I've been meaning to write this for a week, but reading lists, packing, holiday and other bits and bobs have gotten in the way, so I'm afraid it's a bit late. However, my lack of organisation has actually paid off for once as this post about my attempt at ethical shopping is nicely coinciding with the end of Organic Textiles Week! How (almost) topical am I?
Last Wednesday, I braved The Mall again with a focused mission. Rozzie and I had a film to watch (If I Stay - thoroughly recommend it. I was an emotional wreck for the majority of it, but a good cry always does the soul good, and it's a pretty challenging story which I got some deep metaphors for life from) and I had an outfit to buy. In just two and a half weeks I'm off to uni. It's all quite daunting as life back in England is still hard to adjust to, without another culture shock of living in Oxford on top of it. Anyhow, alongside all the standard 'new student shopping' I'm slowly doing, I have an added extra of needing 'subfusc'. Don't worry, I had to Google it too! Subfusc is Oxford lingo for what I have to wear under my gown for matriculation and exams etc. - essentially black skirt/ trousers, black shoes and white shirt (who knows how that became subfusc!). With how my last window shopping experience turned out, I was not looking forward to tackling this required shopping spree, but armed with research and my wonderful sister, I tackled it. And I succeeded!
Two days before taking on The Mall, I did a sweep of our numerous charity shops in Thornbury, checking for black skirts and white shirts. I must admit, I have always been a charity shopper, but since my ethical dilemma, they have taken on a whole new necessity. How can you beat buying a second hand item of clothing?! The shops never put out tatty, poor quality rags; they check them and only sell the ones which are decent. You can even find clothes with their original tags still in! It's one up from recycling, you're sparing land fill and you spare your wallet too. The profits go to good causes, you get a good quality, almost-new top and you didn't have to go near the consumer trap of shopping centres. It's perfect! St Peter's Hospice came out on top with a black skirt in my size (which wasn't too hideous either), so I could check one thing off my list before even leaving town. From now on, when I know I need something specific, I will always check the charity shops before I head to any other retailer.
Having a set list of what I needed when I faced shop after shop after shop helped no end! In the little research into ethical shopping that I've done to make my own rules of shopping, I found that Marks and Spencers, Zara and H&M are the top of the high street brands according to the much trusted people at Ethical Consumer (http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/sustainable-fashion-blog/how-ethical-high-street-clothes) so they are on my OK list. My general order to buying clothes goes: charity shops first, then ethical brands and then M&S, Zara or H&M as needed. In my subfusc needs, charity shops helped for some, I tried my favourite ethical sites but didn't have any luck, so then went to the better ones on the high street. Suffice to say that M&S has white shirts and black tights so my conscience is reasonably content.
And now for my favourite ethical sites! People Tree is heavenly and I love when I can justify a buy (which on my student budget is rare, very sadly; www.peopletree.co.uk). In fact, last night, as we watched a mediocre play at the amazing Minack Theatre (an outdoors theatre set into the cliffs in south west Cornwall with the sea as the back drop where a pod of dolphins totally stole the show!!), a People Tree hat was protecting my head from the chilly gale-like winds. I found black skirts and white shirts but being 'tiny' (as Rozzie frequently describes me) it's hard to find ones which properly fit. There is also Annie Greenabelle who is great for more teenager-y clothes, especially dresses (www.anniegreenabelle.com), and they're British! Finally, to warm your toes, Toms are just gorgeous (www.toms.co.uk). They do this great thing where for every pair of shoes you buy, they give a pair to a child in an impoverished place who doesn't have any shoes. Walking around in the African sun and seeing a child with a pair of Toms is just beautiful and makes me even more excited about their shoes! Thanks to them, I have black shoes to finish my subfusc outfit, which is all within my ethical shopping criteria.
So there you go. Now, I'd be the first to say that my ethical criteria aren't perfect! I know that. But, I'm also exploring how to live ethically and it is not easy! This is the best I can do at the moment, and it is a lot better than Primark and Asda.
Last Wednesday, I braved The Mall again with a focused mission. Rozzie and I had a film to watch (If I Stay - thoroughly recommend it. I was an emotional wreck for the majority of it, but a good cry always does the soul good, and it's a pretty challenging story which I got some deep metaphors for life from) and I had an outfit to buy. In just two and a half weeks I'm off to uni. It's all quite daunting as life back in England is still hard to adjust to, without another culture shock of living in Oxford on top of it. Anyhow, alongside all the standard 'new student shopping' I'm slowly doing, I have an added extra of needing 'subfusc'. Don't worry, I had to Google it too! Subfusc is Oxford lingo for what I have to wear under my gown for matriculation and exams etc. - essentially black skirt/ trousers, black shoes and white shirt (who knows how that became subfusc!). With how my last window shopping experience turned out, I was not looking forward to tackling this required shopping spree, but armed with research and my wonderful sister, I tackled it. And I succeeded!
Two days before taking on The Mall, I did a sweep of our numerous charity shops in Thornbury, checking for black skirts and white shirts. I must admit, I have always been a charity shopper, but since my ethical dilemma, they have taken on a whole new necessity. How can you beat buying a second hand item of clothing?! The shops never put out tatty, poor quality rags; they check them and only sell the ones which are decent. You can even find clothes with their original tags still in! It's one up from recycling, you're sparing land fill and you spare your wallet too. The profits go to good causes, you get a good quality, almost-new top and you didn't have to go near the consumer trap of shopping centres. It's perfect! St Peter's Hospice came out on top with a black skirt in my size (which wasn't too hideous either), so I could check one thing off my list before even leaving town. From now on, when I know I need something specific, I will always check the charity shops before I head to any other retailer.
Having a set list of what I needed when I faced shop after shop after shop helped no end! In the little research into ethical shopping that I've done to make my own rules of shopping, I found that Marks and Spencers, Zara and H&M are the top of the high street brands according to the much trusted people at Ethical Consumer (http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/sustainable-fashion-blog/how-ethical-high-street-clothes) so they are on my OK list. My general order to buying clothes goes: charity shops first, then ethical brands and then M&S, Zara or H&M as needed. In my subfusc needs, charity shops helped for some, I tried my favourite ethical sites but didn't have any luck, so then went to the better ones on the high street. Suffice to say that M&S has white shirts and black tights so my conscience is reasonably content.
And now for my favourite ethical sites! People Tree is heavenly and I love when I can justify a buy (which on my student budget is rare, very sadly; www.peopletree.co.uk). In fact, last night, as we watched a mediocre play at the amazing Minack Theatre (an outdoors theatre set into the cliffs in south west Cornwall with the sea as the back drop where a pod of dolphins totally stole the show!!), a People Tree hat was protecting my head from the chilly gale-like winds. I found black skirts and white shirts but being 'tiny' (as Rozzie frequently describes me) it's hard to find ones which properly fit. There is also Annie Greenabelle who is great for more teenager-y clothes, especially dresses (www.anniegreenabelle.com), and they're British! Finally, to warm your toes, Toms are just gorgeous (www.toms.co.uk). They do this great thing where for every pair of shoes you buy, they give a pair to a child in an impoverished place who doesn't have any shoes. Walking around in the African sun and seeing a child with a pair of Toms is just beautiful and makes me even more excited about their shoes! Thanks to them, I have black shoes to finish my subfusc outfit, which is all within my ethical shopping criteria.
So there you go. Now, I'd be the first to say that my ethical criteria aren't perfect! I know that. But, I'm also exploring how to live ethically and it is not easy! This is the best I can do at the moment, and it is a lot better than Primark and Asda.
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