6 Ethical Clothing Brands We Love
Girlfriend Collective
I can’t talk to anyone about sustainable or ethical fashion without gushing about girlfriend collective. An athletic-wear brand crafted from recycled nylon, polyester, spandex and recycled water bottles, everything is made in small batches using eco-friendly dyes the excess dye water is cleaned and cooled before it is released. They even donate the dye mud to a local pavement facility where it’s recycled into sidewalks and roads. When it comes to actual manufacturing of products, girlfriend only works with SA8000 certified companies, their factory is woman ran and they ensure all workers are paid fair wages, provided both free catered lunch instead of just a lunchroom, and guided exercise breaks. They also provide free health check ups every 6 months at the factory for every employee as well as health insurance.
And if all that isn’t enough, their brand is unbelievably inclusive, with sizes ranging from XXS to 6XL, and their product photos include girls of every shape, size, color and age. Oh, and the stuff is adorable, durable and affordable.
Grey Milk
Designed and made in Manchester in the UK, Grey Milk is a handmade fashion label that has adorable, chic tops, dresses, skirts and even tights. Released in seasonal collections, Grey Milk is slow fashion at it’s finest without the ballooned budget. Since items are only made to order, there’s no excess fabric waste, which also means that every shape and size is catered to, with free custom sizing. Fabrics are organic and GOTS certified, and their printing process also produces no water waste like typical dyes do. And since every garment is designed and made by Gwen, the owner, you’re supporting a person when you buy from Grey Milk, not a large corporation. Plus, it’s made with love!
Peony Swimwear
There are so many sustainable swimwear brands beginning to crawl out of the wood work, partially because swimsuit material is the perfect material for recycling. Australian brand Peony uses recycled fishing nets to create their suits, as well as ECONYL, a recycled Nylon material. Their suppliers and manufacturers are SA8000 certified, and your suit is shipped to you in a compostable, biodegradable plastic-like bag. Not only are their suits beautiful, they’re ridiculously comfortable as well and the material is so soft and flattering.
DOEN
One of our all time favorite fashion labels, DOEN is a California-based brand whose ethics and sustainability efforts are one of our favorite things about them. DOEN works with artisans in India, Peru, Romania, Portugal, Spain and Brazil to create their product, using a third party auditing service to make sure that these workers are being paid fair wages, and working in good conditions. Their website says: “IN MAKING A DECISION TO WORK WITH A SPECIFIC FACILITY, WE LOOK FOR SEVERAL INDICATORS -- INCLUDING THE PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN-IDENTIFYING EMPLOYEES IN MANAGEMENT ROLES, THE FACTORY’S ABILITY TO CONTROL ALL STAGES OF PRODUCTION, THE PRESENCE OF AN INTERNAL WORKERS’ UNION, AND ANY ESTABLISHED FOUNDATIONS OR ORGANIZATIONS THAT DIRECTLY BENEFIT THEIR EMPLOYEES AND/OR THE SURROUNDING COMMUNITY. “ They also recently rolled out a partnership with TheRealReal, a luxury consignment store, to encourage the resale of their items and close the circle on their products.
Christy Dawn
One of the most popular sustainable brands out there, Christy Dawn is the expert on limited releases and creating as little fabric waste as possible. All of their fabrics are sourced deadstock materials, which results in limited edition runs of each garment. Since their immense growth in popularity as a sustainable brand, Christy Dawn has begun the transition to move to a fully Farm-to-Closet fashion brand, beginning with using regenerative farming to grow cotton in India. Working with Oshandi Collective, Christy Dawn has begun working a four acre plot, putting in effort to bring the land back and to eventually grow cotton to be used in their clothes in the cleanest, most earth-loving way possible. Their dresses are also made in LA where their workers are paid living wages and receive full health insurance.
Son de Flor
Made in Lithuania, Son De Flor was started by two sisters who aimed to create beautiful, timeless and long-lasting clothing that would put a pause on fast fashion buying for their customers. Their dresses have become famous on Instagram for the beautiful fairytale look they have, but they’re also made ethically and sustainably in the sister’s home country. Before garment production, the fabric is sourced from a local producer whose yarn comes from within the EU and are Oeko-Tex 100 certified. Their garments are produced by local workers who comply with EU regulations and receive fair wages and benefits, even working with one company who provides hearing disabled women with work. The dresses are then washed by a local family-owned washing company who use stone wash them and use softening machines. My Son De Flor garments are some of the most well-made and comfortable pieces of clothing I own, and I highly recommend them.