This month we're asking you to consider shopping slowly.
take a breath, slow down, and enjoy...
some things are worth the wait
As you may know from the latest version COVID-19 government report into disproportionate deaths, Bangladeshi folks are twice as likely to die than their white counterparts. That’s why we’re taking it slow, and protecting the communities who make our clothes.
We're asking you to take a deep breath, slow down, and keep our pace, as we catch up with your orders and reopen our workshops, thoughtfully, and cautiously. Some things, like beautiful dresses, and building projects for a better fashion industry, are truly worth the wait.
There are a bunch of reasons to shop slowly. There are no bosses threatening job losses for not meeting targets at our workshops. No factory assembly line. Just talented women coming together in community spaces to make the best dresses money can buy, over tea and chat, being paid properly for their time.
Taking your time means you make better decisions, and means our makers can take theirs too. Shopping slowly helps us reduce waste, as we only make items to order that you definitely want, and that will be cherished for as long as you want them.
"There was a time in the not-too-distant past when having a piece of clothing made especially for you was the norm, not an anomaly. People not only accepted but expected the period of time between investing in a garment and the realisation of the design into a material form hanging in their wardrobe." - Is Made to Order the Future of Sustainable Fashion? From Eco-Age
“Against a backdrop of climate change, material scarcity and consumer fatigue, the very notion of disposable seasonal trends – the currency that fashion has dealt in since the proliferation of ready-to-wear in the 1960s – is increasingly irrelevant.” - SS20’s Biggest Trend? Slow Fashion That’s Rooted In Reality - from Vogue
"Birdsong sells itself as the antidote to fast fashion, producing wilfully trend-free designs. In contrast to opaque, multinational fast fashion supply chains, workers are Londoners facing barriers to work, including adults with learning disabilities to refugees, all of whom are paid a living London wage." - From loo rolls to fashion: how to spend your cash more ethically in The Guardian
& finally...follow us on Instagram
for more education and culture around fashion & sustainability, with a liberal smattering of memes. @birdsonglondon
