Parallel forum to the mainstream.

Ok, this blog has been totally neglected lately; assignments and real-life have gotten in the way. Recently I've been mostly studying and watching: 90210, Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy and Gossip Girl. I have a weakness for trashy American television...

 

Regarding fashion-related-news, I've been completely uninspired from what I've seen on vegan/veggie fashion sites; all beiges and nudes and less-than-flattering cuts. I did stumble across some beautiful dresses on mygreenlipstick.com 

by Lara Miller. This site is particularly helpful as it lists what fabric and exactly what materials go into the items. I particularly like this Izzie dress:

The materials are listed as hemp, organic cotton and 'peace-silk'. We've all no-doubt heard of the first two materials, but, 'peace-silk'? The website suggests this fabric provides an alternative, vegetarian silk whereby the moths are allowed to emerge and the remains of the silk in the cocoon are collected; proving a more humane option which is spun as a fiber rather than reeled as a thread. Arguably this is a more ethical option to mainstream silk, but we're not sure it constitutes a vegan alternative. It does illustrate, however, that there are always more humane choices to be made : )

Regarding further vegan alternatives to the mainstream, I was quite excited to see that Urban Decay, the cruelty-free, slightly edgy cosmetics company produce a range of vegan cosmetics- yay! For a list of vegan items see here.

In other vegany-fashion news, the awesome designers Matt&Nat have a sale on. Ok, so the prices are still pretty exorbitant, but their bags and wallets are gorgeous. If someone was to buy me a bag for £99, then I hope it'd be this gorgeous MGMT bag from Matt&Nat: 

Yum!

To Boycott or Boynott?

After a bad start to the day, I shamelessly ordered the lovely shoes from Beyond Skin which I totally cannot afford at the moment. Who says material possessions can't sheer you up?

A group meeting I had on a totally unrelated topic got me thinking today about the fashion industry and ethics. More precisely, the use of 'child labour' on sewing garments. The discussion was around whether research should be used to support, and not direct, advocacy strategy. Such advocacy strategies, often essentialist in nature can undermine more wide-reaching (broader in scope) research. An example from the literature was a case of American 'soccer moms' concerned with child-labour in Pakistan around football stitching. Their campaign against this one issue completed ignored the greater complexities in the area, for example the fact that children were working in incredibly hazardous conditions in the medical surgical tools industry. Such narrowing can be dangerous.

My thoughts then turned to the wider 'ethical fashion' debate. Are refusals to shop at say, Primark and H&M (two stores which out-source to child-workers) ethical in the wider sense? Child labour and child work are two very different things... and in certain contexts, children often want to work and help provide for their families, particularly when living in chronic or persistent poverty. If we refuse to shop at such places, children (and adults) may lose a form of livelihood. Is it ethical to boycott a clothing line that uses child labour or child workers, meaning children are unable to escape the poverty around them?

Obviously, a better solution is to change trading regulations and employment policies to ensure better pay, safer working conditions and the opportunity to combine a livelihood with education- to hopefully secure a better paid job in the future. In an ideal world, children wouldn't have to work at all. 

Despite 'childhood' itself being a Western construct, psychology and various child developmental studies indicate that emotional and physical development is hugely affected by experiences as a child.

What does everyone think? Personally, I think that we only have limited money (unfortunately) to spend on clothes and shoes and I like to think that mine is being spent supporting companies with more ethical policies than say, Primark and H&M, who pay their employers a fairer wage and offer safer working conditions.

I've had my eye on this 50's inspired creation for a while now.

 It bares a striking resemblance to Carrie Bradshaw's polka-dot dress from amongst some of Sex and the City's final episodes:

I'm still waiting for them to stock my size after accidentally ordering the wrong size (moral of the story: always check your measurements when ordering from somewhere new). Unfortunately the staff don't seem to be very responsive to emails...

Vivien of Holloway has a big following, especially among burlesque performers and the dresses are apparently made locally in London. Their website is well worth checking out if you need a dress for a special occasion. 

In the meantime, I'm excited about this lush Trashy Diva dress. It's currently on sale, designed the lovely Candice Gwinn in New Orleans. However, there is no mention of how the dresses are made (where/by who?) and whether the company has any ethical policies. 

Passion for fashion.

"Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months." Or so said Oscar Wilde (and Stephen Fry on Q.I. last night)...

But fashion doesn't have to be intolerable, or constantly changing. It's about individuality, self-expression and creativity. It is deeply personal and as the best designers show, some styles can be timeless.

But most of all... fashion illustrates a style unique to you, that can cheer you up and make you feel great.

What outfit best exemplifies your individuality? 

It could be love..

At the moment I'm lusting after Beyond Skin's gorgeous brogues in black and red. A snip at £75 (reduced from £145): 

A girl can dream, right?

A new beginning.

Is ethical living really so difficult? More importantly, is it a sustainable alternative to the current phenomenon of mass consumption, disposable culture and incredibly cheap mass-clothing stores? 

... that's not something I can really answer. As a vegan and a development student, I'm interested to see how our behavior affects the wider-world. I'm also human and even we vegans like to look good. Is a compassionate approach to fashion feasible? Hopefully this experimental blog will show that it is and beauty-without-cruelty is achievable.