A Beginner’s Guide to Vegan Fashion (what to avoid)
We all hear about vegan fashion. But what does that mean exactly? Apart from avoiding leather and fur. And why would people not wear wool or silk?
Organic cotton, hemp and linen are the best natural fabric choices. They are good for the earth and wildlife, and also for us as they last longer (as fibres are not damaged by chemicals).
However, vegan clothing also avoids:
- Fur (horrific cruelty, production is banned in the UK)
- Leather (often produced in countries with few animal welfare laws, and the tanning process is also cancerous – it’s not usually a by-product of the meat industry)
- Sheepskin & shearling (the latter is from the skins of lambs)
- Shahtoosh (banned) is from a Tibetan antelope. Pashmina is from a Tibetan mountain goat.
- Feathers or down (choose vegan bedding – most ‘eider down’ is from factory-farmed ducks or real eider down is only collected from fallen feathers in Iceland in tiny numbers)
- Animal-based jewellery (no bones, feathers, pearls, oysters, leather)
Read Vegan Style to learn about alternatives to conventional fabrics, and how to create a sustainable capsule wardrobe. It recommends watching the film Slay, from a former fur-wearing fashionista who now campaigns for animal welfare.
A few vegan message clothing brands
For items with elastane or recycled polyester, launder in a microfibre filter (or buy 100% natural fabrics, far simpler!)
Donate unwanted clothing to small charity shops (not big ones that test on animals). Recycle damaged/stained clothing at textile banks (it’s shredded into insulation and other goods).
- Heart Cure Clothing spreads the message peacefully with stylish activism clothing. This nonprofit helps animals and offers free (worldwide shipping) for minimum orders.
- Smug Vegan uses Teemill to print organic message clothing, with the founder donating 50% of all profits to causes that help UK animal charities. These have bold prints and designs and are quite unique – there is even a Dolly Parton range!
- Viva La Vegan
- Say it Vegan
