Emma's EPQ

I have decided to look at YouTube videos about sustainability to try and find out how the fashion industry has changed and continues to change. The first video I watched was 'Sustainable Fashion, A Beginners Guide' which interviewed a sustainable fashion consultant, making the research reliable as someone who works in the fashion industry was interviewed. This was useful as it summarised the negatives of fast fashion and gave tips on shopping more sustainably. ·        Not buying fast fashion isn’t really acceptable in current society ·        Difficult for not being able to buy things – remind yourself that it’s ultimately worth it to not support unethical brands ·        Can be original ·        Shopping and owning less ·        Makes you respect clothes more ·        Thi...

Throughout my research, I have found that second hand shopping is mentioned a lot as an alternative to fast fashion so I have looked into whet her or not buying second hand is actually a good way to buy clothes. I read ' Is buying vintage clothing the most eco way to shop? ' and found that more people are now buying second hand (64% of women willing to buy second hand pieces compared to 45% in 2016). The article talked said that this shift could be due to increased awareness of sustainability and also that vintage/second hand clothing fits with the originality that people want to show on social media and is good for the environment as clothing is recycled and stops people from buying as many new items. ' Second-Hand Is the Answer to Sustainable Fashion, Says Oxfam ' says that buying second hand is the easiest way for consumers to shop more sustainably but 77% of people in the UK want to shop second hand but only 27% actually do. It also mentions other alternatives t...

Throughout the research I have been doing, I have found a variety of facts and statistics about the fashion industry so I have decided to look into these and add them to this blog post.  Polyester is made from oil and takes over 200 years to decompose (Fashion Fix podcast)  Sustainability means consuming the planets resources at a rate at which they can be replenished (Fashion Fix - BBC Environment Analyst)  In the UK, we spend £3.5 billion on new clothes for the party season. 8 million of these items are only worn once ( OXFAM ) It would take a person 13 years to drink the amount of water it takes to make a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. Every week, the UK sends 11 million pieces of clothing to landfill (OFXAM) https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/may/08/fast-fashion-death-for-planet

Recently, some fast fashion brands have attempted to become environmentally friendly by releasing 'sustainable' lines. I have decided to look at the differences in the way these items are made compared to their normal products and also see the differences in price. In H&M's normal range, you can buy a pair of mom jeans for £19.99 and from their 'Conscious' range, a similar pair costs £24.99 . According to the 'Product Sustainability' section on these items, the cheaper, standard range jeans are made from 100% cotton whereas the more expensive pair are 99% cotton and 1% elastane but the cotton in this pair is 'partly recycled' Another fast fashion brand that has released a few ethical items is Pull&Bear. This range is called 'Join Life' and the products in this range are said to be 'garments that have been produced using better processes and more sustainable raw materials'. In this range, the items were very simil...

Social media influencers are often seen displaying the new trends and being paid to promote fast fashion brands. Often, reality TV stars eg. Love Island, release collections with online fashion brands like 'PrettyLittleThing' and 'Misspap' weeks after they leave the show. As with all fast fashion products, the items are made quickly and aren't designed to be worn more than once and are sold very cheaply. When they aren't actually promoting a brand, 'influencers' still contribute to the fast fashion industry as the clothes that they wear quickly become trends due to their large platforms. I have looked on Instagram at the brands that celebrities promote/work with. I have found that more female celebrities than male celebrities promote fashion brands. I also found that often, these influencers give their followers a discount code, making it even easier for consumers to buy a large amount of clothes extremely cheaply. Even if the posts were...

Social media influencers are often seen displaying the new trends and being paid to promote fast fashion brands. Often, reality TV stars eg. Love Island, release collections with online fashion brands like 'PrettyLittleThing' and 'Misspap' weeks after they leave the show. As with all fast fashion products, the items are made quickly and aren't designed to be worn more than once and are sold very cheaply. When they aren't actually promoting a brand, 'influencers' still contribute to the fast fashion industry as the clothes that they wear quickly become trends due to their large platforms. I have looked on Instagram at the brands that celebrities promote/work with. I have found that more female celebrities than male celebrities promote fashion brands. I also found that often, these influencers give their followers a discount code, making it even easier for consumers to buy a large amount of clothes extremely cheaply. Even if the posts were...

This week, I have listened to Fashion Fix . I listened to the 3 episodes that were more focussed on fast fashion and the ethics of clothes to fit with my research. They were ' Sustainable Streetwear with Emmanuel Enemokwu', 'Ethical Denim with Molly Hopwood and Tansy Hoskins' and 'Garment Worker Rights with Kalpona Akter'. I chose to only look at these episodes as the other episodes in the series were about different aspects of the industry that didn't fit my topic of Fast Fashion. The podcast interviews people who work within the industry, mostly by trying to create sustainable brands which has given me insight into the issues that these brands have to think about eg. sourcing the most sustainable materials at a good cost. The episode about garment worker's rights has provided me with a lot of information about the treatment of workers and what companies can/should do to be more ethical. I have also found this podcast useful for gaining statistics abo...