Saving our Water Supply Through Eco Friendly Fashion Choices

Why are we so passionate about eco friendly production? We love the ocean.  We love being in it, around it, near it, and, most importantly, saving it. We know we can't do it all on our own, but we every day we work towards being a small brand, making small changes to make a small difference in our big world.  

For real stats on the fashion industry's impact on the planet, we'd like to introduce you to one of our favorite experts who can explain it more eloquently than we can:

Meet Eva Kruse, CEO of the Danish Fashion Institute and founder of the Copenhagen Fashion Summit, the world's largest sustainable fashion forum. Eva recently spoke at The Business of Fashion Voices conference about the impact of fashion manufacturing on the planet.

Key Stats to Take Away

• The amount of pesticides used in cotton production is second only to corn.
• It takes 2,000 liters of water to make 1 Kilo of cotton. This Kilo of cotton makes only 1 t-shirt and 1 pair of jeans.
• The fashion industry produces up to 20% of the world's industrial water pollution.
• 783 Million people ( that is 1 in 10), do not have access to fresh drinking water.  
• Over 40% of the surface water in China's rivers is polluted.

These stats seem scary, overwhelming even. But there are things that you can do to make a difference.

How to Save Water Through Your Buying Choices

• Look for products that use natural, biodegradable dyes
• Re-use, Repurpose, Recycle with clothing swap with fashionable friends
• Make Clothes Last by washing less frequently and air drying
• Buying locally reduces environmental impact of transportation pollution
• Skip low-cost fast fashion like Forever 21 and H&M who manufacture with ‘design obsolescence’ in mind.  Garments are made to fall apart and fall out of fashion as quickly as you walk out the door, thus, perpetuating disposable fashion cycle.  
• Choose eco-friendly fabrics like bamboo, silk, organic cotton, soy, hemp and lyocell, viscose, cupro and modal.  
• Go faux. Leather and fur production not only harms millions of animals every year, but the toxic dyes and chemicals used to treat these materials does a number on the planet.

Join us at ocean+main in making choices every day to help nurture ourselves and the planet.  

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Ocean + Main creates eco friendly caftans and tunics inspired by the ocean, made on main street. Ethically sourced and locally made in Los Angeles.