Simply the best

Simply the best

All my clothes are green, green, green. Here we are not talking about the colour, but fair-trade fashion produced in an environmentally friendly way. Eco-fashion is becoming increasingly popular with fashion makers and customers.

Scratchy wool sweaters, batik trousers, jute bags and sandals - even if eco-fashion did live up to its frumpy reputation, an old jute bag has become something of a fashion statement. But even without the support of young, trendy bag owners from Berlin-Mitte, "green" fashion has been able to do away with old-fashioned ideas and to step glamorously out of the shadows. The motto is: goodbye baggy look, hello modern cuts and cool designs! Social responsibility and stylish fashion have gone hand-in-hand for a long time.

Green electricity, natural cosmetics, organic food - people's desire to consume conscientiously has steadily increased over the past few decades. Now the eco-boom has also reached the world of fashion. When it comes to fashion, eco-clothing is not inferior to its conventional competitors in any way. In fact, with regard to health and sustainability, it is far superior.
That's because eco-fashion is manufactured from certified, purely natural and resource-protecting raw materials grown in an organic environment. Textiles are dyed naturally rather than chemically, without endangering the environment through contaminated waste water, and the workers through toxic gases. From production to transport routes to the actual sale - all social, ecological and health-related factors must be taken account of in a meaningful and correct manner. An increasing number of 'green fashion' fans appreciate this holistic approach. Who would willingly contaminate rivers, support child labour or exploit poorly paid employees?

This eco-trend is supported not only by smaller independent designers such as the Danish Street-Chic label Bllack Noir, but also increasingly by well-known designers and large commercial fashion houses. The best example is Stella McCartney. For many years she has avoided leather and fur in her collections, on principle. Her offices and shops in Great Britain are powered by green electricity and the online shop can dispatch your goods in a carbon neutral way. The Swedish fashion giant H&M has also adopted a green philosophy. The trendy organic pieces of its "Conscious Collection" meanwhile are worn by celebrities like "Sex and the City" star Kristin Davis. On the Internet, the eco-friendly consigner Hess Natur has become a known commodity in everything concerning modern, eco-friendly clothing.

The only bad news: consumers often have difficulty determining the actual degree of eco-friendliness of the various labels. What is really environmentally friendly and what is not? Eco-labels provide orientation, but no uniform standards exist. In any case, the products should be tested by independent parties, not company-owned entities.

Text: Kim Leclaire