E: Eco-chic

A fashion paradox. That is how Sandy Black describes ecofashion in her book 'Eco-chic'. How can an industry that thrives on innovation, trends and newness ever be green? It is safe to say that a growing number of sustainable fashion designers have found a way out of this dilemma. They embrace slow design, casting no more than a sideward glance on trends.

Which items are typical must-haves for lovers of slow fashion? Obviously, the little black dress, pencil skirt, trench coat, cardigan and a good pair of jeans are the kind of classics that slow designers happily introduce to today's fashion scene. Designers such as Monique van Heist also remake coveted items such as boyfriend pants, the jumpsuit, biker jacket and leggings. These items sometimes return in her collection in a new color or different fabric, thus expanding the lifespan of her designs.

Slow fashion may be no more than a niche in today's shopping street, its proponents believe in its positive future. In order to become mainstream, slow fashion labels have to overcome at least two hurdles. First of all, slow fashion can never compete with fast fashion when it comes to price. Therefore, in times of economic downfall, slow fashion businesses will not have it easy. Secondly, the pace of slow fashion does not seem to match with consumer attitudes to buying clothing. We're used to buying a new piece of clothing on an almost weekly basis. How can slow fashion, which launches an average of two new collections per year, provide consumers with enough goodies to keep them happy?

It is here that the paradox of slow fashion comes to fore with particular force. As Sandy Black concludes in 'Eco-chic', we need to investigate how much we consume and how we can challenge the paradigm of growth and change that drives current fashion. Therefore, the future success of slow fashion lies in the hands of consumers.

Q: Quotes

Are you in dire need of some green inspiration? Check out what some of ecofashion’s pioneers are saying.

We worship chefs but we also worship the home cook – I’d like to see the same thing happen in the world of clothing. – Elizabeth Cline.

Cheap fashion means disposable fashion, and encourages more consumption, creating a vicious circle. – Sandy Black.

Making a product last is very different from making a long-lasting product. – Kate Fletcher.

How we consume shapes the future of the planet. – Katherine Hamnett.

Our planet and workforce are already stretched at the seams; to go faster is not the option. – Jessica Robertson.

People have never looked so ugly as they do today. We just consume far too much. I’m talking about all this disposable crap. What I’m saying is buy less, choose well. Don’t just suck up stuff so everybody looks like clones. – Vivienne Westwood.

We want every fashion consumer to look at garments in a different way – to see the recyclable potential, the quality of cloth and durability of design. – Annika Sanders & Kerry Seager.

As appealing as it may seem at times, what we need to do is refrain from fast fashion! When we buy a £3 t-shirt, we don’t see the true cost of fashion because the producers don’t sit on our doorstep to remind us. – Jen Marsden.

I think that sustainability is a trend that is really about going back to basics: you know what you’re wearing, eating, playing with, who you’re working for. You’re being conscious about your life and the way you live it. – Lonneke Engel.

The idea that second-hand and recycled items pass on their life experiences is what imbues redesigned clothing with its sense of value. When wearing a pre-owned item of clothing it is as if you inherit a history of lived experiences. – Sass Brown.

And not only the supergreen have sensible things to say about the sustainability of our wardrobe (or the lack thereof). Read some inspiring examples here.

To continue to buy clothes that cost about the same as a piece of gum, and then to express shock that they were not woven by contented couturiers, hand-sewing the goods while reclining on satin quilts in a Paris atelier, seems more than a touch naive. – Hadley Freeman.

So many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like. – Will Rogers.

So much of fashion is inspired by nature and in turn, we must respect its delicacy. – Diane von Furstenberg.

True fashion is about non-toxicity. If fashion pollutes, it should no longer be called fashion, it should be called pollution. – Horst Rechelbacher.

Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months. – Oscar Wilde.