What Is the Difference Between Ethical Clothing and Sustainable Clothing?
Gone are the days when the celebrities were flaunting their fur coats and leather jackets. (Or at least, mainly.) People are now moving toward planet-friendly clothing, which is giving rise to more and more brands embracing an ethical and sustainable approach.
So, what exactly is ethical clothing or ethical fashion and how is it different from sustainable fashion? Are they the same? Well, read on to find out!
What Is Sustainable Clothing?
Sustainable clothing means that these clothes/clothing products have been made in such a way that the manufacturers are extremely wary and mindful of the various environmental issues the fashion/clothing industry touches upon. In other words, sustainable fashion means that these clothes are designed, manufactured, and distributed in environmentally friendly methods.
In today’s fast fashion, people buy clothes that are intentionally designed to be bought quickly, often used and disposed of in an even quicker way. This is a very short cycle where consumers buy and dispose of clothes quickly and move on to the next happening fashion trend, which has been made affordable.
Thanks to the various mass manufacturers who play a key role in creating a pattern of mindless consumption among customers in these times. The growing popularity of sustainable fashion has given birth to numerous niche brands like Blonde Gone Rogue which are focusing on eco-friendly fabrics. Numerous celebrities are hopping onto the sustainable fashion bandwagon too and filling their Instagram with images for their fans to adore.
What Is Ethical Clothing?
Ethical clothing is also known popularly as ethical fashion. The easier and general way to know ethical fashion is the fashion that aims to reduce the negative impact on people, animals, and the planet. In fact, if we go slightly deeper, these are the three pillars around which the concept of ethical fashion has been built. They are whether the product is socially good? Whether the product has been manufactured in a planet-friendly way?
The Pillars of Ethical Clothing
Whether the product is animal-free/no animal cruelty was involved in making the product. To elaborate on the pillars, social good means good working conditions to the employees, fair wages to everyone, and state-compliant business practices.
Planet-friendly means whether the materials used were not high on chemicals, did not consume a lot of water, did not affect the environment. Animal-free is pretty straightforward, which means the clothes or the manufacturing process did not involve animal cruelty. In other words, the clothes manufactured are ethical and keep the well-being of nature, mankind, and animals before business and profits.
The Future Of Fashion
Both these trends, be it ethical clothing and sustainable clothing, are seen as very important trends in the fashion industry. They are seen as eye-openers mainly because of the oil and gas industry. It is the fashion industry that pollutes the environment. By creating awareness among consumers, they are bringing about a change in the industry, but they are also creating a change in fashion sense among the masses.
At the same time, the fashion industry is also saving the environment by adopting such practices. We only hope that more brands begin to take a conscious step in this direction and do their bit in saving the environment.
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