Fair Trade clothing

A lot of the fair trade bags you'll find floating around on the Internet tend to be a bit more fashion-forward (A.K.A of limited use in real-world situations) partly because the fashion industry has latched onto fair trade bags, clothing, and accessories as a way to sell more high-end (read expensive) products. fair trade clothing They tend to be small, adorned with useless baubles, and are made to accentuate an outfit rather than actually hold anything. However, you can find fair trade bags that are fashionable, fun, and useful if you do a little research.

One excellent alternative to tiny and unpractical purses are sling bags. They're fun and fresh but feature plenty of storage room inside. I recommend looking for one with internal compartments so your stuff doesn't end up as one huge pile you have to paw through. And the best thing about sling bags is they're easy to carry. You don't have a thin strap cutting into your shoulder all day long and don't have to worry about tying your hands up carrying a clutch.

As fashion accessories, sling bags have gotten a bad rap over the years. They're often seen as "mommy bags" because they can carry so much (and be so huge.) The trick to buying the perfect shoulder bag is finding one that's just big enough for your necessities without being too big. The over-sized trend that was so hot last year is kind of dying out now that fall is upon us and you don't want your shoulder bag to make you look like a little girl playing dress up.

And men can rock a shoulder bag too-they aren't all just for girls. They are plenty of manly alternatives out there for the eco fashion -forward man who's not afraid to carry his stuff in style. David Beckham, Johnny Depp, and more have all been spotted by the paparazzi carrying man bags and it doesn't get much more masculine than those guys.

Man bags tend to come in leather and canvass-mostly in earth tones-but you can find alternatives such as natural fiber (hemp is a big one) and even recycled materials. One "trick" you can use to get your guy to carry man bags is to call them something fancy like a briefcase or a satchel-Indiana Jones carried a satchel! And stay away from the bright colors, unless your man is a fashion plate!Have you ever wondered what fair trade companies actually do? And just because they say that they are ethical and you should buy their products, how can you know they can truly be trusted?

If you've ever found yourself asking these questions, then check out these simple tips and guidelines to help you navigate the world of ethical trading and ensure that your shopping experience is a positive one.

When a product is described as 'fair trade', it means that producers were paid decent wages (often two to three times more than standard, and certainly not the minimum wage), working conditions were humane, sustainable working practices were followed, and that all of these were closely monitored.

Fair trade companies purchase from producer groups as directly as possible, eliminating unnecessary or exploitative middlemen. This means there is no sub-contracting and out-sourcing. Supply chains must be transparent.

After all, so many companies distance themselves and their brands from the products they sell and the factories where production takes place. There's a good quote from Helen Woodward, an important US copywriter in the 1920s, which illustrates the gap between the aspirational image of a brand and the often grim reality of how the products are actually made:

"If you are advertising any product, never see the factory in which it was made...Don't watch the people at work...because, you see, when you know the truth about anything, the real inner truth - it is very hard to write the surface fluff which sells it".

Put simply, fair trade companies are the opposite of that. There is no hidden secret behind the brand, because these are companies that are taking a holistic view of business, in which they have resolved to eliminate exploitation of workers and the environment.