*Thank you* a lot for giving me the idea of buying second-hand not synthetic fabrics and leather. I really don't like the idea of using animal-derived clothes, *but* I also don't like the idea of using synthetic clothes - they are so much worse in terms of the *useful* qualities/characteristics and by buying them I would be supporting harmful chemical industries and devastating pollution of the environment... Again: great, great video guide.
Silk. the ethical part of silk production conserning the silk worms takes a lot of focus, but aside from the killing of the worms, production of silk is very sustainable. It dont use a lot of space for the silkworms to grow, and the leaf used to feed the worms uses a lot less farmland then either hemp or flax. the boiled worms are also used as food in a lot of asian countries so there is minimal amount of waste. This is also ideal as a lot of western countries like finland and the Netherlands that are trying to inploment more insects in their diet. I feel silk got a lot of negative attention, unfortuntly.
I LOVE this video. ESPECIALLY the section on wool. There are so many people who are polarized on this issue but I know lots of farmers who love their animals and have a mutually beneficial relationship with them Thank You.
Will definitely make second hand shopping more of a habit with my clothing. Nearly all the furniture and cookware in my apartment is secondhand, but I never thought about thrifting for clothes until I started watching your videos. Can you do another thrift shop tips video?
Great video! I couldn't decide whether to buy second hand leather or not and decided to buy it second hand only since the items last longer, I won't be purchasing as much which in turn makes it more eco friendly. thank you for this video and for gathering so much information :) love this series!
Hey, nice video. I would only add that the best way to decrease your environmental impact is reducing to a minimum the stuff you think you need (in this case clothes). I checked out your channel and saw that you have some nice videos about capsule wardrobes, I'll watch them as well. I just wanted to say that no matter if you buy new or second, only buy something when you really need it and make sure it flatters you and can be worn for many seasons, not just one. That way, fewer animals contribute to your wardrobe and less petrol is needed to make what you wear. This is also valid for everything else (accessories, toys, electronics, food and water containers, decorations etc).
Thank you for yet another well-research and thoughtful video, Verena! I really appreciate your pros/cons analysis and mindful conclusions. Please keep the videos coming!
This is kind of help because i was trying to find a fabric that’s vegan and eco friendly but it was overwhelming when i searched by myself so thank you
Thanks so much for putting this video series together! I'm a seamstress, and I try my best to use recycled materials. But sometimes that's not possible, and this series is really helping me environmentally prioritize my textiles.
Very complete, very clear, easy on the ear and on the eye. I won't need any course as I learn a lot this way. So Thank you so much and Please keep on making videos !
Great video as always! Will share this with others so they can learn. I have definitely become a Tencel lover over the past year, it is extremely breathable and comfortable. Whenever I am wearning Tencel pants people give me so many compliments and ask what material it is. Can't wait for the next part. :)
You're green AND a fashion designer!?!? Oh my god I love you!! I love your aproach towards Eco fashion, too. You communicated clearly and persuasively, but not in a way that's pushy and annoying. Officially a new subscriber!
This video series is amazing, thank you so much for informing us about the ethics and environmental impact of clothing. As a consumer it is so effing difficult to get properly informed... Thank you for giving a comprehensive overview. I'm looking forward to the next part :) BTW, do you have a checklist that you use when buying new things or do you just stick to certain brands and thrifting?
Thank you so much! I do have somewhat of a checklist but it will change depending on what I'm buying and looking for. It's also more of a guideline because it can get really frustrating/be impossible to find the perfect piece. If I'm buying something new though I do always try to buy more sustainable materials that are ethically made, often fair trade or locally made. I talk a bit about it in this video ua-cam.com/video/q67zvhux3Bs/v-deo.html
Second hand all the way. Your videos are so useful! I was wondering if you could maybe do a video about ethics in terms of other things we buy - not just clothes, but various items we might buy for our house, skincare or perfume... anything specific that you might want to talk about. Would be very interesting! Thank you :) xxx
Great video! It would be interesting to see an updated video covering MIRUM, appleskin/UPPEAL and other new alternatives to leather, which are based on (or 100% made of) organic materials. Do you have any experience with them? I am hopeful that MIRUM has the potential to replace animal leather.
Thank you so much for your informative, unique video! I am really excited that I've found your channel! I appreciate your open-mindedness and thoughtfulness regarding the intermingling of veganism, sustainability, and human welfare. Thank you for this 'food for thought' - looking forward to many more videos!
Really interesting video ! One of the things which is always on my mind when purchasing things like shoes is how long it will last for. Unfortunately a lot of synthetic shoes don't last very long in comparison to leather shoes which can (in my experience) last for many years. I think that the amount of wear that you can get out of the product needs to be factored in when considering the environmental cost in the long term.
Definitely! One pair of shoes that lasts for years is for sure more sustainable than needing to replace your shoes every 6-12 months. I made this mistake in the spring and I talk a bit about it in my Summer Capsule Update video. I bought a pair of cotton flats because I was really excited to find a natural material shoe in a style I liked, they ended up getting a hole on both toes after only a few months. In hindsight they were not at all a sustainable choice since I now have to get another pair of flats. :( There are some pretty great, durable synthetics though. I have a pair of synthetic boots that I've had for probably around 4 years. I wear them all the time and they've held up beautifully, I only had to get them re-heeled once and for $10 they were like new again. Only issue is that after all this wear the lining is tearing a bit, but you can't see it and the synthetic suede still looks great, even better than some leather shoes I've owned in the past.
So much great information and a wonderful series! As a relatively new vegan, it's tough for me to take a call on second hand animal-origin materials. Some say they indirectly create demand for new animal-origin products, since second hand items have a decent resale value and a demand exists, so people are still likely to buy them new and eventually resell. Well, no matter the final choice, minsumerism is a great way to go for the planet as well as the animals!
Thank you! There are for sure a lot of factors to weigh, and it's about finding what you're most comfortable with. One thing you can do with the resale issue is not buy those products from consignment or resale stores/websites only charity shops and thrift stores, places where the clothes/shoes/bags have been donated.
Very helpful video! The majority of my clothes and some of my best pieces come from thrift stores! In high school I bought a pair of Doc Martens at the thrift store for $18 and those shoes are still in great condition (5 years later). Also, another great place to find secondhand clothes is on college Facebook pages! My school has multiple free and for sale pages which are usually very affordable and used items that students other wise would have dumped.
This series is so helpful! Thank you so much for doing all this research and sharing it all so openly. I'm looking forwrd to park 3 and will totally be referring back to them. I really love your channel! :)
I enjoyed watching this video and I do agree with you to a certain level. I just couldn't wear animal skin even, if it is seen as more sustainable. But that is just my own opinion. I love these informative videos you make though! :)
I can understand your point of view though I don't quite feel the same. & I take issue with saying animal materials are "seen as more sustainable" as you put it, because they arent just "seen as more sustainable" compared to synthetic alternatives they usually are. Though I am also vegan, I acknowledge that the wide variety of plant and animal fibers available originally constituted the garments and footwear our species made for ourselves for hundreds of thousands of years. And the ways these items were once made resulted in no pollution since they biodegrade completely. Therefore, unless you go the plant fiber route 100% of the time you're probably contributing to more pollution and bioaccumulation of wastes if you prioritize the the 'vegan' label on new goods over second hand animal material goods or in some cases even new goods from animal materials. I personally prefer thrifted leather goods over new PU or PVC. *shrug* but I guess it is a tough call 😕.
I can understand your point of view though I don't quite feel the same. & I take issue with saying animal materials are "seen as more sustainable" as you put it, because they arent just "seen as more sustainable" compared to synthetic alternatives they usually are. Though I am also vegan, I acknowledge that the wide variety of plant and animal fibers available originally constituted the garments and footwear our species made for ourselves for hundreds of thousands of years. And the ways these items were once made resulted in no pollution since they biodegrade completely. Therefore, unless you go the plant fiber route 100% of the time you're probably contributing to more pollution and bioaccumulation of wastes if you prioritize the the 'vegan' label on new goods over second hand animal material goods or in some cases even new goods from animal materials. I personally prefer thrifted leather goods over new PU or PVC. *shrug* but I guess it is a tough call 😕.
This definetely helped me so much - cruel animal material vs. chemical alternative is such a hard question! One fabric that I have grown to love is cork, especially since being in Lisbon this summer - they have cork everywhere! I loved it and the city :)
Really happy to hear that! Ooo if you have any tips or recommendations for places to go in Lisbon I'd love to hear them! I'm hoping to visit there in the spring :)
Dog wool can be used as an alternative to sheep wool. Dogs are not harmed, the wool is made from combing the dogs and gathering the hair that gets in the brush.
Regarding silk moths: You may not have been aware of this before, but it's actually quite common for adult moths (and some other insects) to have no mouth parts for feeding. This is not something humans bred into them. They have evolved that way. Several species of moth used this way have no adult mouth parts, such as _Samia cynthia,_ which is probably where this story came from (that humans bred them this way), whereas the most common silk moth, _Bombyx mori,_ has only _reduced_ mouth parts, and does not naturally feed itself during its adult phase (however, it is possible to feed them manually, apparently). The main point is that the natural life-cycle of these moths involves the adults not feeding, only breeding, and then dying of starvation. This is a naturally evolved strategy for reproducing faster than other moths that need to take time to feed themselves, meaning they spend less time mating, and risk being killed by predation during feeding. I'll add a couple Wikipedia links in a reply to this comment, for reference. Please note that I am not claiming that 'peace' silk harvesting is thus ethical -- because honestly I don't know anything else about it but what I learned in this video, and a bit on Wikipedia -- I'm only saying that the story about humans breeding them to starve is almost certainly a misunderstanding of someone who wasn't familiar with the evolution of moths. So, that argument does not 'make' this kind of harvesting unethical, since humans did not make this change to the moths. The moths themselves evolved this way over thousands or maybe millions of years. (Still sounds like a horrific existence to me, but nobody said Nature can't be horrifying. 😨 There's a famous short story called "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" by Harlan Ellison, which comes to mind! 😶💭😱 But who knows, maybe mouthless moths simply don't feel hungry and die peacefully. 🤔 Maybe, because the adult phase is the breeding phase, they actually enjoy their existence. 😲 Who knows? 🤷♂️ Well, if anyone would know, it would be an entomologist who studies these moths (they are very well-studied!). Maybe in your research, you might find some information about it from one.)
The most common/popular silk moth: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombyx_mori Another popular moth used, which has no mouth parts: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samia_cynthia Hope that helps. Good luck on your research! 😊
Seems UA-cam has automatically filtered my comment with the links, as I suspected it might. You can check your filtered comments on your channel and find it in there. Cheers! 😊
Thank you so so much for making this video and for being so clear and cogent in your explanations. There are SO many aspects to think about when we buy anything, it's, frankly, kind of overwhelming. Thank you for giving us solutions (thrifting! etc.) and not just oversimplifying this complicated subject. As a vegan, I have *struggled* with this dilemma. I have chosen to not fret about what I bought in the past and just gradually (and mindfully) get rid of things and replace them with more sustainable and eco products as much as possible. (And also do clothes swaps with girl friends whenever possible.) Thanks again, Ann from Veggie Magnifique
I've love this series! I'm looking forward to your next video! These are so informative and really well researched! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
Thank you so much!! Unfortunately there was a hiccup and part 3 won't be out for a few weeks, but I have some exciting videos planned in the mean time. :)
SUPER interesting and helpful video. I've recently been struggling with the choice of second hand leather (which I'm uncomfortable with as a vegan) or trying to find another vegan second hand alternative. This really helps lay out the pros and cons in an informational way. Thanks for another wonderful video inspiring informed/compassionate choices!
Great videos!! One advantage I find with natural materials is durability. Like winter boots made from real leather last me sooo much longer than ones made from synthetic leather.
Thanks!! I've found some synthetics are much better than they used to be. My longest wearing boots and bags are synthetic and have held up beautifully so I think it really depends on the quality of the synthetic leather.
You really deserve more viewers! Try to go to a seminar about marketing or learn from big youtubers how to get there because you deserve it! Sometimes a change of strategy can change the outcome
I recently purchased two purses from a Swiss company called allCORK. They're smooth and very good quality but is all made out of cork which looks like leather.
Nice! It's really exciting to see more cork products. I think the next purse I purchase will likely be cork. I hopefully won't have to buy one anytime soon, but I'll check out that brand! :)
You're tips are always great. I'm surprised you didn't mention whether leather is often produced via by products of the food industry. That would be the logical source, but industry is often lacking in basic logic. :/ The trick with wool is also to look local and visit the farms personally and see how the farmers treat their animals. Smaller farms treat their animals like family and care for them for the long term. (As I typed this, you mentioned it yourself about yarn. ^_^) OMG! I have to check out that rescue company! That's awesome!! :D
I'm glad she didn't go all out on how bad animal products and great vegan stuff is. I'm also glad she did say that animal fibers can be kind and how damaging synthetic stuff is.
Wow. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. It's really frustrating that people/manufacturers have to abuse their animals! It's not that hard to treat an animal with love and respect. I love leather boots but now I'm gonna have to look for a safe, biodegradable alternative to my leather boots.
It's incredibly sad that so much animal abuse goes on. I don't know how people can do that to an animal, but I guess people do terrible things to other people too. :( But on a lighter note, even though there aren't any perfect options there definitely are better options, and even something simple like buying 1 pair of shoes that are going to last you a long time, instead of having to replace them 2-3 times makes a huge difference. :)
There is also the health angle to consider dont forget....natural fibres breathe, meaning it allows our skin to breathe still, which is VERY important. Manmade fibres do not breathe as readily (or at all in most cases) making them very unhealthy to wear for any real length of time
Amazing video - thank you! It's been very helpful and it encourages me to stick to secondhand shopping. Btw. if I got it right you moved from Canada to Germany, in which city are you currently living? Just curious :)
I think a major problem with the treatment of animals is mass production. Small homesteads and farms typically don't abuse their animals because they are more connected to them. In fact they typically treat their animals like royalty because the animals are their livelihoods. Mass animal farming has a horrible impact on the environment as well.
One more thing: no animal product is cruelty free. It is impossible to animal exploration of any kind to be cruelty free. Just for those who are thinking about the subject.. :)
Raising animals in a large scale it's not sustainable either, so I'm pretty sure that the synthetics versions are still a better option due to the animal exploration and so.
I really appreciated this video. I would just add that wearing second hand leather and even non animal leather still normalizes the practice. if more people became aware of the cruelty, started associating the look with that instead of fashion, and made a conscious decision to avoid purchasing leather/suede it might very well go out of style the same way that fur has (lots of animal rescue groups will accept donated fur as it can be used for orphaned baby animals for comfort or warmth). I also don't like buying any animal products even second hand because it still cosigns the idea that animals should be used for human consumption, and if someone is looking for leather shoes for example, and they check the thrift store first, and I've already purchased the ones they would have bought, they're more than likely going to go out and buy a new pair, therefore indirectly creating a demand for new leather goods. To each their own though. the Hannibal Lecture feeling I remember when I was phasing out wearing my old leather when becoming vegan was enough to gross me out to the point that I felt so awful wearing the skin of someone else, even if they had been dead for a long time.
get material from small organic material farm, which do not hurt any animal and produce the material without the use of any chemical . Those farms are everywhere . The only reason people do not purchase from them is because they refuse to pay 20 dollars for a Tshirt . I am a veterinarian and vegan (of course) and not only will i only buy organic vegan food , i will also only buy organic vegan clothes . And if i have to pay 2000 dollars for a suit , then so be it . Besides . Second hand vintage clothes are the best alternative . Or you can buy old fabric bolt have them cleaned and sewn into the clothe you want . The problem is not the environmental or ethical issue , it is the fact that people want new and cheap . Which is the best recipe for disaster . Get old vintage second hand stuff, from clothes to furniture etc, and eat organic and vegan . Or get ready to pay a lot more than the average person . If we ALL buy from organic vegan farms , then those farms will grow and the food and clothes will become a lot cheaper , but we have to make the conscious decision to chose ethic over pricetag .
The way I see it is if I buy a wool sweater from a charity shop my money is going to the shop/charity not the brand who made the sweater. The brand receives no support/benefit from me buying that sweater, as far as they're concerned it could just be in the landfill. Since wool is an incredibly durable and long lasting material (also doesn't shed micro-fibres) I think it's great to keep it out of landfills and give clothes as long a life as possible. Shopping secondhand is a way to do that without giving your money to the company that produced the wool garments. I have a video similar to this about if it's ethical to buy fast-fashion secondhand: ua-cam.com/video/eFmtelkz0eE/v-deo.html
Wonderful video. Thank you for making it. Buying second hand does not absolve you from the industry. A common misconception to feel good. People buy those designer bags for their resale value once they tire of them. People also buy the cheap clothing so that they can 'donate' once they become disposable. You can be picky about what you buy second hand too ! Stella McCartney is an authority on this topic - plastic Vs leather. In an interview, she presents her research on how the plastic polymers she uses is 8 times more echo-friendly with the actual numbers. You might want to look into it.
Thanks! Do you have a link to that Stella McCartney interview? I tried searching for it but can't seem to find it. I love what she does, but honestly at the price point her bags and shoes are they should be made out of a pretty great synthetic. It would be very disappointing if the bags were that expensive and used the same Polyurethane as a $100 bag.
I think animal cruelty in silk production is questionable, because insect doesn't feel pain. Of course there is no talk about cruelty when it comes to mosquitos, cockroaches, woodworms etc. But from my point of view there isn't any difference except silk worms are bred on purpose.
Of course they do. They may not have as sophisticated an experience of it as we do, with our relatively huge brains, but they still experience harm-avoidance sensations (nociception, a technical term for the simplest kind of pain), as do all animals that have been studied for this (including, for instance, fruit flies, which are insects). Pain is one of the most fundamental senses for survival, so it makes sense it would have evolved very early in animals, meaning that probably all animals have it.
By buying second hand leather products you still 'support' the leather industry and cruelty, because somebody still makes money out of it and they think it is ok to sell it because they make money out of it... plus as a role model to other people you shouldn't use it. Because they see something, they like what you wearing or and buy it brand new because they don't know it is 'second hand'...
first video is okay, this one is effortless, when making visual aids ,you don't go for visuals in the expense of the aid "which is the info" dislike it's like you are not even trying, when in reality it's harder editing and it looks better it had more effort put into it pro vs cons in one screen is the only way to go when presenting sweet little girl, i would expect nothing less from a vegan
*Thank you* a lot for giving me the idea of buying second-hand not synthetic fabrics and leather. I really don't like the idea of using animal-derived clothes, *but* I also don't like the idea of using synthetic clothes - they are so much worse in terms of the *useful* qualities/characteristics and by buying them I would be supporting harmful chemical industries and devastating pollution of the environment...
Again: great, great video guide.
Silk.
the ethical part of silk production conserning the silk worms takes a lot of focus, but aside from the killing of the worms, production of silk is very sustainable. It dont use a lot of space for the silkworms to grow, and the leaf used to feed the worms uses a lot less farmland then either hemp or flax. the boiled worms are also used as food in a lot of asian countries so there is minimal amount of waste. This is also ideal as a lot of western countries like finland and the Netherlands that are trying to inploment more insects in their diet.
I feel silk got a lot of negative attention, unfortuntly.
I LOVE this video. ESPECIALLY the section on wool. There are so many people who are polarized on this issue but I know lots of farmers who love their animals and have a mutually beneficial relationship with them Thank You.
Thank you for putting together this video! I never buy animal products, and have started to prioritize sustainable options for anything I buy.
Will definitely make second hand shopping more of a habit with my clothing. Nearly all the furniture and cookware in my apartment is secondhand, but I never thought about thrifting for clothes until I started watching your videos. Can you do another thrift shop tips video?
Great video! I couldn't decide whether to buy second hand leather or not and decided to buy it second hand only since the items last longer, I won't be purchasing as much which in turn makes it more eco friendly. thank you for this video and for gathering so much information :) love this series!
SO helpful! Thank you for putting so much time into your videos and giving us new perspectives and information!!
Thank you!!
Samantha Lindsey t u
Hey, nice video. I would only add that the best way to decrease your environmental impact is reducing to a minimum the stuff you think you need (in this case clothes). I checked out your channel and saw that you have some nice videos about capsule wardrobes, I'll watch them as well. I just wanted to say that no matter if you buy new or second, only buy something when you really need it and make sure it flatters you and can be worn for many seasons, not just one. That way, fewer animals contribute to your wardrobe and less petrol is needed to make what you wear. This is also valid for everything else (accessories, toys, electronics, food and water containers, decorations etc).
I talk about this a lot in videos ☺️
Yes, I watched quite a few of your videos today and noticed that. Keep up the great work!
Thank you for yet another well-research and thoughtful video, Verena! I really appreciate your pros/cons analysis and mindful conclusions. Please keep the videos coming!
This is kind of help because i was trying to find a fabric that’s vegan and eco friendly but it was overwhelming when i searched by myself so thank you
Thanks so much for putting this video series together! I'm a seamstress, and I try my best to use recycled materials. But sometimes that's not possible, and this series is really helping me environmentally prioritize my textiles.
Very complete, very clear, easy on the ear and on the eye. I won't need any course as I learn a lot this way. So Thank you so much and Please keep on making videos !
Great video as always! Will share this with others so they can learn. I have definitely become a Tencel lover over the past year, it is extremely breathable and comfortable. Whenever I am wearning Tencel pants people give me so many compliments and ask what material it is. Can't wait for the next part. :)
Thank you so much!
You're green AND a fashion designer!?!? Oh my god I love you!! I love your aproach towards Eco fashion, too. You communicated clearly and persuasively, but not in a way that's pushy and annoying. Officially a new subscriber!
Thank you!! and thanks for subscribing
This video series is amazing, thank you so much for informing us about the ethics and environmental impact of clothing. As a consumer it is so effing difficult to get properly informed... Thank you for giving a comprehensive overview. I'm looking forward to the next part :)
BTW, do you have a checklist that you use when buying new things or do you just stick to certain brands and thrifting?
Thank you so much! I do have somewhat of a checklist but it will change depending on what I'm buying and looking for. It's also more of a guideline because it can get really frustrating/be impossible to find the perfect piece. If I'm buying something new though I do always try to buy more sustainable materials that are ethically made, often fair trade or locally made. I talk a bit about it in this video ua-cam.com/video/q67zvhux3Bs/v-deo.html
Second hand all the way. Your videos are so useful! I was wondering if you could maybe do a video about ethics in terms of other things we buy - not just clothes, but various items we might buy for our house, skincare or perfume... anything specific that you might want to talk about. Would be very interesting! Thank you :) xxx
Great video! It would be interesting to see an updated video covering MIRUM, appleskin/UPPEAL and other new alternatives to leather, which are based on (or 100% made of) organic materials. Do you have any experience with them? I am hopeful that MIRUM has the potential to replace animal leather.
I found you in 2017 and I am thrilled. This channel is awesome!
Thank you so much for your informative, unique video! I am really excited that I've found your channel! I appreciate your open-mindedness and thoughtfulness regarding the intermingling of veganism, sustainability, and human welfare. Thank you for this 'food for thought' - looking forward to many more videos!
Thank you so much!!
Really interesting video ! One of the things which is always on my mind when purchasing things like shoes is how long it will last for. Unfortunately a lot of synthetic shoes don't last very long in comparison to leather shoes which can (in my experience) last for many years. I think that the amount of wear that you can get out of the product needs to be factored in when considering the environmental cost in the long term.
Definitely! One pair of shoes that lasts for years is for sure more sustainable than needing to replace your shoes every 6-12 months. I made this mistake in the spring and I talk a bit about it in my Summer Capsule Update video. I bought a pair of cotton flats because I was really excited to find a natural material shoe in a style I liked, they ended up getting a hole on both toes after only a few months. In hindsight they were not at all a sustainable choice since I now have to get another pair of flats. :(
There are some pretty great, durable synthetics though. I have a pair of synthetic boots that I've had for probably around 4 years. I wear them all the time and they've held up beautifully, I only had to get them re-heeled once and for $10 they were like new again. Only issue is that after all this wear the lining is tearing a bit, but you can't see it and the synthetic suede still looks great, even better than some leather shoes I've owned in the past.
Thank you for this helpful and informative video. I didn't know that peace silk also may involve cruelty. :(
So much great information and a wonderful series! As a relatively new vegan, it's tough for me to take a call on second hand animal-origin materials. Some say they indirectly create demand for new animal-origin products, since second hand items have a decent resale value and a demand exists, so people are still likely to buy them new and eventually resell. Well, no matter the final choice, minsumerism is a great way to go for the planet as well as the animals!
Thank you! There are for sure a lot of factors to weigh, and it's about finding what you're most comfortable with.
One thing you can do with the resale issue is not buy those products from consignment or resale stores/websites only charity shops and thrift stores, places where the clothes/shoes/bags have been donated.
Very helpful video! The majority of my clothes and some of my best pieces come from thrift stores! In high school I bought a pair of Doc Martens at the thrift store for $18 and those shoes are still in great condition (5 years later). Also, another great place to find secondhand clothes is on college Facebook pages! My school has multiple free and for sale pages which are usually very affordable and used items that students other wise would have dumped.
That's a great tip! Thanks!
This series is so helpful! Thank you so much for doing all this research and sharing it all so openly. I'm looking forwrd to park 3 and will totally be referring back to them. I really love your channel! :)
I enjoyed watching this video and I do agree with you to a certain level. I just couldn't wear animal skin even, if it is seen as more sustainable. But that is just my own opinion. I love these informative videos you make though! :)
I can understand your point of view though I don't quite feel the same. & I take issue with saying animal materials are "seen as more sustainable" as you put it, because they arent just "seen as more sustainable" compared to synthetic alternatives they usually are. Though I am also vegan, I acknowledge that the wide variety of plant and animal fibers available originally constituted the garments and footwear our species made for ourselves for hundreds of thousands of years. And the ways these items were once made resulted in no pollution since they biodegrade completely. Therefore, unless you go the plant fiber route 100% of the time you're probably contributing to more pollution and bioaccumulation of wastes if you prioritize the the 'vegan' label on new goods over second hand animal material goods or in some cases even new goods from animal materials. I personally prefer thrifted leather goods over new PU or PVC. *shrug* but I guess it is a tough call 😕.
I can understand your point of view though I don't quite feel the same. & I take issue with saying animal materials are "seen as more sustainable" as you put it, because they arent just "seen as more sustainable" compared to synthetic alternatives they usually are. Though I am also vegan, I acknowledge that the wide variety of plant and animal fibers available originally constituted the garments and footwear our species made for ourselves for hundreds of thousands of years. And the ways these items were once made resulted in no pollution since they biodegrade completely. Therefore, unless you go the plant fiber route 100% of the time you're probably contributing to more pollution and bioaccumulation of wastes if you prioritize the the 'vegan' label on new goods over second hand animal material goods or in some cases even new goods from animal materials. I personally prefer thrifted leather goods over new PU or PVC. *shrug* but I guess it is a tough call 😕.
This definetely helped me so much - cruel animal material vs. chemical alternative is such a hard question!
One fabric that I have grown to love is cork, especially since being in Lisbon this summer - they have cork everywhere! I loved it and the city :)
Really happy to hear that!
Ooo if you have any tips or recommendations for places to go in Lisbon I'd love to hear them! I'm hoping to visit there in the spring :)
Dog wool can be used as an alternative to sheep wool. Dogs are not harmed, the wool is made from combing the dogs and gathering the hair that gets in the brush.
Regarding silk moths: You may not have been aware of this before, but it's actually quite common for adult moths (and some other insects) to have no mouth parts for feeding. This is not something humans bred into them. They have evolved that way. Several species of moth used this way have no adult mouth parts, such as _Samia cynthia,_ which is probably where this story came from (that humans bred them this way), whereas the most common silk moth, _Bombyx mori,_ has only _reduced_ mouth parts, and does not naturally feed itself during its adult phase (however, it is possible to feed them manually, apparently).
The main point is that the natural life-cycle of these moths involves the adults not feeding, only breeding, and then dying of starvation. This is a naturally evolved strategy for reproducing faster than other moths that need to take time to feed themselves, meaning they spend less time mating, and risk being killed by predation during feeding. I'll add a couple Wikipedia links in a reply to this comment, for reference.
Please note that I am not claiming that 'peace' silk harvesting is thus ethical -- because honestly I don't know anything else about it but what I learned in this video, and a bit on Wikipedia -- I'm only saying that the story about humans breeding them to starve is almost certainly a misunderstanding of someone who wasn't familiar with the evolution of moths. So, that argument does not 'make' this kind of harvesting unethical, since humans did not make this change to the moths. The moths themselves evolved this way over thousands or maybe millions of years.
(Still sounds like a horrific existence to me, but nobody said Nature can't be horrifying. 😨 There's a famous short story called "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" by Harlan Ellison, which comes to mind! 😶💭😱 But who knows, maybe mouthless moths simply don't feel hungry and die peacefully. 🤔 Maybe, because the adult phase is the breeding phase, they actually enjoy their existence. 😲 Who knows? 🤷♂️
Well, if anyone would know, it would be an entomologist who studies these moths (they are very well-studied!). Maybe in your research, you might find some information about it from one.)
The most common/popular silk moth: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombyx_mori
Another popular moth used, which has no mouth parts: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samia_cynthia
Hope that helps. Good luck on your research! 😊
Seems UA-cam has automatically filtered my comment with the links, as I suspected it might. You can check your filtered comments on your channel and find it in there. Cheers! 😊
Thank you so so much for making this video and for being so clear and cogent in your explanations. There are SO many aspects to think about when we buy anything, it's, frankly, kind of overwhelming. Thank you for giving us solutions (thrifting! etc.) and not just oversimplifying this complicated subject. As a vegan, I have *struggled* with this dilemma. I have chosen to not fret about what I bought in the past and just gradually (and mindfully) get rid of things and replace them with more sustainable and eco products as much as possible. (And also do clothes swaps with girl friends whenever possible.) Thanks again, Ann from Veggie Magnifique
I've love this series! I'm looking forward to your next video! These are so informative and really well researched! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
Thank you so much!! Unfortunately there was a hiccup and part 3 won't be out for a few weeks, but I have some exciting videos planned in the mean time. :)
+My Green Closet I don't mind about the hiccup! I can wait! :) I love your capsule makeup video!
Cork!! I just love cork! It's perfekt for Jackets, bags and schoes :) Thx for the Video!
SUPER interesting and helpful video. I've recently been struggling with the choice of second hand leather (which I'm uncomfortable with as a vegan) or trying to find another vegan second hand alternative. This really helps lay out the pros and cons in an informational way. Thanks for another wonderful video inspiring informed/compassionate choices!
Thank you! Really happy you found it helpful! :)
Great videos!!
One advantage I find with natural materials is durability. Like winter boots made from real leather last me sooo much longer than ones made from synthetic leather.
Thanks!!
I've found some synthetics are much better than they used to be. My longest wearing boots and bags are synthetic and have held up beautifully so I think it really depends on the quality of the synthetic leather.
+My Green Closet That is interesting. Will definitely keep watching your videos and keep getting inspired to make conscious decisions :)
Those brave birds putting it on the line to keep us snuggled up in those bitter winter months.
Wow! What an eye opener! I'd no idea about some of this ( except fur). Thanks for such informative videos.
You really deserve more viewers! Try to go to a seminar about marketing or learn from big youtubers how to get there because you deserve it! Sometimes a change of strategy can change the outcome
I recently purchased two purses from a Swiss company called allCORK. They're smooth and very good quality but is all made out of cork which looks like leather.
Nice! It's really exciting to see more cork products. I think the next purse I purchase will likely be cork. I hopefully won't have to buy one anytime soon, but I'll check out that brand! :)
yes! I didn't know even know of cork as a textile until I discovered this brand at a vegan festival. :)
Hello lovely, another great job of yours! I swear I'll never purchase new acrylic products again. Not for all the tea in China!
What is microfiber? Are microfiber bed sheets good? Or are they like polyester?
You're tips are always great.
I'm surprised you didn't mention whether leather is often produced via by products of the food industry. That would be the logical source, but industry is often lacking in basic logic. :/
The trick with wool is also to look local and visit the farms personally and see how the farmers treat their animals. Smaller farms treat their animals like family and care for them for the long term. (As I typed this, you mentioned it yourself about yarn. ^_^)
OMG! I have to check out that rescue company! That's awesome!! :D
Thanks for sharing your knowledge in such an easy way to understand! :D
I'm glad she didn't go all out on how bad animal products and great vegan stuff is. I'm also glad she did say that animal fibers can be kind and how damaging synthetic stuff is.
It is a great video! I learnt a lot of new information and I hope I will find it useful someday. Thank you very much for your amazing videos :-)
Wow. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. It's really frustrating that people/manufacturers have to abuse their animals! It's not that hard to treat an animal with love and respect. I love leather boots but now I'm gonna have to look for a safe, biodegradable alternative to my leather boots.
It's incredibly sad that so much animal abuse goes on. I don't know how people can do that to an animal, but I guess people do terrible things to other people too. :(
But on a lighter note, even though there aren't any perfect options there definitely are better options, and even something simple like buying 1 pair of shoes that are going to last you a long time, instead of having to replace them 2-3 times makes a huge difference. :)
There is also the health angle to consider dont forget....natural fibres breathe, meaning it allows our skin to breathe still, which is VERY important. Manmade fibres do not breathe as readily (or at all in most cases) making them very unhealthy to wear for any real length of time
What's your update on peace silk? =)
Thank you so much for these videos♡ Can you do a video abouth shoes??
Hi, I live in Uk and I cannot find the company you mentioned, could you please let me know the name or have you got any link ? Thank you.
so helpful, thank you!
Amazing video - thank you! It's been very helpful and it encourages me to stick to secondhand shopping. Btw. if I got it right you moved from Canada to Germany, in which city are you currently living? Just curious :)
Thank you! I live in Cologne :)
I think a major problem with the treatment of animals is mass production. Small homesteads and farms typically don't abuse their animals because they are more connected to them. In fact they typically treat their animals like royalty because the animals are their livelihoods. Mass animal farming has a horrible impact on the environment as well.
Amazing Information! Thank you
very informative video, thank you so much!
love this Thank You! 💙second hand shopping
Very informative and nice video! :) Loved it.
Thanks!!
Thank you!! This was very objective and informative. Love your channel!
Thank you! :)
Such good info! Thank you!
One more thing: no animal product is cruelty free. It is impossible to animal exploration of any kind to be cruelty free.
Just for those who are thinking about the subject.. :)
Of course you can see that way if it pleases you.. :)
These are soo great! Thanks for the info!! keep em coming ;)
Raising animals in a large scale it's not sustainable either, so I'm pretty sure that the synthetics versions are still a better option due to the animal exploration and so.
thats true
Thank you so much, this was exactly the information I needed
I really appreciated this video. I would just add that wearing second hand leather and even non animal leather still normalizes the practice. if more people became aware of the cruelty, started associating the look with that instead of fashion, and made a conscious decision to avoid purchasing leather/suede it might very well go out of style the same way that fur has (lots of animal rescue groups will accept donated fur as it can be used for orphaned baby animals for comfort or warmth). I also don't like buying any animal products even second hand because it still cosigns the idea that animals should be used for human consumption, and if someone is looking for leather shoes for example, and they check the thrift store first, and I've already purchased the ones they would have bought, they're more than likely going to go out and buy a new pair, therefore indirectly creating a demand for new leather goods. To each their own though. the Hannibal Lecture feeling I remember when I was phasing out wearing my old leather when becoming vegan was enough to gross me out to the point that I felt so awful wearing the skin of someone else, even if they had been dead for a long time.
Thank you!
I agree totally with you ;)
Nice!
so much info to digest but appreciative nonetheless
great job!!
So helpful! Thanks so much for the video :) Just wondering, are you vegan? x
Glad you enjoyed it! :) I'm not vegan, I have a primarily vegan diet/lifestyle but not entirely.
get material from small organic material farm, which do not hurt any animal and produce the material without the use of any chemical . Those farms are everywhere . The only reason people do not purchase from them is because they refuse to pay 20 dollars for a Tshirt . I am a veterinarian and vegan (of course) and not only will i only buy organic vegan food , i will also only buy organic vegan clothes . And if i have to pay 2000 dollars for a suit , then so be it .
Besides . Second hand vintage clothes are the best alternative . Or you can buy old fabric bolt have them cleaned and sewn into the clothe you want .
The problem is not the environmental or ethical issue , it is the fact that people want new and cheap . Which is the best recipe for disaster . Get old vintage second hand stuff, from clothes to furniture etc, and eat organic and vegan . Or get ready to pay a lot more than the average person . If we ALL buy from organic vegan farms , then those farms will grow and the food and clothes will become a lot cheaper , but we have to make the conscious decision to chose ethic over pricetag .
What fabrics are these 'organic vegan clothes' made of?
Could you please explain how does shopping second hand play a part in not supporting wool production? Are we not indirectly buying wool too?
The way I see it is if I buy a wool sweater from a charity shop my money is going to the shop/charity not the brand who made the sweater. The brand receives no support/benefit from me buying that sweater, as far as they're concerned it could just be in the landfill. Since wool is an incredibly durable and long lasting material (also doesn't shed micro-fibres) I think it's great to keep it out of landfills and give clothes as long a life as possible. Shopping secondhand is a way to do that without giving your money to the company that produced the wool garments. I have a video similar to this about if it's ethical to buy fast-fashion secondhand: ua-cam.com/video/eFmtelkz0eE/v-deo.html
Looking for naturally tanned leather? Look at the edge, if it has a white strip on the cut edge DON'T BUY IT! Same color through? Good to go!
Wonderful video. Thank you for making it.
Buying second hand does not absolve you from the industry. A common misconception to feel good. People buy those designer bags for their resale value once they tire of them. People also buy the cheap clothing so that they can 'donate' once they become disposable. You can be picky about what you buy second hand too !
Stella McCartney is an authority on this topic - plastic Vs leather. In an interview, she presents her research on how the plastic polymers she uses is 8 times more echo-friendly with the actual numbers. You might want to look into it.
Thanks!
Do you have a link to that Stella McCartney interview? I tried searching for it but can't seem to find it.
I love what she does, but honestly at the price point her bags and shoes are they should be made out of a pretty great synthetic. It would be very disappointing if the bags were that expensive and used the same Polyurethane as a $100 bag.
I think animal cruelty in silk production is questionable, because insect doesn't feel pain. Of course there is no talk about cruelty when it comes to mosquitos, cockroaches, woodworms etc. But from my point of view there isn't any difference except silk worms are bred on purpose.
Of course they do. They may not have as sophisticated an experience of it as we do, with our relatively huge brains, but they still experience harm-avoidance sensations (nociception, a technical term for the simplest kind of pain), as do all animals that have been studied for this (including, for instance, fruit flies, which are insects). Pain is one of the most fundamental senses for survival, so it makes sense it would have evolved very early in animals, meaning that probably all animals have it.
I just wish I had more 'normal' feet so I could get second-hand shoes! Sigh.
By buying second hand leather products you still 'support' the leather industry and cruelty, because somebody still makes money out of it and they think it is ok to sell it because they make money out of it... plus as a role model to other people you shouldn't use it. Because they see something, they like what you wearing or and buy it brand new because they don't know it is 'second hand'...
I'm not concerned about worms being killed. I have to admit that my sympathy goes to mammals.
first video is okay, this one is effortless, when making visual aids ,you don't go for visuals in the expense of the aid "which is the info"
dislike it's like you are not even trying, when in reality it's harder editing and it looks better it had more effort put into it
pro vs cons in one screen is the only way to go when presenting sweet little girl, i would expect nothing less from a vegan
love this Thank You! 💙second hand shopping