This page has articles on Fairtrade Hats for Summer 2010, Necklaces, Fitness Clothing, Fairtrade Underwear

Fairtrade Hats for Summer 2010

This year I have seen a number of stylish summer hats in the shops and look to see if any of these are labelled as Fairtrade hats. 

As I have yet to find a Fairtrade hat for summer in a shop, I have searched the Internet. The Peopletree website includes two stylish straw hats; sadly both their styles in Fairtrade hats have sold out!

Further online research yielded a very chic Panama had from tumi.co.uk.  These come in a choice of sizes, can be rolled for packing and cost £27.95.  In my view these Fairtrade hats are chic enough for a summer wedding and at that price represent excellent value for money.

If you want a Fairtrade hat for summer at a lower price, take a look at notjusthats.co.uk.  This is the online shop of Magpies, a retailer located in Wareham, Dorset.  For summer 2010 this site includes a range of Fairtrade hats from Madagascar.  Most of these are packable, so good for holidays, and the prices are as low as about £13.

I found some very fashionable Fairtrade hats on a website called Pachacuti.  They offer a variety of styles and colours.  The blue and yellow check summer hat shown costs £39.50, a higher price than the other Fairtrade hats I found, but it does include this summer’s hot colour, yellow.

And if you are would like a Fairtrade hat for the cooler days of summer, I simply love this sailboat beret by Lowie, available online from the Ethicsgirls shops.  Isn’t it the last word in cute?

Necklaces – an instant update for your wardrobe

It is that time of year when we get out our clothes for the coming season and decide what we might need to fill in any gaps in the wardrobe.  Most of my tops and tee-shirts are still in reasonable condition, but I’m a bit bored with some of them.   I think that the answer could be to buy a necklace, or possibly too.

Adding the right necklace can give an outfit that ‘extra something’ that makes it feel special.  This organic cotton tee from Seasalt is very nice on its own, but the addition of a necklace gives it more style.  

A little note:  the necklace is probably smaller in 'real life' than it appears in this photo.

There are displays of accessories and costume jewellery in almost all clothes shops now, but I wonder sometimes wonder where these are made, and how much profit goes to the retailer.  Take time to do a little searching, and you will find some beautiful (and affordable) Fairtrade necklaces, as well as other piece of Fairtrade jewellery.

The necklace shown in the photo above is available online from Traidcraft and costs £18.    

 I also like these blue beads, made from recycled beads in Burkina Faso.  They cost £23 and can be purchased online from tenthousandvillages.  There is a huge selection of Fairtrade necklaces on this website; you should be able to find something to compliment any colour or outfit.

This lovely birds nest pendant by Verde Rocks is rather more expensive at £55 but could make a nice birthday gift, or perhaps be justified for a special occasion.  It is available from Ascensiononline.

As well as adding extra sparkle to your existing wardrobe, a necklace can have the effect of drawing the eye up.  This is a good trick to help balance out a pear shaped figure – so all the more reason to treat yourself to a Fairtrade necklace this season.

'

Searching for Fairtrade or Organic Fitness Clothing

Pat writes:

Clothing appropriate for Pilates, Yoga or low impact sports could be made from Fairtrade or Organic cotton.  Manufacturers or retailers of Fair Trade and/or organic fitness clothing are surprisingly thin on the ground.

I have found some attractive tee shirts at Seasalt, all in 100% organic cotton.  They also sell organic cotton sweatshirts, such as this hooded top that is Fairtrade (as well as 100% organic cotton).  It costs £29.95 (plus p&p) and comes in sizes ranging from 8 to 20.

Gossypium offers a selection of yoga trousers and tee-shirts, all in Fair Trade, organic cotton.  Tricia owns several garments from Gossypium, and has reviewed them on our Keep Active page.  I also own a pair of their fold over trousers (as illustrated), and have worn them about once a week for over 2 years now.  They wash well, and have kept their shape. The style shown costs £35 and is available in sizes 8 to 18.

A search of main stream retailers has yielded absolutely nothing!  Even Marks & Spencer, which trumpets it’s environmentally friendly policy, has nothing to offer by way of Fairtrade or organic fitness clothing – at least not on their website.  I have tried alternate words in my search, such as Fairtrade sports clothing, but to no avail.

It was reported in ‘The Times’ on 29 December 2009 that sales of Fairtrade cotton fell by more than 25 % in 2009 as fashion stores and shoppers focused on low-price clothing rather than ethical concerns. 

‘The Times’ report states that “while Debenhams and some small brands, such as Gossypium and Pants to Poverty, have continued to report growth, sales at others, including M&S and Tesco...have stalled.”

This is very sad news, as a decline in Fairtrade cotton sales will hit farmers in some of the poorest parts of the world.

Fairtrade Undies Update

When we visited the Clothes Show we were impressed by a new company called Lifesnotfairbutmyknickersare.  They sell Fairtrade cotton pyjamas and lounge clothes, vests and (of course) knickers.  We weren’t the only people to be impressed – John Lewis will be stocking these lovely undies in the run up to Christmas.  New styles have been added to those that we saw last summer.  We think this grey spotted cami and knickers set is very sophisticated.  Their products come in sizes S, M and L.  Pyjama trousers are priced at £15; knickers are £7 to £8 depending on the style.                                     

  Want to find out more about the Fair Trade movement?  We've picked out a few books, shown below.

 Click here to return to HOME page.