the inside world of sustainable clothing on INSTAGRAM

Sustainable clothing has become the newest component of the green living trend, and its popularity has only increased because it so perfectly compliments another major trend of 2019, minimalism. Simply put, the most sustainable form of fashion is to not buy fashion at all, or to buy it much less often and with much more thought.

However, if you're someone who just can't fathom wearing the same clothes for years and years, there are other ways to practice sustainability and still express yourself. Thrifting is a great way to rescue an item destined for the trash. Thrifting also can be tricky, as there's no guarantee that you'll find a gem in the pile of old clothes. Luckily, there are lots of emerging companies that produce new clothing in a sustainable and ethical way. The trick is just knowing where to find them, and Instagram is the key.

Instagram is becoming the platform of choice for many sustainable clothing brands, since it's a visual medium that allows consumers to instantly see a brand's clothing and even shop within the app's interface. Additionally, the community of users on Instagram is the perfect way for a sustainable clothing brand to become more visible without spending a fortune on marketing, since many sustainable clothing brands are startups, small businesses, or individual people running a company on a shoestring budget. Also, making clothes in a sustainable way is expensive! So, in order to avoid passing marketing costs onto consumers, who already may shy away from the higher price points of sustainable brands, these brands utilize Instagram hashtags and form partnerships with prominent figures in the sustainable fashion community.

Although Google returns lots of results for sustainable clothing brands, the results tend to be very repetitive in terms of the brands mentioned and the styles of clothing offered. It's great to find a company that offers a basic white t-shirt produced sustainably and ethically, but most people, including myself, want to wear something more interesting than a basic white-tee. Thus, Instagram offers a host of sustainable brands with more options and variety.

A great example of the type of brand that is much more visible on Instagram is Free Label. Free Label creates clothing in small batches and produces in a sustainable and ethical way, but is nowhere to be found in the results of a Google search for "sustainable fashion" or "sustainable clothing". However, on Instagram, influencers tag their outfits of the day with the brands they're wearing, and Free Label is frequently tagged, leading consumers to their Instagram profile. Free Label offers trendy, modern pieces that look very similar to what consumers might want to purchase from any brand. A particularly popular piece that Free Label offers is their Sunday Pant, which you can see here!


Here's a great video to watch if you're interested in learning more about sustainable fashion and what exactly makes a brand sustainable.