DOCUMENTARIES

Drowning in Plastic

 

This documentary was a difficult watch, showing the devastating harm the accumulation of years of plastic has caused the environment and especially marine animals.

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Image from https://www.bakerswaste.co.uk/drowning-in-plastic/

 

Some scenes were so distressing it was hard to watch, it’s heart-wrenching to see animals suffer from human consumption, the worst is it’s all preventable. We could have all stopped it from getting as bad as it currently is.


It was inspiring to see people trying to create inovative materials for plastic such as using seaweed, biodegradable products are the way forward especially for alternatives to single use plastics. The ocean clean up inventions looks very promising even though most are in the early stages, at lest there’s hope for cleaning the amount of waste destroying the oceans and marine life.

 

Marine life are often eating plastic and micro plastics instead of fish, mistaking plastic-bags for jelly fish. These plastics are terrible for there health, weighing birds down so they can’t fly slowing killing them. Most injury’s inflicted on the animals are due to them getting caught in plastic waste, leaving them with horrible injures or trapping them in the fishing nets. It is so severe it is effecting the food chain with plastics been found in remote places like Antarctica.


What can we do to help:

| Refuse single use plastics

| Use reusable items such as water bottles, coffee cups, shopping bags, metal straws

| Shop organic natural materials avoid plastic fabrics

| If washing synthetic clothing put them in a net bag to catch the Micro fibres

| Wash clothing less, do spot cleaning instead of washing the whole garment and hang them out to dry

| Raise awareness

| Help with beach clean ups, local plastic clean ups

| Read labels and recycle

| Buy items in bulk in glass jars and avoid items wrapped in plastic

| Find out about your local recycling see what items you can recycle at home and which you can take to a recycling center.


We can all do more to save this planet. Our home.


BBC plastic action


https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0bmbn47

 

Chasing Coral

 

Wow just wow!

I instantly clicked on this film on Netflix thinking I would see beautiful imagery of coral reefs. But instead I learned that climate change is killing these amazing coral reefs and we need to do something about it!

 

My first action is awareness, I didn't know that coal reef would be as bad as it is and I'm sure a lot of other people don't know either. So I'm telling you all to watch this program. The more awareness and education people have means we can all try do something to change us losing an amazing ecosystem and home for the aquamarine life.

 

25% of coral has been bleached (died) in 30 years which means another 30 years we might not have any coral reef

 

 https://www.chasingcoral.com/

 

Want to take action read more about it here

 https://www.chasingcoral.com/take-action/

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The Minimalist Documentary

 

One of the most inspiring documentaries I have seen in a while. Definitely worth a watch.

 

For the authors to have been in well paid business jobs but yet not completely happy was unusual, as your first thoughts are if you have money you are happy.

This was not the case, leaving their high profile jobs and living a minimal lifestyle has made them happy and appreciate life. They are now touring around the world with their book, spreading the word of minimalism.

It is a revolutionary new movement that is becoming more and more apt for our busy lives. People are wanting to live a simpler life, a life more than material objects.

 

‘With shopping habits people have a gaping void they feel like they need to fill with stuff to make them feel better, which is where consumer purchases come in. But after all their shopping sprees they are still longing for more.’

 

If you think about it with all the stuff you have hoarded in your life how much do you actually use? The point the guys were saying is does it have a value to you? does it mean something to you? is it functional?

If not then you don't need it! Get rid of it sell it, recycle it, give it to a charity. Free yourself of clutter for a happier life. 

Project 33.3

This is such a great concept, to prove you do not need fast fashion. Fast fashion does not pay true ecological costs, this and lack of paid labour is harming the planet and the people that make the fabrics and garments. Slow fashion is the way forward. Be sustainable. Being able to produce a capsule wardrobe wearing 33 interchangeable pieces of clothing, shoes and accessories to wear for 3 months. And repeat.

'Just don't buy anything! '

Not only is this an ethical way of dressing, this is great for creative, busy people. By having more time in the morning, not thinking about how to put together outfits and what accessories they can put them with. It's already thought out and you can easily grab a few items and know whatever you pick up they will automatically go together within your capsule wardrobe. Who wouldn't want more time!

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 Image from https://bemorewithless.com/project-333/

Credits

https://bemorewithless.com/project-333/

 

Tiny Houses

People were living their life depending on how big their houses were, buying more and more stuff to fill their huge empty houses, there is no need to have more than what you actually need.

‘Affordability, simplicity, sustainability. Do more with less. Small spaces makes sense environmentally.’

Tammy Stroble founder of tiny houses which are social homes. ‘In the end it isn't about the size of your house or how you can move it around it's about mindful choices, it's about flexibility and freedom spending time with loved ones.’

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 Image from  http://www.rowdykittens.com/2017/10/tinyjam/

Credits

http://www.rowdykittens.com/our-tiny-house/ 

 

Exile Lifestyle 

Collin wright is a full time traveller he stated a blog to record his travels, which is now his job as a nomade traveller. He is giving homeless a different meaning. All he possesses is what he carries on him traveling from place to place. This is such an amazing concept. He owns no home but yet isn’t homeless, he is a minimalist nomade showing people how you don’t need to be stuck in one place with all your useless possessions, he is traveling the world with all he needs in his backpack.

 

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Image from https://www.theminimalists.com/exile/

Credits

 http://exilelifestyle.com

 

After watching this documentary it opened my eyes to mass consumerism. We don’t need to buy things to make us content. We can be more than happy, with a simple clutter free lifestyle. Have a think when you next go shopping, see whether any of the links listed can help you get more organised and pro active in a happy minimal lifestyle.

‘Live life with less!’

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The True Cost Documentary

 
Image from https://truecostmovie.com/‘This is a story about clothing. It’s about the clothes we wear, the people who make them, and the impact the industry is having on our world. The price of clothing has been decreasing for decades, while the huma…

Image from https://truecostmovie.com/

This is a story about clothing. It’s about the clothes we wear, the people who make them, and the impact the industry is having on our world. The price of clothing has been decreasing for decades, while the human and environmental costs have grown dramatically. The True Cost is a groundbreaking documentary film that pulls back the curtain on the untold story and asks us to consider, who really pays the price for our clothing?

Filmed in countries all over the world, from the brightest runways to the darkest slums, and featuring interviews with the world’s leading influencers including Stella McCartney, Livia Firth and Vandana Shiva, The True Cost is an unprecedented project that invites us on an eye opening journey around the world and into the lives of the many people and places behind our clothes

Extract from https://truecostmovie.com/

Watching this film changed everything, from my personal life to my business. It was shocking to watch! It made me realise how much fashion plays a huge part in ruining the Earth, as well as the lives of people involved within the fashion industry. From people that live near factories, that leak out chemicals into the water supply, slave labour from children, to people working every hour of the day for little to no money, fashion has ruined people lives. Consumers should to be aware of this!

In the documentary it revisits the horror that was the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in 2013, bringing fashion factory workers health and safety to the forefront of the news around the world.  

People buy into fast fashion so easily without considering the impact. Designers & brands used to only produce 2 collections a year, now it’s 52, a collection out each week of the year, it just shows how bad fast fashion has got.

Ask yourself a few questions when you next go shopping: How can this t-shirt only cost £5?  How was the fabric grown and produced? Where was the the garment produced? Who made the garment? Are they getting paid fairly? What is the carbon footprint of this item? The most important question is Can I make a difference?

After watching the documentary it made me realise that I can make a difference, being a fashion designer. I can make changes for the better. Showing consumers that you can have luxury contemporary fashion that is also ethically made and sustainably produced. I am hoping other businesses  realise that they can make a change for the better.

 

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Is it difficult to become a fully sustainable business? Yes it is but it was the best thing we ever did. Everything is a learning curve, we are always trying new ideas and improving to make things better.

We were already using end of roll fabrics, these fabrics would otherwise end up as landfill waste, and we were producing garments in house, but we knew we could do more.

 Zero waste is also a move we wanted to do for a while, by using fabric in the most economical way. Also rather then only recycling the fabric waste, we are now recycling everything from patten paper, card, and branding materials. If we are outsourcing a product we make sure the business has the same ethics as us, and rather them then discarding the waste, we ask them to send it to us for us to reuses or recycle, we do this so we are fully knowledgeable of where the waste ends up. 

We are aiming to be be a transparent business. What we mean by that is if a customer asks where were their garments produced & where the fabric was made, we want to be able to answer that question confidently. Currently all our organic fabrics are all fully traceable. We at ZARAMIA AVA have also since gone vegan to have the least carbon footprint as we can. Going vegan as a business makes you question everything from the fabrics to the dyes, prints and packaging.

Read our Ethos here www.ZaraMiaAva.com/Ethos 

Links: 

A film by Andrew Morgan

https://truecostmovie.com/ 

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Iris Apfel Documentary

 
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The Iris Apfel documentary was inspiring to watch.

At the 'young' age of 93 Iris is the ultimate fashion icon, known recently for her ability to style accessories. Also for the notorious collections sourced from her travels around the world, whilst working as a interior designer, and her production of historical fabric &  restoration design.

 
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In the interview Iris speaks of individuality being lost these days, with people not expressing themselves, whatever age they are.

"Every time I do it I do it in a different way" she speaks about how she puts things together, saying how it’s a gut feeling. 

Iris says it’s all about getting dressed and ready for the party­­ not just being at the party. 

In her past people used to always tell her she was not pretty, and she’ll never be pretty but she has style. She clung to the styling aspect, and that itself has made her who she is today.

A good simple black dress is the best garment to have as you can dress it up or dress it down, and how you can wear it so many ways just by styling it with accessories.

Iris still goes out and chooses her accessories herself in the documentary.   As she is haggling in an African clothing shop she says the buyers get angry if you don't haggle as if they could have sold it at any price. She combines nice, ugly, cheap and chic accessories to make the perfect look. Whatever the price or wherever Iris sources her accessories or clothing, the way she puts them together makes them look expensive. Iris is able to style them in a way that transforms an outfit. She is renowned for the largest collection of costume jewellery that she lends to exhibitions. 

Iris mentions that everything comes back in fashion from the past if you wait around long enough. So that’s a reminder: don't throw  anything out just in case it’s the next big thing in fashion.

Iris is a very busy lady, always being involved with photoshoots for magazines, such as Dazed & Confused, interviews and exhibitions that host her jewellery.

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Iris has brought out a jewellery collection Rara Avis by Iris Apfel  Rara Avis in Latin means rare bird. 

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​Not only has Iris got a Jewellery range she is launching a shoe range in February. The shoes are practical, comfortable and encompass everything Iris stands for in a shoe, bright, bold  with a great attention to detail 

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Everything today is interrelated. You can tell with any garment from the past how it is affected by the period and what is happening at that time, such as with the 1940s when there were rations because the war women used to draw lines up their legs to pretend they had tights on.

I want to leave you with this statement by Iris: 

What are you inspired by? What drives you? What feeds you? Be curious with a sense of humour!

 

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