Cora Maria

Photos by @vessmess_create on Instagram. When I first discovered the sustainable fashion movement, I rejected it because I felt like there wasn’t a place for me and what I wanted. I thought that my style would suffer, or I’d have to give it up completely. Starting last July, I came to realise that the opposite is true, and I feel like I have never been more fashionable than I am now. I know more about my clothing. Fashionable people are expected to know a lot about fashion, and while some people might be able to go on and on about the trademarks and key pieces of a particular brand or designer, they often don’t know or care enough to know about the supply chains behind their garments. I feel like knowing who made my clothes, what they’re made from, and what impact my clothes have on the planet gives me more credibility as a fashion enthusiast. “This one-of-a-kind dress was handmade from up-cycled fabric scraps by an aspiring designer from Perth” or “These dungarees were...

Fanart by @eclecticlunarhop on Instagram. There are so many things I love to wear or would love to do that aren’t good for the environment. I would love to add more glittery things to my wardrobe, but glitter is a micro-plastic. I would love to bleach my hair, but bleach poisons the earth. I would love to buy a pair of Irregular Choice shoes, but they often use leather and other non-eco-friendly materials. I want to support my friends' businesses, but I don’t know the hands that make their clothes. I love things that are plastic, artificial, and bad for the Earth. I also love the Earth. Isn’t it ironic that the people who feel the most guilty about their environmental impact are the ones doing their best to reduce it, while others get to consume and consume without feeling the weight of a dying world every single day? Isn’t it ironic that even though it’s not my fault that fast fashion companies are violating human rights every single day, I still feel personally res...

Art by @the_stitchess on Instagram. Available for purchase at Glitter Riot Goods on Etsy now. As glad as I am to see the rise of thrifting and sustainable fashion brands, these aren’t always accessible to people due to location, disability, income, size, dress code, or other reasons. It’s incredibly important that the sustainable fashion movement does not exclude them. I also believe that everyone deserves to wear clothes they feel good in, even if the only clothes that they like and can access are from fast fashion stores. Why should someone’s size, race, gender, disability, or socio-economic class mean that they don’t deserve to feel beautiful? While I would typically want to solve the problem through long term solutions like raising the minimum wage, providing adequate welfare, and encouraging more sustainable fashion brands to cater to a variety of sizes, genders, and disabilities, there is still a need for short term solutions even if they are not ideal. If you are someon...