In these modern times we’ve begun to hear the terms slow fashion and fast fashion used in campaigns across the world but what do they stand for? The term fast fashion has gained attraction through campaigners wanting to call out bigger fashion brands. As a result, we’ve begun using the term slow fashion to demonstrate the difference between sustainable brands and those that are not.
Fast Fashion
So what exactly is fast fashion? Fast fashion is when clothing is produced in large quantities, often using cheap material and made at a quick rate to reach customer demands. The aim is often to create fashion pieces that fit in with current trends. However, the real issue with trends is that they change so often.
With the use of social media fashion trends come and go within a couple of days, meaning that when brands create clothing to fit in with these trends they need to reach the shop floor in record time.
This very method is the reason so much of our clothing ends up in landfills, which holds a huge responsibility for the damage we are now seeing in our everyday environments.
The first fashion method of using cheap, unnatural materials with toxic chemicals is the main reason the fashion industry holds the title of the second-largest polluter in the world.
Slow Fashion
To tackle fast fashion, the world needed to come up with a term that could encourage a more kind way of making clothing and so we began to hear ‘Slow Fashion’.
At the very heart of slow fashion, it is about slowing down and taking the time to produce long-lasting garments. It is also about being a conscious shopper and wearing clothes even though the world may not class them as ‘trendy’.
In addition, it is about fair working conditions, slowing down environmental damage and creating 100% circularity within the fashion industry. Slow fashion has many benefits and it’s growing in popularity, with some brands completely transforming to becoming slow fashion companies.
With this type of production, you won’t find any toxic dyes or man-made materials, instead, you will find natural fabrics that have been grown sustainably.
And so it can be made very clear that fast fashion and slow fashion are opposite. The fast fashion industry is a threat to our environment but if we work together we can create an industry that is more sustainable and healthy.
The methods used in slow fashion are an extremely positive sign that the ability to become more environmentally friendly is available to everyone.
Here at Collect My Clothes our mission is to divert clothing from landfill and so if you have any items you wish to donate, learn how you can do exactly that below.
