Sustainable fashion is all about addressing the whole system of fashion from top to bottom. It means fostering changes that are kinder to people and our planet. For brands, this means creating products in ways that are most considerate of humans and the environment.
For consumers, it means thinking more deeply about what they buy and making more conscious decisions. Here are 12 inspiring blogs on sustainable fashion that are worth following if you want to make an ethical fashion part of your lifestyle.
1. The Sustainable Edit
Jen Brownlie, founder of The Sustainable Edit, shares her experiences with slow fashion. When she first embraced slow fashion and changed the way she shopped, she felt the pressure of always having to have a new outfit for every occasion disappear.
Her main focus at this point was on capsule wardrobes but she came to the point when she felt her capsule wardrobe was starting to lack personality. She now maintains a wardrobe that is a similar size to her previous capsule wardrobes but no longer counts clothes or sets a limit.
She shares how it is possible to create a sustainable wardrobe, end your relationship with fast fashion and still reflect your personality.
2. Sustainably Chic
Natalie Kay Smith has been helping people to build conscious wardrobes on her blog Sustainably Chic since 2014. As a fashion major already familiar with how the fashion industry operated, she saw a need to promote ethical and sustainable fashion.
You will find a Brands to Love directory on the site where you can discover sustainable fashion brands. She says slow fashion allows us to appreciate the work that goes into creating garments and that it doesn’t make sense to fall in love with clothing you can only wear a few times. She features eco-friendly and ethically made clothing, skincare and home décor on her blog.
3. The Peahen
After thinking only about style when buying clothing, Kasi Martin began to realize how much fast fashion compromises the planet and people. She made a change to slow fashion and founded her blog, The Peahen. She brings truth-telling to fashion and inspires you to think about how your clothing was made. On the blog, you will find alternatives for favorite nonethical brands.
Kasi resonates with slow fashion because she believes it is a step in the right direction to stave off the harmful impact of the demand on the earth.
A slower approach to fashion reduces resources, leads to better conditions for workers and gives more time for research into new zero-waste technologies. Her call is for brands and consumers to change the industry.
4. Bestowed Clothing
Bestowed Clothing is an Australian label whose clothes are made from pure cotton fabrics. Not only are the clothes sustainable, but the company strives for zero waste in the work environment.
Their collections are available on their blog and you can also find some good information about cotton, such as how to take care of cotton fabrics. The styles featured in their collections are perfect for those with a relaxed lifestyle who need versatile pieces that will carry them through the day in comfort and style.
5. EcoCult
EcoCult founder, Alden Wicker, is a freelance journalist with a passion for sustainable fashion. The blog features researched articles and shopping guides to help you make the most conscious decisions.
She presents a thoughtful science-based view into the international sustainable fashion industry and, in 2019, came back from a year of research where she paid factory visits in Asia, visited artisan workshops in India and Latin America and dug into textile innovations in Europe.
She frequently speaks on and moderates panels on the topic of sustainable and ethical fashion and on her blog, you will find out where to buy sustainable fashion.
6. Live Eco
Nikki Stear founded her blog in 2008 and Live Eco combines her love of fashion and her passion for the environment. She believes that a chic, fashion-forward lifestyle can also be an eco-friendly one and that it’s possible to be sexy, smart and sustainable.
If you are new to sustainable fashion, she shares plenty of how-to’s tips and guides. Slow fashion entails taking good care of your clothing and accessories and you will find the best ways to do this on the blog.
In 2010, Nikki founded the Live Eco Remake Design Challenge. This sustainable design competition challenges emerging designers to create mainstream clothing and objects while following sustainable design principles and minimizing waste in production.
7. Style Destino
Style Destino was started back in 2011 by Shruti Jain to share her journey to a cruelty-free lifestyle. She wanted to break the stereotype that vegan fashion is drab and boring.
Her ethical and lifestyle blog grew from strength to strength and gives information, inspiration, ideas and shopping options to show you how to be vegan or vegetarian and stylish at the same time. From Dubai to New York, you will find out about the best places to shop vegan.
Amongst other items of interest, you will find recommendations and reviews of unknown but high-quality designers and their products. This is a blog where luxury and compassion co-exist stylishly and Shruti travels the world to find high quality, chic vegan fashion options.
8. Tortoise and Lady Grey
The creative mind behind Tortoise & Lady Grey is Summer Edwards. Her award-winning blog is a guide to an ethical lifestyle and sustainable fashion. Summer decided in 2012 that she would strictly abide by her ethics when it came to fashion.
She made a commitment to only purchase natural, organic, fair-trade, recycled, vintage, second-hand clothing or make it herself. She found that with planning and research, she was able to do this.
The blog features detailed reviews of sustainable fashion products and where to buy them, articles on environmental issues and slow fashion tutorials. Read 6 Steps to a Sustainable Wardrobe to start you on your sustainable journey or take up the 20 Days Sustainable Fashion Challenge.
9. Eco Warrior Princess
Jennifer Nini, activist, writer and certified organic farm owner, has been writing about sustainability on her Eco Warrior Princess blog since 2010. She and her team highlight brands and people to raise awareness of environmental and social impact.
Today the blog continues to grow as it leverages a small network of writers and industry experts from all over the world to cover the latest in sustainability and change the way you perceive it.
You will find first-hand accounts of how to live sustainably with all the challenges that come with it and be entertained and motivated by what you read. Read articles like 8 Ethical Fashion Brands to Watch in 2020 and find out how being eco-conscious can also be budget-friendly.
10. Sustainability in Style
Katie Roberts is an environmental scientist and founded her blog, Sustainability In Style, in 2011. What initially started out to support clothing swap events turned into an impressive blog with posts centered on sharing sustainability experiences, knowledge and tips.
Katie regards fashion as an easily accessible and understandable way for shoppers to start making the most ethical purchasing decisions. She says it is an area where people don’t often put much thought behind their purchases, so it’s a good place to provide them with the knowledge and tools to find items that fit their values.
11. The Green Hub Online
The Green Hub Online is an Australian sustainable fashion and lifestyle blog. It shares brands, guides, research and practical tips to help empower consumers to make conscious lifestyle choices that are kinder to people and the planet.
It features an ethical directory to make it easy to shop your values. You can read articles giving you the true facts about fast fashion that will strongly motivate you to embrace slow fashion. Find many sustainable living tips and loads of other useful information.
12. Sustainable Siren
Jennifer, a designer who founded the blog Sustainable Siren, started blogging when she was only 15 years old. Since then, she has learned much about the fashion industry and when she saw the documentary “Racing Extinction,” it made her passionate about sustainable fashion and sharing her passion with others.
She focuses on head-to-toe outfits put together from pieces that are organic, recycled, vintage, second-hand, fair trade, ethically made, or that utilize zero-waste design. She shares what inspires her to wear a specific outfit, where the pieces are found and why they deserve the sustainable label.
A last word
Fashion offers you an opportunity to express yourself and what we realize from the above blogs is that making ethical choices does not mean you have to sacrifice style. When you feel good about what you wear, what you feel is reflected back to you. Making sustainable and fair wardrobe choices contributes to a positive change in the fashion industry and these blogs provide all the inspiration and guidance you need to start making the right choices and become a more conscious consumer.
