Being a fashionable but eco-friendly consumer is tough when every purchase we make has an impact. Two of the most controversial industries on the planet are fashion and beauty. Our dependence on cheap and boundless products has impacted the environment in countless ways, from creating fabric dyes that taint a water supply, to perpetrating animal cruelty. Fashion and beauty manufacturing is also a major contributor to pollution.
However, there are tons of ways to shop that are environmentally friendly and ethical! Below we’ve listed three ways you can become a better consumer and lower your negative impact on the earth without giving up on your love of fashion. These simple swaps will raise your karma without lowering the bar on your style.
1. Go Cruelty-Free
The first change you can make with your daily fashion choices comes in your makeup drawer. When you buy makeup, you should go cruelty-free. Cruelty-free make up has not been tested on animals. When you choose cruelty-free, you save the lives and dignity of animals that suffer under extensive abuse. Unfortunately, rabbits have always been the biggest victims of this trend.
It used to be hard to know if a product was cruelty-free just by looking at it, but now it is simple. If you want to check if a product is cruelty-free, you just need to make sure it is leaping bunny certified. The leaping bunny logo lets you know the product in your hands hasn’t been used on any animals in its development.
Because of the cosmetic industry’s past, almost every ingredient in modern skin care has previously been tested on animals. However, when you see the leaping bunny logo, you can feel good about what you’re wearing.
2. Don’t Buy Fast Fashion
The next thing you can do for the planet is to buy sustainable fashion, or at least avoid fast fashion. Fast fashion is clothing that is quickly constructed and poorly made. Fast fashion is usually made of clothing that meant for the current season and then tossed. It often consists of trendy pieces that are relatively low cost. A defining characteristic of fast fashion is thin fabric that easily rips after a wash or two.
This trend, which seems like a cheap and convenient solution to many, is horrible for the environment. It takes a lot of resources to produce garments, and the production of fast fashion uses lots of those valuable resources carelessly.
According to the World Wildlife Organization’s website, it takes about 2,700 liters of water to produce and process the cotton necessary to make a single tee shirt. That’s a big use of resources, and it doesn’t even account for the labor and CO2 used while a tee shirt is assembled and then shipped to your favorite store.
All in all, fast fashion contributes to wasteful consumption and uses a lot of resources along the way.
3. Support Small Green Focused Creators
Lastly, supporting non-corporate and environmentally conscious brands is a great way to be an ethical consumer. By supporting indie creators, you can invest in green businesses that you know you can trust. Be sure to do your research; you are sure to find there are tons of small businesses making green alternatives to anything and everything you could want.
In The End
All in all, it’s easy to be a better consumer of fashion and beauty. Everyday, more and more companies are embracing the eco-friendly movement. You can use your power as a consumer to advocate for the changes that you want through your purchases. Support green companies today!
