This week I’ve been thinking about how my intentions and my actions line up, particularly when it comes to consuming. I know that I want my actions to have a positive impact on other people - that’s what I intend. But when we buy things, it has a profound impact on others whether we know about it or not.

Trying to become more conscious is obviously a great start. However, researching leads you to a well of information - too much at times, and almost all of it conflicting. How do you find your way, marry your beliefs with your behaviour, through all the noise and misinformation?

Shopping has become so fast-paced that it you can barely register it - online shopping, fast fashion becoming ‘rapid fashion’ - the pace is quickening and according to research the industry has grown by 21% over the past three years. At the same time, sustainability has increasingly become a buzzword thoughtlessly flung around by huge fast fashion chains to green-wash their dirty industry practices. So what exactly is green-washing?

It’s essentially the practice of using PR magic and marketing to make misleading and unsubstantiated claims about the (if any) environmental benefits of a product, company, service… you can see where we’re going. Simple things like adding a leaf icon on a product, or a product being rebranded green (hello McDonalds) are primary examples of a brand green-washing itself to appeal to those consumers who are feeling a little guilty or worried. In recent times, there have been plenty of scandals where well-known fashion brands such as Missguided and H&M have been caught out over slightly blurring the truth (to put it lightly) about their fashion practices. £1 bikini, anyone?!

We’ve put together a handy guide to help you get clued up about your buys!

Look beyond the buzzwords. Sustainable, ethical, planet-friendly, environmental, conscious, green, recyclable, natural, ad infinitum! If a brand is making these claims, check it out! If it’s ambiguous, dig deeper. Compostable, biodegradable and recyclable are all completely different processes. It’s no good feeling saintly about your biodegradable item if it requires industrial composting. Similarly, just because an item is compostable doesn’t mean it will just break down naturally if you chuck it in the bin. Composting and biodegradation require specific conditions for a material to break down.

Touch. If you are able to, use your hands to investigate the product. Examining seams and construction is a sure-fire way to test the longevity of a product. What is it made of? Mixed fibres are innovative but not recyclable.

Do your research. This can include poking around a website, contacting the company directly, or even just looking at the garment label. Where was it made?

Just because it’s made in the United Kingdom doesn’t mean that the garment workers were paid fairly in good working conditions. Innovative start-up Birdsong based their business model around providing dignified work for people who need it. At Roake, our provenance section for each product indicates exactly who made the items and where, so there is transparency throughout the production chain.

Check the Good On You website. It comes as an app too, so that you can check a company’s ethical credentials on the go. It focuses on people, planet and animals using a rating system as well as some informative articles about fabrics, company policies and stories from the industry. It could be more transparent itself with how they come to these conclusions for each brand, but it is an undeniably helpful overview.

Read Fashion Revolution’s Fashion Transparency Index 2019. Sit down with a coffee, get comfortable and dig into the 87-page document published on Fashion Revolution’s website annually for free. It features spotlights, policy, traceability indexes and viewpoints from those at the forefront such as garment workers and farmers. It’s not a quick read, but it certainly is an educational one.

Don’t fall for the hype. Ethical influencers are everywhere. And is that such a bad thing? It is if they’re just jumping on the ethical bandwagon, but peddling the latest fast-fash picks of the week next to a sprig of eucalyptus in their posts. Zing.

Check for real certification. Organic cotton is certified by organisations such as the Global Organic Textile Standard International Working group (GOTS). However, the Better Cotton Initiative is trying to make cotton more sustainable, but does not offer organic cotton or fair trade for workers.

Buy once and buy well. Confession time, I used to buy a cheap pair of high street sunglasses each year when I was a wee teen, but I’d break or lose them because I didn’t value them. I then spent a pretty penny on a sturdy beautiful pair 8 years ago and still have, love and wear them. I’m hoping I never buy sunglasses again. Buy a high-quality item once, even if it requires saving, and care for it in the long-term to reduce waste and over-consumption. That’s why Roake designs are often multipurpose and multi-season, made with the best materials and fit for the job.

Stop buying things. An unpopular opinion you might say, but simply not buying things is the best way to avoid any green washing and over-consumption while you’re at it. Just because something is recyclable, biodegradable etc etc doesn’t mean it has no carbon footprint. Reducing consumption is the only true way of reducing energy use, resources and physical energy. Love your existing wardrobe and revisit your clothes like they were old friends.

A collaborative Journal post, with significant contribution from the lovely Laura Edmunds.

Jargon Busting for Sustainable Fashion