By Annabelle Ingram

With the rise of pollution stemming from the fashion industry, hereÔÇÖs everything London Fashion Week (LFW) did to promote sustainable fashion, helping to reduce the negative effects of one of our favourite past-times ÔÇô shopping.

The fashion industry is one of the worldÔÇÖs largest polluters, accounting for 10% of global carbon footprint alone. The primary issue of this pollution is one related to the fast fashion industry, which focuses onhigh-speed, yet low-cost production processes in order to deliver new and frequent collections to catwalks.

However, in more recent years, London Fashion Week and the British Fashion Council have aimed for more sustainable shows.

In 2018, LFW was one of the first and main celebrations of fashion to go completely ÔÇÿfur-freeÔÇÖ. Following this, in 2019, we saw the British Fashion Council launch the ÔÇÿQueen Elizabeth IIÔÇÖ award for any British design that can recognise a fashion designer that primarily focuses on sustainability and community practices, encouraging brands, like Vivienne Westwood, to take this specific environmental approach.

One of my personal highlights during this yearÔÇÖs LFW was the number of sustainable brands that were on display, emphasising the commitment that the fashion industry has made to taking on more ethical approaches, whilst also helping to reduce the negative effects that fashion has on our earth.

Vin+Omi, one of the designers featured on this yearÔÇÖs Autumn/Winter runway, had directly worked with Prince Charles, founder of the National Trust, to purposely create pieces that were made from CharlesÔÇÖ own nettle plants found in his Highgrove estate. These unique, yet culturally interesting designs were then coloured with plant dyes, drawing attention to the beauty of our slowly dying planet.

In addition, Riley Studio presented a sustainable unisex loungewear that was created from upcycled waste products, such as ocean plastics and fishing nets. The clothes that were produced are not only kind to the environment, but they should also be also kind to those who decided to wear them. Staple items designed for the collection, such as the iconic tracksuit bottoms, are not only easy-to-wear, but also reportedly extremely comfy!

Despite all this positivity about sustainability coming from LFW, there is still a lack of concern from major fashion houses, like Burberry, that helps to sustain the issue. In my opinion, sustainability is the way forward and London Fashion Week is definitely aware of its importance!