The Slow Fashion Movement

By Lauren Caggiano

You might have heard of the Slow Food movement, but have you heard of its cousin, the Slow Fashion movement? Consumers are becoming increasingly more socially conscious. We have the power to change the word with our wallets, one garment at a time. The Slow Fashion movement taps into that ethos.

The Effects of Fast Fashion- by the numbers

Discarded clothing made of non-biodegradable fabrics can sit in landfills for up to 200 years.

Making a pair of jeans produces as much greenhouse gases as driving a car more than 80 miles.

It takes 2,700 liters of water to make one cotton shirt—enough water for one person to drink for 2.5 years.

So, what exactly is Slow Fashion? Its proponents start with one important question: How does fashion affect the planet, people and animals? The Slow Fashion movement challenges people to become more aware of the processes and resources required to make clothing, particularly focusing on sustainability. It involves buying better-quality garments that will last longer and values fair treatment of everyone and everything involved in the process.

Essentially, it’s a return to how our great-grandparents lived. Clothes aren’t meant to be disposable, but serve us for some time. Long before the days of mass production, people made their own clothes. The process was both an art and a science, and it didn’t harm people or the planet, at least to the extent it does now. Additionally, clothing was a bit of an artifact, reflecting the place and culture of the people wearing them.

The Industrial Revolution changed all that. Some would say we’ve glorified capitalism at the expense of the earth, people and animals. The modern Slow Fashion movement is disrupting that way of thinking by bringing those old-time values to the forefront again. And some people are responding loud and clear by voting with their dollars. Today’s consumers are more socially minded, and they care about how their garments are produced. In fact, about one in five of the top fast fashion-related searches are linked to the environment, ethics and sustainability.

So how can you identify a Slow Fashion brand? These are a few of the traits: n Made from high-quality, sustainable materials n Often in smaller (local) stores rather than huge chain enterprises n Locally sourced, produced and sold garments n Few, specific styles per collection, which are released twice or maximum three times per year

While some brands large and small have signed on and made commitments to changing their production processes, there’s still work to do.

Changing consumer behavior as a whole can be a tall order because people are set in their ways. To really support the Slow Fashion movement, we need to challenge people to look beyond the appeal of cheap and convenient. It calls for a focus on quality, not quantity and simplifying our wardrobes at the same time. As they say, less is more, right?

Shop local

You can find ethically sourced clothing and goods in our backyard. Here are a few boutiques that carry Slow Fashion brands:

Sari Bari

1008 N Wells St., Fort Wayne https://saribari.com

Creative Women of the World 125 W Wayne St. www.gocwow.org

Fancy & Staple 1111 Broadway, Fort Wayne www.shopfancyandstaplefw.com a

August is a month full of some awesome holidays to help us celebrate each other. Mark your calendar! Girlfriends

Sculpt Muscle And Burn Fat

Finally, a non-invasive body sculpting solution, proven through MRI, CT scan, Ultrasound and animal histologies that builds the foundation to one’s appearance, while burning fat. Best of all, EMSCULPT is anesthesia and needle free.

Learn more at www.emsculpt.com and Sculpt ’EM today.

Mark your calendar!

Thursday, August 1

3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Country

Country Heritage Winery

185 County Road 68, LaOtto, IN

Same great party... but even better

Details to come.

Every year, over 1,000 women join us for an afternoon of shopping, door prizes, wine, a fashion show and more. Tickets for the event are FREE and are included in this issue, or at one of our many ticket pick-up locations. A full list of pick-up locations is available on our Facebook page.

The first 500 women through the door will receive a complimentary goodie bag.

This year’s Grand Prize raffle is a chance to win a $1,500 gift certificate from Eichhorn Jewelry. Raffle tickets are $10 each and all proceeds will benefit the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition.

Special thanks to 103.9 Sunny FM and The Charles for sponsoring the event.