Fair Trade Fortnight - Day 1

Yoday's outfit includes plum cord skinny jeans from my favourite Monkee Genes and a floral cotton overtop from Nomads.
The boots are from Vivobarefoot's 'Soul of Africa' range which helps to create employment in Ethiopia - and they go down to my size of 2.5! Just checking out the website for the address, I have had to order a pair of blue loafers in the sale!
Necklace and earrings are from Traidcraft, a number of years ago, but they still have pretty things.
The handwoven bag, dyed with natural vegetable dyestuffs, was purchased in 2010 when I visited a project in Pokhara, Nepal. You can see a video about the Women's Skills Development Project but I am concerned as to whether they have subsequently survived the earthquake. Their own website does not seem to be accessible, but there are reviews on trip advisor late last year.
Knickers are from my most recent exciting discovery Kerala Crafts, found online when my suitcase took a longer holiday and I needed to deal with a  distant shortage of underwear!
Don't mention the socks - I realise not having those in fair trade versions is a gap in my wardrobe - but the ones I have will last a good while yet, so better for sustainability to make them last than replace them!

Fair Clothes for Fair Trade Fortnight?

Inspired last year by Knickers Model's Own who spent all year wearing pre-loved garments from Cancer Research shops, I wondered if I could wear fair trade, ethical, or sustainable clothing every day during Fair Trade Fortnight this year. So to kick things off on the eve of the fortnight, the photo depicts part of the reason.
T-shirt from War on Want - a movement of people committed to global justice
Jeans from Monkey Genes who guarantee that everyone involved in their garments has been paid a decent living wage
Ear-rings purchased in Durban from a project that supports people living with HIV
(and knickers from 'Life's not Fair but my knickers are' - sadly no longer in business)

Came across an interesting infographic today telling us about the problems with jeans. I would recommend buying Monkee Genes so as not to be part of the problem! I love their skinny jeans - especially my plum corduroy pair!

I went to do a talk today on the ethics of clothing, and had called it 'How clean are your clothes?' which I was told lead some to believe I was going to teach them how to do their washing. OK, so I did mention washing at 30C being better for the environment but I started with ethiscores from Ethical Consumer for the clothing shops they suggested, and discussed reasons for the low scores.

Jacket on view in Wardown Museum 2012

Then I talked about my Fashion and Textile Degree including the reversible Olympic jacket made to show the good and bad sides of the Games. 



I decided it was time I wore the dress and coat made from reclaimed fabrics as part of my final year projects - and found I had a jumper and tights (and hair!) that picked out the colour of a corduroy patch.

The dress and jacket modelled
in the college fashion show 2013

They were encouragingly positive about my fledgling business "Wild Angels" as, like those we researched while at college, older women don't want to be frumpy, but can't wear some of the stuff they may view with envious eyes in 'younger' shops! I should have had more stock made up - I might have sold more than the one t-shirt!

The Film Awards season has begun so it is interesting to see what Livia Firth is doing this year for the Green Carpet Challenge. At the Golden Globes Cate Blanchett accepted her Best Actress award for her role in Woody Allen movie Blue Jasmine in a stunning pair of Chopard earrings from their Green Carpet Collection. The earrings have been set in sustainably sourced Fairmined gold from artisanal community mines in South America, supported by the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) – a Colombia-based charity and developer of the Fairmined standard – and adorned with 72 marquise cut diamonds representing delicate leaves. The diamonds are sourced from the IGC Group, one of the world’s oldest diamond firms, and their origin is certified by the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC).

I also came across a very interesting little film Livia has commissioned that makes you think about the story embedded in your clothes before you even wear them. Speaking about the film, Director Mary Nighy said: “Many people’s hands touch our clothes before we wear them. If we could see or speak to those people, we might think about them and our clothes quite differently. Handprint is a short film which imagines what it would be like if we could connect to the people who make our clothes, and encourages us to remember them.”

I have just watched Fabulous Fashionistas on Channel 4 - and been inspired! These amazingly stylish older women give me hope that I too don't have to wear beige or disappear into the woodwork! I particularly like Sue with her amazing coats, and 83-year-old supermodel Daphne, but they all have something incredible - not least of all their fitness and suppleness, which are way above my levels of either! But I like the idea that "I think the fashion industry isn't quite ready for us just yet".

It's about creating our own style and not worrying about trend! How liberating!

Fabulous Fashionistas

Really looking forward to the advertised Channel 4 programme next week - 6 women with an average age of 80 showing how to look good and stylish! The short video clip shows them as being pretty sassy as well as wearing some amazing clothes.