Amelia Langton – Annotated Bibliography
FAST FASHION
https://goodonyou.eco/what-is-fast-fashion/
Rauturier, Solene. What Is Fast Fashion and Why Is It So Bad? goodonyou.eco, 2021
Fast fashion is characterized by cheaply made, disposable clothing that draws inspiration from popular catwalk shows or celebrity influencers. These styles enter the market at lightning speed and sell even faster. This system of trendy, disposable retail promotes the idea that clothing lasts only as long as the trend, and that after that, they’re no longer good enough in quality or style. These clothes haven’t only taken the streets by storm, but are extremely accessible online, amplifying how easily attainable and therefore, disposable these new styles are.
This system of accessibility and disposability has caused an influx of over-consumerism, which poses a great danger to our environment. These clothes are made of cheap materials, which contain toxic chemicals that harm the planet during production and after their worn. Polyester, one of the cheapest and easiest fabrics to manufacture, is derived from acidic and toxic fossil fuels, and these compounds cannot decompose into the soil, which contributes to global warming. Cotton, another highly popular material, requires an absurd amount of water to produce, which risks drought. The demand for these trendy clothes further increases the opportunity for these materials to harm the environment, and in 2021, more than 500 kilos of used or unwanted clothing entered landfills every year.
The materials used in the fashion industry such as fabric production and textile dyes are too harmful to continue using if the world was to progress into a sustainable society. The demand for new, trendy styles will never go away, especially as fashion has become increasingly important to us as a society. What we can change though, is the materials we use to make clothing. This is a concept I will strive to challenge in my project; assuring that all materials are durable, quality, and trendy for all seasons/styles, and can be properly recycled after being worn.
HISTORY
https://fashionista.com/2016/06/what-is-fast-fashion
Idacavage, Sara. Fashion History Lesson: The Origins of Fast Fashion. Fashionista.com, 2018
Fast fashion is a consequence of the rapidly advancing world of technology. Over time, humans have always strived to make what they want in life easy and accessible, fast fashion is the answer to that. Fast fashion first boomed in the 1960s and 70s, when young generations began to embrace clothing as a form of expression, and especially began to embrace cheap, affordable clothing to keep up with fast-changing trends. Fashion brands had to learn to keep up with the increasing demand from consumers and began opening hundreds of textile mills and clothing factories with poor working conditions to make this clothing.
Before the Industrial Revolution (1760-1840), the fashion industry was slow – you had to source all your own materials and prepare and weave them yourself. As the Industrial Revolution brought the sewing machine, clothing became easier and cheaper to make, and dressmaking/tailor shops were able to open to the middle class. Soon after, sweatshops emerged, where workers are paid insufficient wages for long hours under extremely poor conditions. The first significant sweatshop incident was in 1911 at Shirtwaist factory, NY, where a fire broke out and killed 146 young female immigrant women. This event marked a sign of a new era of fashion, a very dangerous one.
Seeing the evolution of the fashion industry and how it adapted to the changing world offers me another side of the problem to consider. The problem isn’t only with the physical materials used for the garments, but it all depends on the consumer, the demand is ever-present and relentless. It’s how companies choose to deal with that human problem that creates the issue.
SUPPLY CHAIN
http://eprints.bournemouth.ac.uk/34010/
Cotler, Amanda. Why Sustainable Fashion Matters. Forbes, 2019.
For a garment to be truly sustainable, the ecosystem of that garment’s life cycle must be taken into account. Cheap synthetic fabrics such as polyester, nylon, and spandex are all made of chemicals and polymers. Every time the cheap garments are washed, microplastics shed off, and end up in the oceans, or in our own bodies. It also takes an immense amount of energy to produce and release toxic emissions during production. In addition, they hold bacteria and often start smelling bad fast, which inclines you to throw them away soon after buying them. Once you throw away that garment, it will take 200 years for it to fully decompose. Meanwhile, it only takes two weeks for linen to break down, and five months for cotton, and often use half the energy to make.
Sustainable fashion not only considers the material being used to make a garment, but considers the supply chain, production process, and the afterlife of that material. For example, even if a garment is made with bamboo-based fibers, the supply chain and production of that material might not be truly “sustainable”. When considering what fabric to use to make a garment, you must ask yourself if the fabric is made to last and limits the amount of wasted fabric in production.
Through my honors project, I strive to learn about how each fabric available in the garment industry affects the planted, and what fabrics/suppliers to be wary of. My goal is to put a strict emphasis on who I buy my fabric from, and what kind of fabric I buy. I will not use any fabrics that contain microplastics or chemicals, so my clothes last longer, through all seasons, and are good for the environment and the body.
AFFORDABILITY
Chan, Emily. Why Is’nt Sustainable Fashion More Affordable? British Vogue, 2020.
https://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/article/sustainable-fashion-affordable
The affordability/price of sustainable clothing is dependent on the demand for sustainable clothing. Almost everyone wants to buy eco-friendly clothing, but the majority of consumers cannot afford it, and would rather buy from brands that will only charge $7 for a t-shirt, such as H&M. As of now, sustainably made clothing is a luxury that very few can afford. It is easier and more profitable to sell large volumes of clothing at low prices, at incredibly high speed, which it’s why fast fashion is so attractive to business owners and consumers.
Because the quality materials used to make sustainable clothing are currently more expensive than that of fast fashion clothing, prices will always be a bit higher. Although, a shift can happen where the demand for sustainable clothing will increase, and brands will begin investing in more sustainable materials and technology. As the demand and supply for sustainable clothing rise, prices will fall. The industry always works to match the demand, that is why it is crucial to invest into eco-friendly brands and popularize them, ultimately taking the stage away from fast fashion.
This article gave me immense insight into the economic side of fashion, and also gave me hope. The affordability of sustainable fashion is one topic that I’ve always felt stumped by, especially as I am a student on a budget in search of sustainable fabric. While the shift in the market from fast to slow fashion is indeed slow, I feel even more inclined to dig up the best affordable brands I can support that will in turn support me back.
INFLUENCERS
Morgan, Emma. How Influencers Accelerate the Growth of Fast Fashion and Greenwashing. Eco-stylist.com, 2021.
https://www.eco-stylist.com/how-influencers-accelerate-the-growth-of-fast-fashion-and-greenwashing/
Influencers are people who are boosted by mass praise and attention, usually on social media, and from that, they gain a strong influential power over us as an audience – “You are much more likely to buy a product if it’s promoted by an influencer you like.” When a brand recognizes an influencer and the power they have on their audience, they approach them with a deal: promote our product, get your audience to buy it, and you profit. Influencers will partner with anyone for money, especially big fast fashion companies.
America is home to the biggest fast fashion monstrosities: Shein, Fashion Nova, and Zara (amongst many others). Influencers, who are often admired and praised for their physical appearance/style, will promote these brands on a daily basis, and their audience will buy their products in a heartbeat. At the same time, influencers will also promote “sustainable” fashion brands, but they’re not always truly sustainable. This is called greenwashing, where brands will promote their products and company as being sustainable when in reality it is the opposite. The problem here is that influencers are profiting off of a lie, and profiting off of unethical brands that pollute while their audience thinks they are being environmentally friendly. A common brand that greenwashes is H&M with its many “sustainable” campaigns that are unrealistic, vague, and used as marketing tactics.
Influencers are key players in the explosive growth of fast fashion, they build and create trends, and inspire large audiences to follow them. Online fast fashion brands such as Fashion Nova and Shein only took off once social media influencers began endorsing and promoting them, and all an audience wants to do is mirror their idols and achieve their look. As someone who does follow style influencers on social media, I know first-hand the danger in this, as I have played into it before. It’s too easy nowadays to see someone you admire and easily buy a cheap, flattering, trendy item to achieve that look. This is a troubling problem, and I hope that once I create my line of sustainably made and recycled clothing, I can spread my message and influence in a positive way.
TOOLS/RESOURCES:
Least/most sustainable fabrics