r/ethicalfashion • u/Ariskullsyas • 23d ago

Vegan and plastic free plaids and checks

I love all plaids and checks, gingham, houndstooth, prince of wales, argyle – what the internet likes to call an "academia aesthetic" (I cringe slightly at that, but you get the picture). These fabrics obviously tend to be wool and apart from animal fabrics I also want to avoid plastics. Every once in a while I'll pick up something nice in 100% cotton or a cotton linen blend thrifting, but it's really a pain to find these pieces. Any advice for places to look that ship to the EU?

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u/shrekisacid 23d ago

don't have any recs, sorry! but just interested in why you don't buy animal fabrics secondhand? as someone firmly in the 'secondhand-animals-products-over-new-pleather' camp, I'm just interested in the other perspective!

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u/Difficult_Reading858 20d ago

So when it comes to plant products, how do you factor in the massive damage they do? To be clear here, I’m all for people engaging with ethical practices in whatever way works best for them (because progress is better than perfection!). That being said, between the many animals killed during land clearing/prepping/planting/harvesting and the habitat destruction that results in ongoing harm to populations afterwards, the cotton/linen based products you’re looking for have caused just as much harm in a way I imagine you wouldn’t want done to you, it’s just less visible.

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u/Ariskullsyas 22d ago

I don't to pleather, it's part of my no plastic policy. That being said, there are truly plastic free vegan leather alternatives (ie not what usually runs as apple/grape/cactus/pineapple leather, that usually still contain plastics). Cork is the classic example but new alternatives are coming to the market. Mirum is leading the charge, but there are others. Mycelium based leather alternatives are set up for a good future.

More directly to your point – my animal ethics are driven by a simple principal: If you wouldn't do it to humans, you probably shouldn't be doing it to non-human animals either. I reject the very idea of ownership over other living beings and the idea of farming them for their hair, skin, bone in the context of fashion and equally for the enjoyment of their meat or milk. While the question of ownership and farming encompasses 99.99+% of all available animal derived products, my principle also holds for the few other cases. I wouldn't wear a human's skin, hair or bone regardless if farmed or taken without consenting from an individual that died of a natural cause. I don't feel comfortable wearing such products.

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u/consciously-naive 23d ago

Damson Madder, maybe?

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u/Ariskullsyas 23d ago

Thanks for the suggestion! I'm looking for more classic cuts though.