Sustainable fashion: local brands that have caught our attention

KARACHI: Fashion, by its nature, has to be fast-paced. The idea that you can never repeat the same outfit, trends changing quickly – all of this leaves little to no room for sustainable fashion. Or so it seems.

Sustainable fashion basically started off as a movement that aimed to push fashion systems and products towards being more ecological integral. Companies have tried to reduce their carbon footprint during manufacture by using fewer plastics and disposing off chemicals from dyes in a safe place, ensuring minimal harm to the surroundings, or by creating products that are long-lasting and can be styled in different ways to give a newer look each time.

Here are some local companies and small businesses that are aimed at coming up with cool new looks, while also trying to minimize the negative impact of fashion in the environment:

Generation

Generation has usually been hailed for the way its campaigns always try to break stereotypes and educate its customers on various social topics. Not only did Generation launch Sohni Dharti in 2018 but their social media pages were also used to educate their audiences about the importance of planting trees, the rapid loss of forests, the deteriorating air quality, scarcity of water along with various other environmental problems faced by the country. Last year, the brand once again tried to educate its audiences about single-use plastics and the hazard they pose to the environment through their campaigns.

Thrifty Preloved

While there are brands selling crafted goods that reduce fashion’s carbon footprint, there are also stores that help do that by selling preloved outfits. Thrifty Preloved is a fairly recent page, which was launched only last fall. The page promotes sustainable and affordable fashion and the idea that you do not have to spend a thousand bucks to have that million-dollar look.

Not only does the page offer mostly western outfits at very affordable prices, but it also places importance on preloved clothes. So many pieces of clothing get discarded every year because someone doesn’t want to wear them anymore. This method of using preloved clothing again is a good way of minimizing waste.

Sapphire

Sapphire worked on reducing its carbon footprint via its bags. Made with seeds, organic matter, as well as leftover fabric, Sapphire’s bags are a good option for anyone looking to take steps towards an environmentally friendly mode of fashion, little by little.

Misha Lakhani

Using traditional techniques to re-ignite old world charm, Misha Lakhani’s outfits have traditional and sustainable methods like Zardozi and Aari work done along with hand-looming. While these techniques not only add nostalgia to the outfits, they also reduce the usage of machinery making their craftsmanship more sustainable.