Trending Now : #EcoFashion - Calling Followers to Fashion's Green Movement

Eco-Fashion, as a necessity in itself, guarantees the global population a couple more years of life on Earth. Yet currently, “green fashion” is viewed as a personal choice, an evolving trend more like. Investing in products that are not only socially appealing, but also give consumers the benefit of flaunting the said product, in terms of being in trend, is a fool-proof method to ensure the life of eco-friendly fashion, without it having to fade from the public eye.

The concept of fast fashion purely exists as a result of the present consumer culture. Throwaway mentality is the fashion industry’s Achilles heel [1]. As consumers, one needs to be pushed and constantly reminded of the benefits of eco-fashion. It’s vital that sustainable fashion be induced as a “want” before it evolves into a basic “need”.

Elena Corchero, a multi-award-winning designer and former MIT researcher of wearable tech and smart materials mentions, "As a designer myself, I blame designers and companies who aren't transparent. The way things are made becomes meaningless, just like the products themselves."

She goes on to add that "Design activism makes you realize that, as a designer, it's not just your duty to design responsibly — it's a privilege," she says. "It's an important movement."

Reflecting on Corchero's words, designers stand at the forefront of fashion and are primarily responsible in reducing their carbon footprint. Julie Gilhart of Glasgow Caledonian University, New York states “The customer is not asking for sustainable fashion, they want great fashion, and they want good product priced at a price they can afford”.

Aesthetics plays an important part in promoting responsible fashion. Consumers need to be wooed, before the experience the benefit of the cause. Eco-Fashion designers Mark Liu and Holly McQuillan have been creating ensembles through waste scraps since 2009, as a way of curbing production’s carbon footprint. Swiss based brand, Freitag, consciously creates bags from recycled truck tarps in an effort to produce environmentally safe products. Also companies like Twice Upcycled, designs shirts that can be used and reused in different ways. This creates versatility in the product by which wearers can benefit from a single product and still cultivate a variety of looks.

Many Indian design houses are rapidly using organic fashion as a way to attract customers. The state of farmers is a looming issue in the Peninsula that has instigated a mass movement by designers and customers alike in shopping green. Design brands such as Brass Tacks, Co-Optex and Anokhi, not only provide livelihood to farmers, but make use of energy efficient process such as natural dyeing, block prints with vegetable pigments and handwoven organic fabrics. Albeit, with an added cost.

Designers can definitely continue to opt for the use of organic material to ensure an environmentally safe product. But, the real benefit lies in promoting the idea of “Make, Do and Mend”. Designers need to focus on the effects the products have on the consumer rather just on the environment. Accepting that shopping habits won’t change any time soon, designers must promote the idea of buying less. Companies like Patagonia promote the concept of recycling, that designers can actively participate in. Creating clothes that can later be exchanged for new ones can attract customers in a more economical perspective as well.

Using social media for promoting green fashion movements can be used for a designer’s benefit. Not only for spreading awareness but providing consumers with the transparency in the process underwent in creating organic fashion. This eases customers into buying products without apprehension.

It's not enough for one to be sympathetic towards environmental issues. By creating an atmosphere where eco-fashion becomes the only fashion, seismic shifts in social awareness is bound to erupt amongst consumers. Of course, it's a far fetched goal, but a little change can go a long way.

Sources -

[1] Nayelli Gonzales. "A Brief History of Sustainable Fashion" . 19 Feb 2015 . Triplepundit.com . Web . 25 Nov 2015. http://www.triplepundit.com/special/sustainable-fashion-2014/brief-history-sustainable-fashion/

Steff Yotka . "Save the Fashion Industry, Save the World! How We Can Make a Greener Future" . 30 Oct 2015 . Vogue.com . Web. 25 Nov 2015 . http://www.vogue.com/13366681/sustainability-in-fashion-tips-julie-gilhart-simon-collins/

Rose Marcario . "The most eco-friendly clothes are the ones already in your closet" . 25 Nov 2015 . Conspicuous Consumption . Web. 25 Nov 2015 . http://qz.com/553614/the-most-eco-friendly-clothes-are-the-ones-already-in-your-closet/

Kane Fulton . "How tech could save the planet and make you look fashionable" . 5 Nov 2015 . Techradar.com . Web . 25 Nov 2015. http://www.techradar.com/news/world-of-tech/how-tech-could-save-the-planet-and-make-you-look-fashionable-1308283

Referred PDF source - https://www.fitnyc.edu/files/pdfs/CET_Sass.pdf