Episode 220: Slow Fashion & Inclusivity with Sushmita of Ethical Fat Fashion

Clotheshorse with Amanda Lee McCarty

Amanda is joined by Sushmita, the person behind Ethical Fat Fashion, the "coolest fat positive fashion newsletter amplifying ethical size diverse brands.” In this episode--recorded in a karaoke room in Tokyo--Amanda and Sushmita discuss the following:

• “Sustainable fashion” has an inclusivity problem. Meaning: it still focuses on thin, white, young, wealthier cis-gendered women. Why is that still the case, years into the sustainability movement in fashion?
• How can we change that? I always feel like I am part of a growing diverse community of primarily working class people, yet I still see many brands and organizations continuing to focus on the same thin/white/young/rich people. Why is it important for slow fashion to be a movement/community for everyone?
• Conversations about cost are particularly difficult because we know that the prices of ultra fast fashion are only possible because the clothes are low quality and someone suffered to make them. Fast fashion has warped our sense of value and how much clothing should cost. How do we untangle that?
• The societal expectation around how much clothing we should have has changed drastically over the years, especially during the fast fashion era. And so we think we need a lot of clothes that are inexpensive, rather than a lot less clothing at a higher price. Sushimita will share her thoughts on that and how we change our perception of value and the quantity of clothing we own.
• Also: Why we should shop from small brands, debunking the myth that there are no sustainable brands that make larger sizes, and so much more!

This episode gets started with a small business audio episode from Lisa of Top Stitch Mending. And Amanda wraps up the episode discussing how the recent election here in the United States has her thinking about the power of community and communication.

Give everyone a follow:
Sushmita: @ethicalfatfashion on every platform
Ethical Fat Fashion on Substack
@topstitchmending

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