I've had some pretty big posts—big concept posts, I guess—rattling around a while in my brain. But I haven't worked out how to articulate some of these ideas.
So instead I thought I'd steal some beautiful Instagrams from my Posts You've Liked feed (credited with click thru and below ofc) and do a little mind dump.
- I'm not gonna let myself buy from Amazon anymore.
- Kristen Stewart's birthday was this week. I still have a weird thing for Kristen Stewart.
- I have no desire to watch films anymore. Old or new. I went to film school. This concerns me. But only when I allow myself to think about it.
- I want to read Outlander so I can watch sexy Scottish men on telly.
- Where can I buy clothes that aren't made in a sweatshop or from sketchily obtained raw materials? Is it People Tree, Kuyichi, and charity shops for the rest of my life?
- Why is the ASOS Eco Edit so shit?
- I want everything Jenn Im puts in a video. Shit.
- I want to live more sustainably. This blog is really great.
- I've gone off hormonal birth control but I've heard mixed things about the Temperature Monitoring Method. I'd like to not contribute to killing the planet with latex consumption but, knowing me, I'd fuck up the temperature tracking, and then boom, surprise, PREGGO!
- My mom is gonna be really pissed if I stop using toothpaste with fluoride in.
- I need to take better care of my teeth. If I don't watch out, they're gonna all fall out of my head and then I'm gonna have to invest in dentures.
- Cloth pads. Can I do this? For makeup removal & skincare—probably. For periods—ehhhhhm that's gonna be stepping out of my comfort zone for sure. But a step I feel I should try. (I'm not into the Moon Cup thing.)
- I want to shift to only buying from companies that require their suppliers to not test any raw material they sell on animals, not just the ingredients sold for cosmetics. This is going to take a lot of effort and emailing, ugh. Can companies just not be sneaky, that would be great. So far, I have LUSH and maybe Lord & Berry.
- This is going to be a long road.
23 comments
I would also love to start buying non-sweatshop clothing, but it seems almost impossible from what I've researched so far, especially with my budget (besides second hand clothing). May I ask where you've been looking for info? I'm a bit overwhelmed by it all :(
ReplyDeleteI am very overwhelmed by it, don't get me wrong. It's honestly just been Googling 'sustainable clothing brands' or 'fair trade fashion'. I'm really only looking for brands in the UK, as that's where I am based. Don't want to be paying an arm and a leg for shipping and customs on top of what's already usually pretty expensive items. The one semi-useful resource I found was a Guardian article but it was from 2013, so quite a bit of the information was out of date.
DeleteI'll be sure to share any finds on Twitter and here too. But I see from your blog that you are Canadian? I might not be the most helpful resource to you as I'll be more UK/EU focused. In fact, I just remembered one more brand--Kuyichi, a sustainable denim brand based in the Netherlands. Adding that into this post!
The whole living sustainably is something I feel like I need to be better at. One thing I've found really useful is going to a fairtrade/ethical shop (is that what you call them??), finding brands of clothing or whatever, then going home and researching online to see whether I agree with their ethics. One brand I've found this way is Braintree clothing, they're still a bit pricey but if you're on a budget (like me!) then the sale clothing is pretty reasonably priced.
ReplyDeleteYes, I really need to sit down and track down some fairtrade clothing shops in London. There *have* to be some. I've seen Braintree around the web here and there and just checked--they have a couple UK stockists. Win!
DeleteI've been having a lot of similar thoughts. I've been slowly becoming vegetarian/vegan, switching makeup to organic, cruelty free, buying more sustainable products and I definitely had that same reaction to cloth pads haha.
ReplyDeleteTrash is for Tossers, you and Sanne, and so many others are huge inspirations though. So thanks!
http://lostindreamland8.blogspot.com/
Thank you for your comment, Kimberly! Glad I'm not alone in this. And well done you on the veg/vegan front :)
DeleteI was not prepared for that KStew photo you linked, godddd.
ReplyDeleteRE: living sustainably, I somehow thought I could cut the lunette~ cup and nope, I cannot. But I haven't stopped trying. One of these days.
I REALLY am out of options when it comes to clothing available locally. I have been looking into places like Everlane but I feel like having my wardrobe shipped into where I live (manila) will make my carbon footprint unspeakably huge, so I have no idea how to do this shit without feeling guilty. Except maybe not to buy clothes for now.
I've been enjoying a lot of green/CF brands, but the premium price tag really hurts my brain sometimes.
She's great, right? Ugh.
DeleteYeah, I feel like I will eventually get to the Moon/Lunette cup stage but I need to ease myself into that baby pool.
Yeah, definitely living further away from the hub of the hippy brand makers blows. I definitely take London for granted sometimes. I remember living in Indiana and being like UGH THERE IS NOTHING. And I'm with you on the carbon footprint guilt. I'm like damn you US companies and your innovations. I've definitely been buying less and getting hand-me-downs from friends. How is the secondhand clothes culture in Manila? Maybe look into local ebay stuff?
You should try a moon cup. Totally a weird concept, and I wasn't into it either, but I was tired of the all the garbage. I now use a Diva Cup (Canadian brand) and love it. The first couple months were weird... But you get to know your body a lot better (always a good thing!)... And it has made a very unpleasant time of month into an only slightly unpleasant time of month. :)
ReplyDeleteI know. I will. One day. I just gotta warm up to the idea a bit more. You are totally right though--getting to know your body more is nothing but a good thing!
DeleteThanks for the inspiration here! :) I've been thinking about a lot of those and similar things for a while now, and I feel like it's time for me to finally take some action. I'd be really interested to hear more about sustainable clothing as well.
ReplyDeleteAlso: sexy Scotsmen = top! :D
I'm in the same place. Time to start! Being more of a conscious consumer and finding a nice used hardback of Outlander :D
DeletePlease don't go off fluoride! I know all the companies that make fluoride toothpaste are evil but it's like the magic molecule! Either that or never eat any sugar again - too depressing to contemplate
ReplyDeleteOkay Mooooooooom. No, I don't think I will. Especially as I do not see myself giving up sugar anytime ever.
DeleteThere's a French brand called Ekyog - it's a bit pricy but the sales are decent
ReplyDeleteOoooooo, merci.
DeleteThe Amazon thing... yeah I've probably been trying to do that for three years but unfortunately, as a poor student, it doesn't seem to be happening yet :(
ReplyDeleteI also really want to come off hbc as it's screwing with my balance and giving me some mega acne/emotional problems but I am actually beyond freakin' terrified of getting preggers, no lie. I have nightmares about it sometimes...
Be strong, Katie! If only on the Amazon front. What are you buying from there anyway?
DeleteI really, really, really do not like kids. So yeah, getting pregz is THE LAST "happy accident" I could possibly want. So will continue that deforestation for a bit :/
Marion, this 'On My Mind' post-and-a-half turned up in my rss feed for a second time for some unknown, so I'm going to go with my initial intent, absent-time, and offer at least half-a-response...
ReplyDeleteI admire your drive to buy less and/or source ethical and sustainable stuff, but I can't really help you with any of that.
I also share your weird fascination - if that's the word - with Kristen Stewart, but I can't help either of us with that. I don't even care that she smokes and that really is weird.
Teeth; not Kristen Stewart's..
I have three fillings - the same number I had after getting two teeth filled in one go when I was fourteen. Decided to get my act together and look after them.
I hate regular toothpaste and rarely use any. You can clean your teeth just as well without it. Takes a bit of getting used to. One less expense. My breath is nice. Teeth are clean.
Other factors have played a role in the no-more-fillings thing...
When I was about eighteen, I went into a small pharmacy, and they - I later gathered, illegally - were selling some proper dental equipment. Used diligently a couple of times a day, the dental probe I still have negates the need to floss. Marion - even if you can only get hold of a cheap, half-arsed, plastic-handled one from an online Chinastore, *highly* recommended.
Also - whenever I eat or drink something sweet or acidic, I try to take a big sip of water and slosh it around before I swallow. Otherwise, just be conscious that your saliva + tongue can work wonders... to keep your teeth clean...
When I'm home and before eating anything anti-teeth, I will also chew on a small amount of no-added-sugar crunchy peanut butter to good effect before eating other stuff. Peanuts contain very specific phosphoproteins that adhere and render a strong anticariogenic effect - compensating at least to a degree for other stuff eaten afterwards that may not be so great for the gnashers.
Marion, you have a transformationally beautiful smile - and let's not even talk about those lips...
Look After Yo Teeth!
Moon cups - I have heard of them, but I don't need to know how they work.
They do sound spacey - in a very non-KevinKindaWay.
I do think that if I were a girly-spec human, that I might just try stuffing a couple of folded kitchen paper-towels down my undies. Those paper towels are always being advertised as being 'highly absorbent' and good for 'mopping-up spills'...
You're welcome.
I suppose I was something of a 'film buff' for about five years after I left school.
A twin-cinema owner in my town (Canberra - a long way from Indiana) showed both arty and mainstream films. In addition to all the usual stuff that eventually made it on to video and tv, I was there two or three times a week watching all manner of stuff.
Then, an epiphany.. Just too many blocks of 2hrs where it was a case of 'Is that all there is?', with the answer being 'Yes'.
Down the track a bit, it dawned that photography, and - especially - music, provided me with more sustained enjoyment.
By that stage, I had also accumulated hundreds of cd's and hundreds of pieces of secondhand vinyl that I hadn't even listened to once. Something had to give.
Drifted away from film - and film & other stuff - on tv.
Marion, given that you studied cinema with an actual, real, focus - maybe your interest in it will be rekindled at some point.
If not - it's not the end of the world.
I am a garden-variety-straight-male. I have no interest in Scottish blokes.
My heritage is almost entirely Irish. On that basis, I am horribly offended by your wanton Celtic bias.
I am also offended on behalf of that Welsh Corgi you *said* you grew up with.
You're a monster.
:P
T.
I'm obsessed with my Diva Cup. I only have to change it twice a day, I know exactly how much blood I'm producing (a lot less than you think with tampons), and I never have to worry about leaks.
ReplyDeletePerhaps you could get an IUD? Less waste, easier to maintain, and could possibly stop your period entirely so then you wouldn't have to worry about pads, etc.
You are producing such good content these days, m-honey. You're inspiring me lots.
Amanda, my love! Thank you for commenting, boo. I still haven't made any decisions re: this post & periods. I'm waiting until I move to my new place (ONE WEEK FROM TOMORROW!) and I think then I will likely experiment with the Diva Cup/UK equivalent. I need to have a Google and see how people deal with it at work. *walks out of toilet cubicle with hands looking straight from a murder scene*
DeleteI'm coming to this blog post SUPER late, but I was really inspired by this post and want to share my thoughts!
ReplyDeleteI definitely feel you on the Amazon front. I used to buy mainly books as I'm a creative writing major, but then I realized libraries essentially have everything I need, and if I want to own the book, I can find it at my local bookstore and support my own community. Amazon is basically the ultimate enemy of publishers, especially small, regional ones, and I know that as an aspiring author I don't want to cause harm and strife to the small-press publishers I support and hope to collaborate with in the future.
I found that shopping vintage and second-hand is a nice supplement to shopping for eco-friendly clothing. It's kind of like recycling clothes, since by buying vintage/secondhand you aren't contributing to anything new being made, and it prevents these items from going to landfills (!!!) or who knows where else.
I've been really considering switching off of hormonal birth control, simply because the idea of artificial hormones altering my body kind of freaks me out. I've thought about a copper IUD, but again, foreign substance sitting inside my body for up to 10 years...not sure about that. And condoms are great and all, but they're wasteful, and I never trust them on their own. I'm way to paranoid to just use them alone. So I'm not quite sure what to do on that front, but I do know I'd like to give up the pill eventually.
If you're looking for cosmetics beyond Lush and Lord & Berry, I'd recommend looking into Alima Pure and Colourpop Cosmetics if you haven't already. I use both of those brands and as far as I know they are cruelty-free, but whether it's 100% I'm not quite sure.
I hope you're doing well. I'm really glad I stumbled upon your blog, Youtube channel, and collab channel with Sanne. You've been making such great content and it's refreshing compared to a lot of what's out there currently.
Hi Lauren--just wanted to let you know that the day you posted this comment, I was having a pretty sucky day. Reading it in my inbox really cheered me up so wanted to say thank you! You were know when you are going to inadvertently brighten up someone's day.
DeleteLoved reading all your thoughts (we are very similar!) so thank you for sharing :) Colourpop sadly don't ship to the UK yet BUT I have my cousin visiting me in a couple weeks and I sent a massive order to her house to bring over to me in her checked luggage. Oops. But hopefully that'll mean some Colourpop swatch posts! ...not that the world doesn't already have a bajillion...
Hope you have a lovely day!