) from your wardrobe. Remember that your goal is to have a closet of luxury and quality…not a wardrobe full of heaps of low quality items.

STEP 3: MAINTENANCE

The last step to maintaining a sustainable wardrobe is all about prolonging the life-span of your items.

Take care of your items by diligently following their care instructions and even try to use eco-friendly laundry products to ensure that your closet is earth friendly through and through. Think about making optimal use of your clothes even if this means wearing an item (like jeans etc) more than once and see each item of clothing as something of value that is worth caring lovingly for.

BRANDS I LOVE

Now while most of the zero-waste and sustainability journey is about being a conscious consumer, brands also have their role to play in manufacturing products that are earth friendly. I’ve done loads of hunting for good ethical brands and so here are 3 you can check out:

CASUAL AND SMART CASUAL WEAR: HEMP LOVE

Hemp Love are a local South African clothing brand who make absolutely beautiful and romantic clothes.

All their fabrics are sourced from ethical producers and their clothes are made from hemp (a more sustainable and eco-friendly fabric than polyester and cotton). Once their fabrics arrive in South Africa, it gets dyed using plant waste sourced from farmers and restaurants all over the country! The dyed fabrics are then made into beautiful timeless designs by local seamstresses in Woodstock, Cape Town. They use bio-degradable packaging and labels on their items too which means that their clothes are planet friendly from start to finish.

This plus the fact that they are a small female run business has made me honestly fall in Hemplove (see what I did there?). I feel like I’m contributing to helping the planet and a small business while also investing in quality and beautiful clothes for myself at the same time – and thats a triple win for me! Check out the full Hemp Love range here.

LEISURE & AT HOME WEAR: STRONG by THE TSHIRT BED CO.

Those of you who know me personally, know very well that I spend most of my time in my yoga clothes. When it comes to clothing, comfort is a HUGE factor for me and so when organising my wardrobe I was particularly excited about clearing out my old pj’s and “slob-queen” outfits and finding new “at-home” clothes that felt good, looked cute and were sustainable. I searched for eco-friendly pjs for ages until one of my friends posted about an Instagram giveaway featuring a brand called The T-shirt Bed Co who make beautiful 100% cotton bed linen (more of that next month when I cover sustainable home decor!) as well as deliciously cozy and sustainable leisure/yoga/sleep wear under their sub-brand Strong by T-shirt Bed Co.

Strong by T-shirt Bed Co. is every cozy addicts dream. They design joggers, hoodies, tops, head bands and now a new summer range for those days when you feel laid back and care-free. Their fabric is produced locally and is delivered to their factory where all of their products are manufactured ethically by a small team of amazing people.

They use 100% pure cotton fabric and their cotton uses BCI complaint locally produced yarn. Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), is a concept to grow cotton with judicious use of water, chemical fertilisers and pesticides, to reduce the environmental footprint of cotton farming. The fabric is then reactive dyed – reactive dyes are mainly used for dyeing natural cellulose fibres such as cotton and viscose.

The T-shirt Bed Co hold minimal stock and produce per order. They also package their products in cute cotton bags which you can reuse for almost anything which definitely ticked all my eco-friendly boxes. When I spoke to them about their business and sustainability heres what they had to add:

“We love the fact that our bedding and loungewear are made of pure cotton as it is easy to care for and if done well, will last years and years! The fabric itself doesn’t tarnish and is crease-proof, saving you hundreds in man hours and thousands in your electrical bills.”

All of these factors have made me a supporter of these guys so if your pj’s and chill out clothes are looking a little sad and worn like mine, check their stuff out here.

SHOES & ACCESSORIES:

The last (and often forgotten) area of ethical wardrobe I’ll be chatting about in this post is shoes and accessories. Often these items sneak under the radar when it comes to sustainability when actually they contribute greatly to waste and harm to the planet, animals and the humans who make them.

Most jewellery, bags and shoes are made of plastic, are plastic coated or come in plastic packaging or alternatively they are made of leather, shell or other animal-based materials. This makes buying sustainable shoes and accessories a tricky exercise but not impossible.

I have started supporting brands like Palladium for my shoes (read about their Earth range here) and Hemporium and Kare Bags for my shopping bags, purses and accessories.
I have found that buying silver/gold jewellery is the best solution to making my jewellery eco-friendly and super long lasting and as I’ve begun letting go of my shoes and accessories I’ve come to realise that often simple and classic is the best way to go.

Heading to March and having reflected on the past 2 months I’m super proud of the journey I’ve been on so far. I used to totally procrastinate on my goals of levelling up my life in terms of de-cluttering and becoming more planet friendly, and always thought it would be tiresome and expensive but actually its really refreshing and if anything, more economical than how I was living before. I feel like I have more agency in my life and appreciate and love everything I own so much more than before. Its been a lovely start to 2020 🙂 Let me know if you are keen to establish your own eco-friendly wardrobe and if you have any suggestions about eco-friendly brands comment below!