Blog written by Katey Knight

Mindful shopping. Is that even a thing?

Research says it is as more shoppers swap a fast-fashion mindset of last-minute purchases and impulse buys for a more conscious style of shopping. 

If you haven’t heard the term Fast Fashion, it describes the quick, bulk production of items on a mass scale. These items are easy on the wallet, but their impacts on the environment and the people who made them are huge.

Lots of clothes born from fast-fashion end up in landfill, and often, unethical and poor working conditions are at play for the people working behind the scenes to make it all possible. And let’s not forget the carbon footprint that comes from large-scale factories using fast fashion practices.

Lots of clothes end up in landfill

Let’s clarify. Onaverage, each Australian dumps an estimated 23 kg of textiles into landfill each year. That’s a lot of last-minute frocks that might have served a purpose for one event before heading straight to the clothing graveyard for an untimely burial.

Luna + Sun founder, Teshani McManus is passionately working towards making Slow Fashion – which is the exact opposite way of producing clothes – an established practice in the Australian sustainable fashion scene. She recently spoke to ABC radio about this, you can check it outhere.

Luna + Sun proudly uses sustainable and ethically sourced fabrics, such aslinen, along with zero waste packaging and works alongside companies to improve ethical practices behind the clothes-making scene, like Mantua Sewing, which helps improve worker conditions among migrant and refugee workers.

Teshani hopes her label’s commitment to improving the Australian sustainable fashion culture gives people food for thought about where they spend their next fashion shopping dollar.

“Ethically made clothing, especially Australian made, does come at a higher price point, but, when you shop for ethical fashion, you not only get a beautiful item that is made to last, you can rest assured that no person has suffered to make this item,” says Teshani.  

While buying sustainable pieces is an investment, the quality of these garments speaks for themselves. If you listen closely enough, you might even hear them pleading, ‘I’m helping make the world a better place, please don’t toss me out!” in your next wardrobe cleanse (if your clothes guilt-talk you, that is).

But if you find that it’s time to move a piece on and it’s served its purpose, your pre-loved clothing can always find a new home, like at Luna and Sun Vintage which Teshani will soon launch for her label.

At Luna and Sun they also use off-cut fabrics from their design process to make fashionable headwear and other accessories. A heady way to have a positive impact, don’t you think?

From headbands to scrunchies, it’s a sure way to get your head in the game of Australian sustainable fashion and make a difference. “Every small change we make really has a huge impact in the long term. Instead of buying 20 items from a fast fashion brand, why not invest in one item from a sustainable brand that will last you for years to come,” says Teshani.

Mindful shopping is definitely a thing. 

As it becomes a priority for shoppers looking beyond a fast-fashion quick fix, with the help of labels like Luna + Sun, we’ll all be one step closer to pushing the fashion industry down a brighter, greener path.