Slow fashion is winning, but why so little progress on sustainable homewares?
“It’s not enough for me anymore that it’s a beautiful piece - I want to know who made it and where it came from”
I’m thrilled to see the traction that the slow fashion movement is getting.
The latest Tearfund Ethical Fashion Guide published earlier this year is not only guiding us to make more ethical fashion choices, but also pushing companies and brands to think longer and harder about their sourcing methods, supply chains and sustainable practices.
The guide is also generating increased publicity around the true cost of fast fashion, keeping the conversation going and sparking further debate on the sustainability of our shopping habits.
FACT: Fast Fashion is unsustainable
We need change in our fashion industry.
The US alone sends around 10.46 million tonnes of clothing-based textile waste to landfill each year, with the UK adding a further 300,000 tonnes. Australians send 6000kg to landfill every 10 minutes.
This is madness.
Even where our cast-off clothes are sent to developing countries to prolong their life, this practice is decimating the local clothing industry and cannot be a sustainable solution.
The fact is we need to buy less, and when we do buy we need to ensure our clothing is sustainably made, ethically sourced and designed to stand the test of time.
But aren't we missing something?
So another year, another Tearfund report, increased action by (some) clothing retailers to be better and do better, and a continuation of the conversation regarding the importance of slow fashion. Amazing.
Yet still nothing mainstream about how we can make better choices for our homes.
We sneer at $2 tops and scoff at the hypocrisy of cheap ‘Girlpower’ T-shirts being made in exploitative conditions. We snub Primark and stick two fingers up at cosmetic products bursting from plastic containers after being tested on animals. But then we’ll pick up $10 cushions, discounted decorative items and on-trend patterned bedlinen because 100% cotton is a natural fabric, right?
The fact is that when we don’t shop for ethical and sustainable homewares, we do the world a disservice. We turn a blind eye to the same exploitation and environmental damage when choosing our sofas, rugs and bedding.
FACT: Fast home decor is unsustainable too
Unfortunately where it is now easy to find out who makes your clothes and how fashion brands are performing on environmental issues (thanks Good On You), it is not so easy to find the same information for home decor and interior brands.
I know, because I’ve tried.
Most interiors stores in New Zealand have no information on their websites about sustainabilty or working conditions. Most have no obvious sustainability policy (and if they had one, I’d assume they’d be shouting it from the rooftops!) and have made no commitments to minimising their environmental impact.
Mainstream homewares brands are letting us down
I’ve reached out to several homewares stores to ask them about their approaches to sustainability.
Only two bothered responding to my questions and only one of those has subsequently published a sustainability strategy (nice work Citta). The other response I had was underwhelming and outlined a tokenistic approach to sustainability, avoiding the specific questions I’d asked. Sigh. While I wasn’t surprised by the results of my research, I was extremely disappointed.
I think its time we start holding home decor stores to account.
If we don’t, just like their fast fashion counterparts, they will continue to stack their shelves with pretty, seasonal things without due consideration to the workers who made them, the materials they are made from or where they’ll end up once they’re no longer in vogue.
Its time for change
The need for change in the interiors and home decor industry is the main reason I decided to launch this site.
It shouldn’t be hard for us interiors lovers to access information about where our homewares products come from and how the people making them are treated, should it?
But, right now, unless you are prepared to put in a ton of research to seek out the growing number of ethically and sustainably minded home decor brands, you’re out of luck.
I want to make it easy to shop for ethical and sustainable homewares without having to compromise on style, and to push mainstream brands to improve their offering by demonstrating the power that conscious consumers have.
I’ll be publishing reviews of mainstream home decor brands so it is easy to see who is taking action and who is failing to change.
I’ll also be showcasing the ethical and sustainable brands already doing things right - you will be amazed at how many awesome brands there are creating pieces to suit every style and budget.
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