Cruelty-free silk scarves
Fair trade cruelty-free silk scarves allow you to enjoy the beauty of silk without any of the guilt that accompanies traditionally manufactured silk. In commercial silk production, silkworms are killed during the production process, either by the cocoons being submerged in boiling water or pierced with a needle, so that the silk can be unravelled in one long continuous thread, but no such methods are involved in creating these beautiful fair trade cruelty-free silk scarves. The cruelty-free, traditional production method allows the worms to chew their way out of the cocoons, and results in a gorgeous, tactile texture that is caused by the broken threads. As well as being kind to the worms, these cruelty-free silk scarves are kind to people, too. Available in Prussian Blue and Cassis, they are handmade in India using traditional methods of hand spinning and weaving that have passed down from generation to generation. Because the manufacturers are paid a fair wage for their talents, buying one of these stylish cruelty-free silk scarves helps you protect the livelihoods of traditional artisans, helping them build and maintain their communities. So as well as making an elegant gift (for yourself or someone else!), these cruelty-free, fair trade silk scarves enable small producers to thrive and prosper. So why not treat yourself to one of each colour?
Pants to Poverty Santa Pants – making Christmas sexy and fun
Pants to Poverty Santa pants are the latest style from ethical underwear manufacturer Pants to Poverty. Pants to Poverty was set up as an evolution from the Make Poverty History initiative and proves that fundraising can be both fun and serious at the same time. The Pants to Poverty Santa pants, like all Pants to Poverty ethical underwear, are made from organic cotton (so reducing their environmental impact, as standard cotton is a chemical intensive fabric) and are Fair trade, ensuring that producers are paid a fair wage for their goods and not exploited. On top of this, £1 profit from the sale of every pair of Pants to Poverty Santa pants is reinvested into campaigning for Trade Justice. The red and white Pants to Poverty Santa pants are available in male and female styles, and small, medium and large sizes. These sexy, snuggly eco-pants make a fun, festive and cheeky gift for the man or woman in your life – and at less than £10 per pair, they are an ideal stocking filler. Or you can wear them with stockings, the choice is yours! However you want to wear them, and whether you have been naughty or nice, why not put a pair of Pants to Poverty Santa pants on your Christmas list?
Quality ethical products from Nkuku
For high-quality, eco-friendly fair trade gifts and homewares, look no further than Nkuku. The name comes from a village in Zambia and was inspired by the travels of the founder of this Devon-based company, which aims to promote fair trade and reward traditional artisans in Africa and India by selling their work in the UK. Examples of this include the stylish Savannah leather case, perfect as an alternative to a briefcase. The Savannah is handmade from leather and is dyed using vegetable extract and tree bark by a co-operative in Rajasthan, so you can be assured that not only is the bag eco-friendly, the workers are paid a fair wage for their work. Nkuku also sells classic leather-bound journals and photo albums, made with naturally tanned leather and recycled paper. If you’d rather use vegetarian friendly materials, Nkuku offers stylish journals and photo albums bound in hand-printed cotton paper, which come in recycled cotton boxes, or books made from recycled saris, making each one different depending on the fabric used. If you are looking for eco-friendly homewares, Nkuku produces a range of handmade cotton bed linen, printed by hand using traditional methods and wooden block printing, as well as high quality woollen throws, made from recycled wool. So you can enjoy original, beautiful things for your home while knowing you are supporting a fair trade, environmentally responsible company and helping traditional artisans profit from their skills.
From car tyres to flip flops – reusing rubber to make stylish shoes
Discarded tyres are an eco-menace, taking hundreds of years to decompose, but around the world some manufacturers are recycling these old tyres into fashion statements, by turning them into stylish flip flops. With Brazil often considered the home of the flip flop, it shouldn’t be surprising that one of these companies is based in Rio de Janeiro. With an estimated 20 million tyres a year discarded in Brazil, footwear company Amazon is finding innovative ways to reuse old tyres. It collects, chips and reforms tyres into eco-friendly and fashionable sandals and flip flops, making these some of the greenest shoes around. Combining recycling and fair trade, Rebearth eco-friendly fair trade sandals are made by a collective of workers in Nairobi, Kenya. These workers take old tyres and cut and mould them by hand, combining with locally grown organic cotton and unworn recycled leather to create simple, stylish shoes that are easy on your feet and your conscience.
Of course, it’s not just rubber and leather that can be recycled in this way, and large manufacturers are also getting in on the idea. Take Levi, who now produce affordable, stylish and eco-friendly trainers made from old pairs of Levi jeans. As each pair of shoes differs slightly according to the source material, they are totally unique, so they’re good for the planet and good for your image!
Green is the New Noir – Fair Trade fashion hits the catwalks
While ethically made, Fair Trade products are becoming increasingly popular, Fair Trade fashion still has struggled to shake off its slightly dowdy image. Some mainstream, high street retailers such as New Look and Marks and Spencer now stock organic cotton items alongside their main ranges, but for many people, the words Fair Trade fashion conjure up tie-dyed clothing, shapeless smocks and twee print dresses. This could be changing as, more and more, high end designers are recognising that there is a market for stylish, well-made clothing that is both fashion forward and ethically made. Set up by Peter Ingwersen and aimed strictly at the luxury end of the market, Noir is a high fashion brand that doesn’t compromise on either style or social conscience. Pieces include beautifully made shirts, tuxedo jackets and tops, proving ethically made doesn’t need to be ugly.
At the more affordable end of the scale, People Tree has done a lot to help shake off Fair Trade’s frumpy image, offering smart design at high street price. Fair trade jewellery, too, has moved away from its ‘hippy image’, with brands like Made and Fifi Bijoux making stylish, ethically produced and – most importantly from the fashion point of view – wearable pieces. Made’s design partnerships with celebrities like Peaches Geldof is also helping bring Fair Trade to a younger audience.
Charge as you Ride
With all the pay as you go fees affecting mobile phone call rates and similar tolls imposed on cycling through congested UK cities, it is refreshing to note that university students in Kenya have invented a smart eco-friendly device that powers up mobile phones via the bicycle. Such ingenuity is essential in a country such as Kenya because the predominant methods of charging up mobile phone devices involve visiting specific shops that charge a fee for the service, which is often powered by a solar panel device. Furthermore, as many villages do not have a source of electricity, anybody wanting to power up their mobile phones might have to travel long distances to reach the relevant shops.
However, with the introduction of the bicycle charging device, which comprises a small dynamo-power unit invented by two electrical engineering students, villagers will now be able to fully charge up their phones by
cycling for up to one hour in total. Indeed, the device mimics a standard feature of bicycles in Africa, which are often sold with dynamo units that power front and back lights. Nevertheless, with this smart modification of existing technology, the students may have unwittingly produced a product that could be viable on the global market.
Indeed, whilst dynamo chargers may not be entirely original, they are relatively novel when used specifically to charge up mobile phones. Cyclists in cities such as London would be able to avail of any such device that charges their phone as they travel to and from work. Furthermore, with the rise in popularity of Fair Trade products, it is likely that consumers would buy this African technology.
Fair Trade tastes fabulous with Cadbury Daily Milk
Fair Trade products have become considerably more fashionable purchases during recent years, following several large scale international campaigns to promote awareness of the plight of workers in the so-called third world nations. Poor living and working conditions, hard labour, long hours and barely enough pay to survive are familiar problems that have blighted workers in the developing nations. Furthermore, many are victims of large foreign corporations who exploit the cheap labour force in order to maximize their own profits, which also means that very little, if any, of the money generated by such companies is pumped back into the local community.
Fair Trade produce secures a better way of life for the typical third world worker. Not only will a large proportion of the profits generated by Fair Trade approved companies be driven back into the local communities, which can help to improve infrastructures, amenities and key buildings such as schools and hospitals, but the workers will also receive more pay and less demanding working conditions. Indeed, buying Fair Trade products can be more effective than donating to charities that help the developing nations because it enables these countries to advance through commerce.
Recently, the UK division of Cadbury has announced the launch of a new range of Fair Trade chocolate bars. Representing the first mass produced chocolate to be awarded Fair Trade certification, the chocolate bars are expected to be sold to millions of UK consumers initially, which will further raise awareness of Fair Trade products. The Fair Trade Cadbury Milk bars will be sold through almost 30,000 UK outlets and will source only the finest Fair Trade cocoa from Ghana. Cadbury will no doubt be hoping to match the success of other established Fair Trade brands such as Divine and Green & Black’s.
Fair Trade Gets Fashionable
As awareness of the plight suffered by many in the ‘Third World’ increases, choosing Fair Trade products has become a popular trend among consumers in developed nations. The economy of Fair Trade produce ensures that workers in developing countries receive a relatively comfortable working environment with fair rates of pay and social security. Furthermore, a significant proportion of Fair Trade profits is driven back into the local community that produced the goods, so not only does such trade become sustainable but the future of developing nations becomes a little more secure.
With the recent news that Fair Trade products in the UK have just broken into the beauty care market, it is timely to discuss the continuing growth of Fair Trade fashion accessories. Indeed, various accessories including pendants and bracelets are produced by workers in countries such as India in addition to those across Asia, South America and Africa. Hand crafted goods are typically produced to a very high standard in such places by workers who rely on such trade to support themselves and their families. For some of these workers, the extra money earned from producing Fair Trade accessories can make the difference between eating or not eating or being able to put a child through school. Therefore, the importance of buying Fair Trade fashion accessories should never be undervalued.
Fair Trade goods have long since thrown off their worthy but dull image. Lingerie brand Pants to Poverty do a selection of fun, trendy Fair Trade and organic underwear, while fair trade brand Made has commissioned pieces by young celebrities such as Peaches Geldof to appeal to a younger demographic. At the higher end of the market, designers such as Fifi Bijoux specialise in well-crafted precious metal pieces and fine jewellery. Furthermore, Fair Trade accessories are often highly sought after for their rich attention to detail and splendid decorative charms. Goblin charm bracelets, tutti frutti necklaces and a range of sparkling pendants are staple items of such trade, whilst stylish handbags made of recycled materials are increasingly in demand. Fair Trade shopping bags are also becoming more popular as people cut down their usage of plastic bags.
The Beauty of Fairtrade
Arguably one of the most important challenges facing industrially developed nations today is how to encourage, help and inspire developing nations to defeat widespread poverty, food and water shortages and the factors that can be attributed to global warming. Of course, developed nations must first do the same on the domestic arena and it is more than evident that the international community has still some way to go before carbon emissions are reduced sufficiently to stem the rise of global warming.
Nevertheless, consumers in the UK can do their bit to help developing nations by investing in Fairtrade products, which ultimately refer to produce that is sourced in such a way as to ensure better profits, local sustainability and relatively decent working conditions for farmers and workers in the so-called ‘third world’ countries. Through buying Fairtrade products, consumers help to create a better life for those living in the poorer parts of the world.
Within the last fortnight, the Fairtrade Foundation, which has licensed more than 3,000 Fairtrade products in the UK, announced that the British public will be able to buy fully certified Fairtrade beauty products as of July. Indeed, just under 60 beauty products have been licensed by the Fairtrade Foundation for sale in the UK, including face masks, body butter, lip balms and shower gels that have been predominantly produced in Africa, Asia and South America.
These beauty products are expected to sell like hotcakes in the Fairtrade conscious UK market, where fruit produce such as bananas and oranges are already firmly established in supermarkets. Fairtrade beauty products will be found in most high street health and beauty stores.
