Sustainable fashion
© Gemma Marchena
Ibiza
871

The Slow Fashion concept is spreading throughout the world with the commitment to sustainability and social responsibility.

It isn’t a trend: it’s a necessity. Ecological fashion is a response to fast fashion, which accumulated criticism as a polluting industrial model which uses dubious materials and resorts to exploitation of workforces in third-world countries. But there is a worldwide response to this phenomenon: slow fashion, or ethical fashion, a sustainable, aware proposal that is entering our wardrobes. Many designers have decided to take control in order to change the world, stitch by stitch. The aim is to make garments that leave as small a footprint as possible on the planet, and link up to the movement that fosters recycling, Kilometre Zero, veganism or non-polluting transport.

In Spain, several platforms have emerged which promote ethical fashion. One of them is Slow Fashion Next, which asserts that sustainable clothing can be a tool for change. For its part, the Sustainable Fashion Association of Spain (AMSE) brings together companies with a commitment to consumers who come to fashion via ecological consumption. It is one more step on the path to this lifestyle that seeks equilibrium.

For a garment to be sustainable, it must be made using organic materials such as cotton, hemp or linen, or with textiles resulting from recycled garments. It must also be manufactured in local workshops with dignified wages, in a commitment to Kilometre Zero products, in contrast to the offshore phenomenon of opening up workshops in poor countries.

The AMSE calculates that the consumption of Slow Fashion has grown by 25 percent over the last year. A phenomenon which stirs the conscience of both shoppers and the big firms, which is bringing out eco-friendly lines, although there is still much to be done. One pending task is that of making fast fashion consumers understand that a T-shirt that costs just 3 Euros only lasts for a couple of washes and the low price is achieved by violating workers’ rights. But a 25-Euro organic cotton T-shirt can boast of a much longer lifespan, and lasts for more than a single season.

Upcycling is another way of creating sustainable fashion. It is based on the idea of making a new garment from an existing one. Using garment remains, waste and other disused materials, a new item is created in order to bestow a second life on it.

Ibiza is not oblivious to this global trend. Actually, one could say that it is ahead of it, having launched ‘Natural Adlib’, the eco version of its fashion show which was inaugurated on 27th April 2018. One of the most vigorous firms of this new division is Nanou Couture which, with its brand Etikology by Nanou Couture, is committed to sustainability and the slow fashion philosophy. Its designer, Nadege Seguin, plumps for healthy, ecological designs. The creations are made in Ibiza using organic, hypoallergenic, biodegradable and compostable materials from crops with full traceability.

Another Ibizan firm devoted to sustainable fashion is Tanit Jeans, which has opened up its collections to upcycling, re-using materials to give them a second life. Meanwhile BSF Man or Linnea Ibiza have decided to include hemp in their collections, whilst La Brisa Ibiza has committed to launching its first collection made with OCC Guarantee organic cotton. K de Kose-KoseBeatrice San Francisco, Monika Maxim and Trinidades Ibiza are committed to Kilometre Zero production. Ibiza Republic plumps for casual organic clothes.

Natural Adlib, the green facet
Adlib fashion is more than the Ibiza Fashion Revolution Day, which is held on 24th April, commemorating the day when 1,138 workers from the Rana Plaza factory died in Dhaka (Bangladesh). After this occurrence, which laid bare the dreadful conditions of the world’s textile industry workers, actions in support of ethical, sustainable fashion multiplied. Thus, after the success of this, Adlib fashion launched the Natural Adlib show on 27th April 2018, coinciding with the Craft Fair in Vara del Rey. This show reveals a commitment to crafts, manufacturing and respect for the environment.

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