The fashion industry is the second largest polluter in the world. This is a result of the mass production of inexpensive clothing worn for a short time (called fast fashion).
An article posted on the World Economic Forum titled, ‘These Facts Show How Unsustainable the Fashion Industry Is’ provides numerous environmental impacts from fashion.
- A lot of clothing ends up in the dump. The equivalent of one garbage truck full of clothes is burned or dumped in a landfill every second.
- In total, up to 85% of textiles go into landfills each year. That’s enough to fill the Sydney harbor annually.
- The fashion industry is also the second-largest consumer of water worldwide.
- It takes about 2,000 gallons of water to produce a pair of jeans. That’s more than.
- The fashion industry is responsible for 10% of humanity’s carbon emissions. enough for one person to drink eight cups per day for 10 years.
Seasonal fashion trends are continuously changing.
| “In 1930, the average woman in the US owned a total of nine outfits. Today, the average woman buys 60 new items of clothing each year. With a shelf life of about 3.5 years for each item, that amounts to over 200 items per woman at any given time.” (Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion, Elizabeth Cline, 2012) |
In Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion, 2012, Elizabeth Cline “uncovers the true nature of the cheap fashion juggernaut, tracing the rise of budget clothing chains, the death of middle-market and independent retailers, and the roots of our obsession with deals and steals.”
“Sewing, once a life skill for American women and a pathway from poverty to the middle class for workers, is now a dead-end sweatshop job. The pressures of cheap have forced retailers to drastically reduce detail and craftsmanship, making the clothes we wear more and more uniform, basic, and low quality. Creative independent designers struggle to produce good and sustainable clothes at affordable prices.”
‘The True Cost’ is a 1.5-hour documentary film that explores the impact of the fashion industry on the environment. https://truecostmovie.com
What Does Somi Threads Do to Support the Environment?
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Quality construction for long-lasting wear. Hapa Baby fashions are handmade with quality construction and, therefore, long-lasting.
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Designs are timeless so fashions can be passed down generations.
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Mix-and-match options create fun choices.
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Most designs have features that allow the fashions to grow with your little one for longer wear.
2. Cotton Fabrics for durability. Cotton is the most biodegradable fabric. In a compost, cotton may biodegrade in as little as a week, but may take up to 5 months. Synthetic fabrics can take 20 to 200 years to fully biodegrade. www.Sustainyourstyle.org
Cotton fabric is light and breathable, maintains its look after numerous washings, and feels good against your little one’s skin.
3. Reduced Waste. Hapa Baby fashion pieces are individually cut by hand so they can be placed on fabric in a way that produces the least waste. Remaining fabric pieces are used to create headbands and bows and face masks. Smaller fabric pieces are braided into ribbons used in packaging.
4. Reusable Gift Boxes. Hapa Baby uses packaging that can be reused to avoid waste. Cushioning between the gift box and mailing box is reused when appropriate and available.
