Providing an alternative to fast fashion and its harmful repercussions
Forward Thinking Fashion: Local fashion house ‘Hannah Sophia England’ provides an alternative to fast fashion and its harmful repercussions.
Climate change poses a serious threat to our planet. The steps we take today no matter how great or small to help tackle this issue could have a tremendous effect on the future world we live in.
Often referred to as the ‘ugly side’ of the fashion industry, ‘instant’ or ‘fast’ fashion brands have become increasingly popular over the past decade, creating and producing garments as cheaply as possible and sold to the consumer at equally low prices. With workers underpaid, harsh synthetic fabrics used and the mass transportation of millions of garments across the globe each year, these are just a few contributing factors as to why the fashion industry is now regarded as one of the world’s largest pollutants. To make matters worse, as a nation we are buying twice as many clothes yet keeping them for half as long. In so many instances, clothing is not made to last and is only worn a handful of times before reaching the end of its usable or desired life. By supporting fashion brands that carelessly create and sell such unethical and unsustainable clothing, this in turn contributes and fuels the fast fashion industry’s already large carbon footprint.
Hannah Jarvis, founder of local fashion house, Hannah Sophia England, was determined to change the mindset that clothes are disposable and help spread the message that clothing should be cherished for years. Hannah Sophia England has created a range of ethically sourced clothing that can be worn in four unique ways and are packaged within a preservation box, therefore encouraging the consumer to wear their clothing time and time again and promote the longevity of the dress. Every item designed by Hannah Sophia England is made from natural fabric (descending from wood pulp) and carefully crafted in the local area by fairly paid dressmakers. In addition, for each dress bought, a tree is planted, helping to further reduce CO2 emissions.
“In a world where fashion is still widely viewed as disposable, we believe that dressmaking is a craftsmanship and should be more highly regarded. Understanding where our clothes come from, who made them and how they are made is deeply important...
Our bodies change a lot more throughout our lives. If our clothes are able to evolve with us and support us throughout each stage of our lives (for example pregnancy, breastfeeding, menopause etc.), then we can then have truly timeless pieces - allowing us to always feel confident and beautiful.” – Hannah Sophia England
Choosing to support ethical and sustainable brands is a small but important step you can take to help reduce your own carbon footprint and end the support and continuation of the ugliest side of the fashion industry.
Small but smart steps to make more ecologically conscious fashion choices:
- Support local fashion houses selling garments made in the UK.
- Buy clothing sourced from natural fibers.
- When buying clothes ask yourself “will I wear this more than 30 times?” (Look into the 30 wear challenge).
- Re wear and cherish your clothes.
- Give unwanted clothing to friends or to charity rather than just throwing it away.
- Buy your clothing second hand - make use of websites such as Depop and charity shops to source clothes rather than always buying things brand new.
