Ultra fast fashion takes everything harmful about fast fashion and speeds it up. But that only starts to describe its dark side. This exposé dives deep into TikTok #hauls, brands’ gross labour abuses, and creepy “surveillance capitalism”.
The most troubling story in fashion
Like many trends in the 2020s, the story of ultra fast fashion starts with TikTok. And it often goes something like this. A young woman poses in a bedroom, hugging a bunch of plastic bags. She raises an eyebrow, bites her lip, and then winks before the video quickly cuts to the next clip: her hands on a pair of scissors, opening the first of many packages.
Over the next 30 seconds, this video jumps between ripping bags open and modelling what’s inside—elf cosplay ears, butterfly printed socks, more plastic bags containing individually plastic-wrapped garments and accessories. It’s all set to Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space”. As Swift sings “you look like my next mistake”, the TikToker empties another package on her bed, covering her mouth in excitement.
There’s no use in individually calling out this TikToker or this video, which has racked up more than 700,000 likes. It’s nowhere near the most watched video of its kind. She’s simply reenacting the fashion haul meme, which has become massively popular with young social media users. Hauls first emerged on YouTube in the 2010s. But they’ve reached new levels of notoriety in the 2020s on TikTok among Gen Z shoppers. Videos tagged with #haul on TikTok have cumulatively been viewed more than 15 billion times as of writing, and that number increases every minute.
When you scroll through fashion hauls, you see countless examples of consumption on steroids. In one typical video that’s captioned “*accidentally* spent $480 at #SHEIN”, a TikToker unpacks big boxes and lays dozens of packaged garments out in her room, covering the floor. In another video captioned “Another haullll #princesspolly”, a different TikToker shows off dresses she purchased during Princess Polly’s Black Friday sale. “You’re not going to believe me when I tell you how much I paid for these,” she says as she holds her plastic-wrapped dresses, “’cause it’s insane—it was so cheap.”
Most consumers on TikTok seem to know little about ultra fast fashion’s dark side.
Considering the plunging prices for fast fashion over the past few decades, these garments are historically cheap in terms of both quality and price. They’re the products of a relatively recent mutation of fast fashion known as “ultra fast fashion”. If that sounds ultra bad, that’s because it is.
Ultra fast fashion ranks among the most troubling stories in fashion and tech today. But with all the cheerful displays of overconsumption, most consumers on TikTok seem to know little about ultra fast fashion’s dark side—how this newish wave of brands accelerates the industry’s environmental impacts, worsens garment workers’ already dismal job conditions, and stalks shoppers all over the web to predict what you’ll want to buy next.
Ultra fast fashion v fast fashion: what’s the difference?
What is ultra fast fashion? In the simplest sense, ultra fast fashion retailers take everything bad about fast fashion and speed it up. That means faster production cycles, faster trend churn, and faster to the landfills. The clothing is ultra plastic, with at least half of these garments made from virgin plastics that will shed microfibers into waterways and the air for years to come. Consequently, the negative impacts on workers and the environment reach depressingly new lows. And it’s only getting worse.
Using Good On You’s independent ratings, I surveyed the sustainability records for five of the most popular ultra fast fashion brands—SHEIN, Fashion Nova, Boohoo, PrettyLittleThing, and Cider. What I found is both distressing and unsurprising: all of these brands receive Good On You’s two lowest scores, “We Avoid” and “Not Good Enough”, for their records on key social and environmental issues.
The industry’s widespread exploitation of garment workers constitutes, in the words of Business of Fashion contributor Bandana Tewari, “modern-day colonialism”. And ultra fast fashion brands appear to be taking the industry’s deplorable record to new lows.
For their track records on labour, in particular, these brands again receive the lowest marks. We’ve found zero evidence that any of these brands pay living wages—100% of these brands fail to disclose any meaningful information about forced labour and the wellbeing of the workforce. And watchdog groups have found that the situation is dire. With SHEIN’s suppliers, for example, a late 2021 report from NGO Public Eye revealed that workers were putting in 75 hour weeks, receiving only one day off per month, and pay per item of clothing—all in gross violations of labour laws.
100% of these brands fail to disclose any meaningful information about forced labour and the wellbeing of the workforce.
“If fast fashion for the past few decades has been characterised by low prices, high volume, and relentless pace, then the new wave of ultra fast fashion brands are pushing those three criteria to their absolute extreme—and pushing millions of already impoverished garment makers to the breaking point”, says journalist Lauren Bravo, author of the essential handbook “How To Break Up With Fast Fashion”.
For many millennials, fast fashion conjures early 2000s memories of trips to the shopping centre to check out the latest styles at well-known stores like H&M, Zara, American Apparel, Forever 21, and Abercrombie & Fitch—a handful of the many multinational brands that get grouped under the fast fashion umbrella. Fast fashion ushered in an unprecedented era where trends seen on the runway could pop up on racks at your local mall in a few weeks’ time. Where once fashion revolved around a couple of seasonal collections per year, these trend-focused retailers essentially changed that to 52 “seasons”, with their collections seeming to change each time you’d stop by.
Ultra fast fashion turns fast fashion’s “weeks” into days and “dozens of styles” into hundreds and thousands. The numbers alone sound sinister. Brands like SHEIN and Boohoo are reportedly posting thousands of new styles to their websites on a daily basis. Sometimes, knockoffs of trending celebrity and pop culture styles will appear online in as little as 24 hours, as so happened with a knockoff of a vintage Thierry Mugler dress Kim Kardashian wore. It’s e-commerce that seems to happen in real time.
“We’ve reached the point where clothing is now essentially being sold as a ‘Fast Moving Consumer Good’, in the same category as snack foods, fizzy drinks, toothpaste—as something entirely disposable, to be consumed once and then thrown away,” Bravo tells me. “Except, of course, with fashion there is no ‘away’. Those synthetic clothes will be weighing down the planet for a century or more.” That’s only where the bad news begins.
The big, bad brands taking over your feed
Influencer culture is now deeply embedded into the supply chain. The leader in TikTok’s haul of shame is indisputably SHEIN. My analysis into the brands that get the most #haul views on TikTok found that SHEIN’s number into the billions, with similar brands trailing in the hundreds of millions. (Conducting similar research, a UK-based brand agency found in June 2021 that SHEIN far outshone its competitors in TikTok exposure.) Clocking in at hundreds of millions of views, brands like PrettyLittleThing and Boohoo—both owned by the UK-based Boohoo Group—are also household names on TikTok.
These brands’ popularity on social media represents the pinnacle of shopping as entertainment—with poor quality garments produced as if they were only intended to last for a TikTok moment.
People are no longer shopping for clothes—they’re shopping for content.
Lauren Bravo
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“People are no longer shopping for clothes—they’re shopping for content,” says Bravo. “It’s no coincidence that ultra fast fashion has grown alongside social media and influencer culture. Together, those industries have shifted perceptions of clothes as tactile, tangible real-world items to products that primarily just need to look good in a TikTok or Instagram photo.”
Ultra fast fashion retailers have no brick and mortar stores. They keep their operations entirely online, where their overhead costs are low and impulse purchases are instantaneous. And unlike the traditional fashion marketing mix, ultra fast fashion focuses its efforts overwhelmingly on TikTok, where they work with a vast network of teenage and early twenty-something shopping influencers. Demographically, white Gen Z women in Europe and North America produce the most viewed videos, but the brands have a global, multilingual reach.
And similar to how fast fashion grew during the cash-crunched Great Recession, ultra fast fashion brands have seen exponential growth through the pandemic, as locked down young people have been spending record amounts of time in front of digital screens—swiping through videos and quickly purchasing many of the trendy garments they see.
Disposable culture is now the norm
Hauls are one of the dominant fashion memes today. And that plays a key role in redefining our relationships with clothing. “A lot of fashion content on TikTok is haul and consumption based, which makes it seem like fashion is all about shopping, when in reality, fashion is an artform that exists outside of shopping”, says Lily Fang, the creator who runs the popular @imperfectidealist TikTok account focused on sustainable fashion.
Certainly, anyone who spends some time engaging with fashion content on TikTok could easily get a distorted sense that ultra fast fashion is the beginning and end of fashion. And that perspective seems to be shaping a generation of content creators. The target audience for sponsored “hauls”—where prominent TikTokers often receive free products and some level of compensation to post about their fashion binges—is overwhelmingly young women.
It’s hugely wasteful. We’re already seeing it with SHEIN taking over thrift stores.
Lily Fang
Ultra fast fashion’s aesthetic focus on popular celebrities only adds to the overconsumption itch. Where fast fashion has often drawn influence from high fashion’s runways, ultra fast fashion brands look to social media’s most popular figures. In 2021, SHEIN tapped Khloé Kardashian and a panel of celebrities as judges for a design competition. Kourtney Kardashian has collaborated with PrettyLittleThing for a collection. And Cardi B launched her first clothing line with Fashion Nova, even rapping in her track “She Bad” that she “could buy designer, but this Fashion Nova fit all that ass”.
“These brands push people to constantly buy—and buy in huge quantities,” Fang explains. “And since they rely on microtrends, it’s hugely wasteful because people will wear something just a couple times before getting rid of it. We’re already seeing it with SHEIN taking over thrift stores.”
A generation now views ultra fast fashion’s historically low price points and disposable culture as the norm, with many young people considering garments worn out after only a few washes. This overproduction and quick disposal has exacerbated fashion’s waste crisis. While verifiable stats about fashion’s impact are hard to track down, at least one study has suggested that for every five garments produced, three end up in landfills or incinerators.
“Ultra fast fashion’s relentless churn makes it almost impossible to consider a purchase before you commit,” Bravo says. “Instead, you take the risk and buy—because when it’s only the price of a sandwich, what do you have to lose?”
@imperfectidealist Reply to @abacus28 as you might suspect, SHEIN is not an ethical or sustainable brand #fastfashionchange #greenwashing #ethicalfashion #greenscreen ♬ original sound – Lily – sustainable fashion
‘Surveillance capitalism’—tracking your every click
Have you ever had a dress put a curse on you and follow your every move? Without giving the plot away, that’s the concept behind the film “In Fabric”, in which a haunted red dress torments an unlucky shopper. That horror comedy seems like quite an apt metaphor for the Orwellian way ultra fast fashion brands capture your data with every click, monitor your every interaction across digital channels, and creepily project pictures of your previously viewed items on almost any website you visit.
Fast fashion brands like Forever 21 and H&M are known for cringey digital marketing tactics, with a barrage of ads and emails that put pressure on you to click and buy ASAP. Ultra fast fashion brands do that, too—but with far more, and far more precise, data.
Companies like SHEIN and Boohoo have built their entire business on harnessing user data to predict what styles will sell next—and sell fast. This has led to considerable growth. SHEIN, for instance, surpassed both H&M and Zara in US sales in 2021.
This commercial success is based, in large part, on TikTok’s infamous artificial intelligence. Every time you view, like, or comment on #haul content, TikTok’s algorithms get better at serving you similar kinds of content you’ll find entertaining. Its algorithm so successfully predicts what you’ll be interested in watching that a headline in The New York Times declared “TikTok reads your mind”. “The algorithm tries to get people addicted”, Guillaume Chaslot, founder of Algo Transparency, told The Times. Chaslot said that each video users watch gives TikTok more information about them, and “in a few hours” the algorithm can detect things like musical taste, interest in drugs, whether they’re depressed, and more potentially sensitive assumptions.
Algorithmic oppression is not just a glitch in the system but, rather, is fundamental to the operating system of the web.
Safiya Umoja Noble
Many analysts believe such algorithms can cause social harm. Increasingly, organisations like the Algorithmic Justice League and scholars such as Safiya Umoja Noble highlight, in the words of Noble, how “algorithmic oppression is not just a glitch in the system but, rather, is fundamental to the operating system of the web”. Similarly, Netflix’s hit documentary “The Social Dilemma” outlined the impacts that platforms like Instagram and TikTok have to manipulate our lives and shape opinions. In 2021, for example, a leaked Facebook report showed that the company was aware that Instagram had negative influences on teenage girls’ body image.
Ultra fast fashion piggybacks on the negative side effects of these algorithmic systems—gathering data from content shared on these platforms and pairing that with the data they glean from their own customers. Many describe this system of stalking users for commercial advantage as ”surveillance capitalism”, a term coined by Harvard professor Shoshana Zuboff.
By surveilling your digital life, brands gain access to a vast web of data that allows them to make increasingly more accurate predictions about what will trend next, often with frightening accuracy.
“It feels as though these brands put far more effort into developing the algorithms that stalk us, study us, and then chase us around the internet with targeted ads, than they do into designing great clothes”, Bravo tells me.
Breaking an ultra fast fashion addiction
In taking over our TikTok feeds, these brands have an extraordinary power not only to increase the pace of churning trends but also to manipulate young peoples’ mental health.
“Fast fashion addictions are often the result of an insecurity,” Fang tells me. “This could be an insecurity stemming from not having enough—pushed by the constant ads—or not fitting in. This isn’t as simple to resolve, but removing yourself from situations that make you feel like you don’t have enough or aren’t enough is a good place to start.”
Fast fashion addictions are often the result of an insecurity.
Lily Fang
Deleting the apps, unfollowing influencers who partake in the #haul culture, and unsubscribing from brands’ marketing emails are a few places Fang says you can start breaking ultra fast fashion’s microtrend obsession. “You can replace that with more supportive content and slow fashion creators who focus on styling, practical tips, etc instead of shopping,” she suggests. Recently, she’s been discovering the joys of getting clothes tailored.
Ultimately, brands are responsible for their massive exploitation of garment workers—creating massive profits for only a handful of billionaires and environmental harm to the planet. But added together, people still have significant power to hold these companies accountable as consumers and push for legislation as citizens. On the regulatory front, the Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act under consideration in New York state is one promising step in this direction.
And in advocating for change, ultra fast fashion addicts will come to rethink not only the ethics of overconsumption but their own personal style.
“If people think they need to constantly shop and participate in trends to be fashionable, I’d argue that they don’t actually have a good sense of their personal style,” Fang says. “Learning to slow down actually encourages you to get more creative.” And in a world where the hustle of microtrends dominate, slowing down is, in its own way, radical.
The post What is Ultra Fast Fashion? Investigating Why It’s Ultra Bad appeared first on Good On You.
What is Ultra Fast Fashion? Investigating Why It’s Ultra Bad
The right sustainable rug can completely transform a space. A plant-based fiber rug like jute or sisal can create a grounding warmth, while a thick responsibly-sourced wool rug adds a sense of luxury. An artisan handcrafted rug infuses character and authentic culture where a vintage one can add layers of history and soul.
Furniture is functional and can be beautiful, but adding an exceptional rug is what brings it all together. A rug is at the center — at the heart — of your living room or bedroom or dining room. In other words: a rug is how you start to turn those four walls into a home.
That said, unfortunately most rugs today are mass-produced from synthetic fibers like polyester (read: plastic), finished with toxic chemicals, and made in unethical labor conditions.
Thankfully, there is a better way. Let’s talk sustainable rugs.
What is a “Sustainable Rug”, Exactly?
I like to include an in-depth explanation on “sustainable” in our guides because there’s no standard definition of the term when it comes to fashion or home goods. So here’s how we define “sustainable rugs” at Conscious Life & Style.
Natural Materials:
We’re looking for natural fibers like jute, seagrass, sisal, hemp, cotton (less common) or ethically-sourced wool. Recycled natural fibers are a great bonus, as is organic. The most reputable organic certification for fibers currently on the market is Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS).
We’re steering clear of synthetic rugs, including recycled polyester in this guide, because they risk releasing microplastics into our homes and environment.
Also natural fibers that aren’t treated with or blended with synthetics are generally biodegradable at the end of their life.
“Recyclability” when it comes to textiles is largely a misnomer. We have far more textile waste than we do textile recycling infrastructure capacity. Plus many types of fabrics still can’t be recycled properly — if at all — today.
Dyes & Chemical Usage
Another source of impact is the dyes and other finishes used on the rugs. Many of these dyes and finishes are synthetic.
One better option is a “low impact dye” — this generally refers to a synthetic dye that doesn’t contain common toxic chemicals (like heavy metals) and has a higher absorption rate, which requires less water. Natural dyes on the other hand are non-synthetic colorants derived from plants, minerals, or sometimes even insects.
There are also additional chemicals these companies may add to rugs like PFAS (forever chemicals) for stain or water resistance or flame retardants. So if you see claims like “stain resistant” or “easy care” you probably want to do some additional digging to ensure those textiles weren’t treated with toxic chemicals.
One certification to look for is OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100, which is a label for textiles that have been tested against common harmful substances.
Ethical Production Practices:
Unfortunately forced and child labor is still happening in the carpet and rug industries. So transparency is key. Two certifications to look for are GoodWeave (assurance against child, forced, and bonded labor) and Fair Trade Certified
. Certifications are certainly not an end all be all, so I’m also looking for transparency from the brand — who makes their products? How are they made? What is their relationship to those makers, artisan cooperatives, or facilities? Are they working in safe conditions? Are they paid fairly? A living wage?
Another element here is craftsmanship. Many of these rug-making techniques have been around centuries, but are at risk of dying out with the rise of mass-produced rug makers. Is the brand showing a commitment to sustaining heritage techniques and generations-old craftsmanship?
You might also like to look for local production, though local doesn’t automatically mean ethical. I still like to look for transparency here, as exposés have found there are still sweatshops in the US, too.
Durability & Longevity:
This one is the most challenging. Not only is it difficult to assess the durability of a rug before you’ve purchased it (even most reviewers only comment on their initial experience), but durability is also significantly impacted by how we care for that rug. Do you wash it often? Do you have pets? Kids? Are you putting the rug in a high-traffic area? Is it getting wet often (like in a kitchen or bathroom)?
That said, I’m looking for attention to craftsmanship from a brand, and attention to detail. There are also certain elements to look out for. For example:
- Thicker and denser rugs generally hold up better than looser or low-density tufted rugs.
- Reinforced edges prevent fraying and strong backings prevent the rug curling at the edges.
- Hand-knotted rugs are labor intensive (and may be pricier) but can last decades or even centuries.
Top Picks for Sustainable Rugs
Ok so that was a lot! But no stress — I’ve done the hours of heavy lifting and digging for you to curate this guide to brands with sustainable rugs. So let’s dive in.
Note that Conscious Life & Style is reader supported and this guide includes affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase via some of these links, I may earn a commission. As always all brands meet are rigorous sustainability criteria.
Secondhand First!
Part of our philosophy at Conscious Life & Style is to look secondhand first. So before we dive into the brands, here are some places to find vintage and pre-loved rugs first:
1. Urban Natural
Best for: Living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms
Urban Natural is your online destination for finding responsibly-made, exceptionally crafted home goods from sustainably-minded makers. Brands on Urban Natural include Loloi, a well-respected GoodWeave certified rug brand with rugs ethically hand-woven in Varanasi, India; and Jaipur Living, a company dedicated to preserving time-honored handcrafted art and rug weaving traditions, partnering with 40,000 artisans across hundreds of rural communities throughout India.
Other sustainable rug options on Urban Natural include 100% linen rugs from Libeco, which holds the Masters of Linen® quality label; and 100% wool rugs made in the USA from Earth Weave, the first US carpet manufacturer with a completely natural product line.
Materials: Wool, Jute, Sisal, Cotton, Silk, and Linen (Note: there are a couple of “performance” rugs made with polyester)
Price Range: Starts at $179
Shipping: Ships within the US
2. Lorena Canals
Best for: Living rooms, entryways and bedrooms
Lorena Canals revolutionized the rug industry with machine-washable cotton and wool rugs that don’t compromise on beauty or sustainability. Handcrafted in the brand’s own factory in India since 1998, each piece uses natural or recycled fibers, non-toxic azo-free dyes certified by GOTS and OEKO-TEX standards, and a water-efficient cone-dyeing method that conserves 75% of water compared to traditional processes. The aesthetic ranges from playful geometric patterns and kitchen tile motifs to minimalist neutral textures in their Woolable collection. With customizable options and designs that celebrate the natural colors of undyed wool, these rugs pair practical washability with artisan craftsmanship, all while supporting the brand’s Sakûla Project school for children in northern India.
Materials: Cotton, Wool
Price Range: From $145
Shipping: Global | Outside of US and Canada? Use this website to order instead.
3. CICIL
Best for: Living rooms, bedrooms, hallways, and dining rooms
Founded by two former Patagonia textile experts in North Carolina, Cicil brings radical transparency to rug-making with a supply chain that travels less than 1,000 miles from wool to floor. Their braided and shuttle weave rugs use 70% undyed wool sourced directly from small family farms across upstate New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont, combined with 30% jute for durability. With shapes ranging from linear and oval to curvy and arch designs, each piece celebrates natural wool tones—from deep grays to warm beiges—without any synthetic dyes or finishes. Made in the Carolinas using traditional techniques on vintage looms, Cicil’s approach is intentionally “anti-innovation,” focusing instead on time-tested methods that create rugs built to biodegrade gracefully after a lifetime of use.
Materials: Wool, Jute
Price Point: From $459
Shipping: Ships within the US (all orders ship free)
4. West Elm Fair Trade Certified
Best for: Living rooms, dining rooms, offices, or bedrooms
I tend to put large retailers, like West Elm, through much stricter scrutiny in my vetting process because they have larger supply chains which makes transparency much more difficult. It’s easy to know your factory without a certification if you work with one or two facilities. It’s much harder when you work with 20 — or 200. That’s why I appreciate that West Elm has such an extensive selection of rugs made in verified Fair Trade Certified factories.
Most of West Elm’s rugs are also made from 100% natural materials like sisal, jute, wool, and cotton. Though like most companies, their “Performance Rugs” are made with polyester. West Elm does use 90-100% recycled polyester for these rugs which makes it a lower impact choice from a carbon emissions point of view. It may still shed microplastics, but if you have pets that could be worth the trade-off for you to have a durable rug.
Note that West Elm does not have non-toxic related certifications for most of their rugs, so this can be a great choice if you value aesthetic variety, ethical production, and natural materials, but if your top priority or concern is that the rug was tested for potentially harmful chemicals, West Elm might not be the right fit for you.
Materials: Wool, Jute, Sisal, Cotton (Performance rugs use recycled polyester)
Price Point: From $459
Shipping: Ships within the US and select other countries
5. Schoolhouse
Best for: Bedrooms, living rooms, and dining rooms
Schoolhouse brings American design sensibility to handcrafted rugs woven in India using natural materials. Their collection spans hand-knotted wool pieces with vivid, whimsical patterns like the Sundrop design to reversible flatweave plaid styles perfect for layering. Natural-dyed wool yarn creates rich, enduring colors—from burnt orange and chartreuse to soft neutrals—while jute-chenille blends offer versatility underfoot without the typical scratchiness. With 80% of their assortment domestic and FSC-certified materials across their product lines, Schoolhouse prioritizes reducing carbon emissions through consolidated shipping and minimal plastic packaging.
Materials: Wool, Jute, Cotton, Recycled PET (note: PET is plastic, so this isn’t our top recommendation)
Price Range: From $79
Shipping: Ships to all US States and Canada
6. Nestig
Best for: Nurseries and playrooms
Nestig transforms nursery floors with whimsical, machine-washable rugs that parents actually want to clean. Hand-loomed in Brazil by local artisans with over 20 years of experience, each piece uses 100% GOTS-certified organic cotton grown locally and dyed with non-toxic pigments. The designs range from playful vehicles (dump trucks, airplanes, sailboats) and animals (dinosaurs, bears) to sophisticated geometric patterns and world maps. Nestig operates on a “just enough” business model that minimizes warehouse inventory and carbon footprint, partnering exclusively with sustainable, family-owned businesses. Every rug arrives as a truly one-of-a-kind piece with natural variations that come from artisan craftsmanship.
Materials: Organic Cotton
Price Range: From $399
Shipping: Ships to US, Canada, and the UK
7. Salem Hello
Best for: Living rooms, bedrooms, hallways and statement spaces
Salam Hello bridges the gap between Moroccan artisan tradition and contemporary homes with transparency at its core. Each handwoven rug is crafted by Amazigh women in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains, preserving techniques passed through generations while ensuring fair wages and artisan recognition. The collection includes ready-to-ship vintage and new pieces alongside made-to-order designs where you choose size, color, and pattern. From neutral flatweaves and textured hand-knots to bold geometric designs rich in traditional symbolism, every rug carries protective meaning woven into its fibers. With collaborations like their Izra collection with General Assembly and the Atlas Form line, Salam Hello offers refined modern interpretations alongside authentic traditional styles.
Materials: Wool
Price: From $625
Shipping: Ships Worldwide
8. Organic Weave
Best for: Living rooms, bedrooms, and kids’ rooms
Organic Weave was born after founder Linda witnessed child labor at the rug manufacturers in India her family’s rug business was sourcing from. When Linda became the buyer at her family’s company, she started sourcing exclusively from the only supplier that was committed to not employing children.
Today, Organic Weave is GoodWeave certified — a certification providing additional assurance there isn’t child labor in the supply chain. And as the name suggests, the sustainable rug company also uses organic materials: 100% organic wool for high-traffic areas like living rooms and 100% organic cotton for lower traffic areas like bedrooms. Their handmade, artisan crafted rugs are Global Organic Textile Standard Certified too.
Materials: Organic Cotton, Organic Wool
Price Range: From $1,789
Shipping: Ships Worldwide
9. LOOMY
Best for: Living rooms, bedrooms, and dining rooms
LOOMY proves that sustainable doesn’t mean sacrificing style with a curated collection of contemporary rugs made entirely by hand from indigenous artisan weaving communities worldwide. Their natural fiber collection includes wool, jute, cotton, hemp, and sisal rugs alongside performance options crafted from recycled P.E.T. plastic diverted from oceans and landfills. From shaggy textures and bold geometric patterns to minimalist flatweaves, every design is exclusively created in-house and made without mechanical assistance, using traditional spinning, natural dye baths under the sun, and generations-old loom techniques. The brand’s transparency extends to sharing exactly who made each rug, how many hours it took, and the sustainable materials used.
Materials: Wool, Jute, Cotton, Hemp, Sisal, Recycled P.E.T.
Price Range: From $278
Shipping: Ships to all US States and Canada
10. Revival
Best for: Living rooms, bedrooms, and dining rooms
Originally founded as a vintage rug curator, Revival now makes a wide range of affordable, beautiful rugs for all needs, whether you have kids, pets, or just want an easy-care washable rug.
Not all options from Revival are sustainable, and some are made from virgin polyester, so for natural fibers I’d direct you to their Wool Rugs collection and Jute Rugs collection, including their naturally dyed jute rugs. Revival also carries one-of-a-kind rugs, which include vintage options.
Materials: Wool, Jute, Recycled Polyester (also has some rugs made with new polyester, which I’d avoid)
Price Range: From $169
Shipping: Ships to contiguous US and selected other international destinations
Honorable Mentions: More Sustainable Rug Options
Here are some additional companies with sustainable rugs to check out! These didn’t make the “top 10” list based on our criteria, but you might have different priorities. So if you’re not finding what you’re looking for above, I recommend taking a look at this list too.
Hook and Loom: if you’re looking for a non-toxic organic rug, Hook and Loom has undyed organic cotton and natural wool rugs made without added chemicals. Their website doesn’t have the most modern user experience, which can make shopping a bit more cumbersome, but the brand has thousands of positive reviews.
Sabai: Sabai’s all-natural textured rugs are crafted from jute and wool in North Carolina by skilled rug makers. They are one of the few companies to manufacture their rugs in the US. That said, the rug does appear to be on the thinner side considering the price point.
The Citizenry: Hand-knotted and hand-loomed by artisan partners across the globe from Morocco to Peru each piece blends modern minimalist design with time-tested techniques passed down through generations. The Citizenry’s collection features everything from plush, textured wool designs to natural jute pieces, and the retailer guarantees 100% fair trade standards on every product, partnering directly with artisan communities. However, many customers complain online about slow shipping and poor customer service, so that’s something to keep in mind before purchasing.
Yaya & Co: this brand has some high sustainability standards like 100% organic certified materials and production in a Fair Trade Certified family-owned factory! Their designs are quite colorful and fun too, which isn’t always easy to find with organic materials. Their selection is more limited compared to the other brands and retailers, which is the only reason they didn’t make it onto the top 10 list.
The post 10 Best Sustainable Rugs For a Healthier Home and Planet appeared first on Conscious Life & Style.
Just like fashion has been overrun by fast fashion, home goods and furniture have similarly seen a rapid decline in quality. Rugs are no exception.
And similar to fashion, these cheap goods come at a high cost — namely, to the planet and to people. In fact carpet and rug production is rampant with exploitation.
On the other hand, fair trade rugs present the best of what a rug can bring to your home: artistry, craftsmanship, and heritage.
The brands featured in this guide are partnering with (and fairly paying!) skilled artisans who are using generations-old — and sometimes even centuries-old — techniques. These artisans are sustaining long lines of crafts, preserving their cultural diversity, and celebrating the richness of their time-honored crafts.
There’s simply no replacement for a timeless, quality artisan-made rug — they’re like pieces of art you can lay out on your floor or hang on your walls.
So, enjoy browsing through this guide to sustainable rug brands listed out below and best of luck on your search for the right fair trade rug!
Where to Find Ethical and Fair Trade Rugs
Note that this guide includes affiliates and partners. As always, brands must meet high standards for ethics and sustainability to be featured and all opinions are my own.
1. The Citizenry
If you’re browsing for fair trade rugs, but looking for a more minimalist or neutral aesthetic, look no further than The Citizenry.
The brand’s natural, handmade rugs — made by artisans working in fair trade conditions — feature striking prints but more subtle colors. Next to each product page you’ll be able to learn more about the workshop and the artisans behind that piece.
Price Range: $$$
Conscious Qualities: Fair Trade, Natural Fibers, Craft Preservation
Categories: Area Rugs
2. Kiliim
If you’re well-versed in rug terminology, you may recognize that this brand’s name looks similar to the word kilim. Kiliim’s rug are made using authentic, well, kilim rug craftsmanship by artisans in Egypt coming from generations of kilim artisans. To ensure ethical production and to support the preservation of this heritage craft, Kiliim pays living wages to all artisans.
Price Range: $ – $$$
Conscious Qualities: Ethical Production, Heritage Craft Preservation, Natural Fibers
Categories: Area Rugs, Accent Rugs
3. Urban Natural
This natural home and lifestyle retailer has a beautifully curated selection of sustainably-made rugs crafted with materials like jute, sisal, wool, and cotton.
Several brands on Urban Natural are also ethically hand-loomed or hand-knotted, such as Loloi — a GoodWeave partner — and Jaipur Living — a brand that partners with thousands of local artisans to sustain heritage crafts.
Price Range: $$+
Conscious Qualities: Eco-Conscious Materials
Categories: Outdoor, Area Rugs, and Accent Rugs
4. Zuahaza
Each of Zuahaza’s artisan-made rugs is creatively designed with unique patterns and expertly handwoven by weavers in Colombia. Zuahaza’s captivating rugs are made from sustainably-sourced fique, a natural fiber from Colombia that is similar to hemp. And, just like hemp, fique requires little water to grow and is rarely attacked by pests (meaning fique is always grown organically without chemical pesticides).
Price Range: $$ – $$$
Conscious Qualities: Organic Fibers & Natural Dyes, Cultural Preservation, BIPOC-Owned
Categories: Area Rugs, Runner Rugs, Accent Rugs
5. LOOMY
Founded by a weaver, LOOMY is dedicated to making beautiful, non-toxic rugs that will last for decades to come.
LOOMY partners with highly-skilled artisan weavers who craft quality rugs made from eco-minded materials like banana silk, jute, and recycled cotton built to withstand whatever life brings you.
Price Range: $$ – $$$
Conscious Qualities: Eco & Non-Toxic Materials, Craft Preservation
Categories: Area Rugs, Accent Rugs, Runners, Outdoor Rugs
6. Leah Singh
Leah Singh’s designs are a reflection of the designer’s background, growing up surrounded by the rich artistry of India and studying at Parsons amidst the structural, minimal lines of New York.
All of the brand’s rugs are made by artisans in India who use embroidery, weaving, and printing techniques native to their respective regions.
Price Range: $$ – $$$
Conscious Qualities: BIPOC-Owned, Ethical Production, Cultural Preservation
Categories: Area Rugs, Accent Rugs, Runners
7. West Elm
West Elm is bringing ethical rugs to a broader market with their collection of Fair Trade Certified
wool and cotton rugs. While I recommend browsing the smaller shops listed above first, West Elm is supporting the movement to responsibly-made, fair trade rugs.
Price Range: $$$
Conscious Qualities: Fair Trade production, Majority Natural Materials
Categories: Area Rugs, Accent Rugs
Liked this guide to sustainable rugs? You might also enjoy:
Ethical Home Decor Brands to Curate a Beautiful, Conscious Space
Eco-Friendly Furniture to Furnish Your Home Sustainably
Fair Trade and Eco-Friendly Blankets to Cozy Up With
The post 7 Best Ethical Fair Trade Rugs to Elevate Your Space appeared first on Conscious Life & Style.
A durable set of eco-friendly dinnerware is a solid ingredient for a sustainably set table! But…
What is Sustainable Dinnerware?
Well looking for secondhand and vintage dinnerware is always a good start, whether that’s your grandmother’s porcelain dining sets or a pre-loved set of colorful plates and bowls at your local thrift store.
Another great place to look is estate sales. You can likely find full sets of dinnerware! If none of those options are available to you (or your just not finding something you love) you can check out a site like Etsy Used or Chairish.
*Important note on secondhand dinnerware: the FDA started regulating the use of lead in dinnerware in 1971. So you might want to avoid any dinnerware produced before 1971, unless it’s just for display!
Here are some qualities to look for when shopping for new sustainable dinnerware:
Sustainably sourced materials: such as responsibly-harvested bamboo and recycled glass.
Quality: when it comes to products you’re going to potentially use and wash daily, durability is an important factor to keep in mind. Also consider your lifestyle! Perhaps glass and porcelain aren’t the best choices if you have little ones, or you tend to drop things often. (Guilty!!)
Usefulness: You might also want to consider if you will be hand-washing or dishwashing your dinnerware. Some materials are too fragile for the dishwasher, so consider if you’ll have the time (and willingness) to hand wash them all the time. Because part of sustainability is that you’ll actually use the products and they won’t just sit and collect dust! 
Ethical production: this could look like transparent local manufacturing or artisan-made and fair trade. In any case, an ethical dinnerware brand would prioritize fair living wages for the workers, ensure safe healthy conditions (this includes no toxic chemicals used in production!) and go above and beyond to consider the wellbeing of the people who work for them and/or produce their products.
Ownership and Equity: this means looking at who owns and profits from the brands we’re supporting; if a brand is owned by a person of color, it will be indicated in their description below (BIPOC-owned stands for Black, Indigenous, Person of Color-owned and WOC-owned stands for Woman of Color-owned).
Your Values: you may have other elements you look for in a brand, such as traditional craft preservation. Or perhaps it’s really important to you that a brand is giving back to their local community.
Where to Find Eco-Friendly Dinnerware
The eco-friendly tableware and sustainable dinnerware brands featured below meet at least one (though most of them meet several) of the above criteria.
In this roundup, you’ll find sustainable pottery (including ceramic plates, sustainable mugs, and more), recycled glassware, artisan-made ethical dinnerware, and everything in between to suit your needs. I hope that this variety of brands will help you set the table, whether that’s for fancy dinner parties, Friday night pizza, or something in between.
This article features affiliates and partners. As always, we only feature brands that meet strict standards for sustainability that we love — and that we think you’ll love too!
1. East Fork
East Fork’s ethically-made dinnerware and tableware is next level — their gorgeous sustainable ceramics, glassware, mugs, and other goods are exquisitely designed and built for durability.
Committed to creating local manufacturing jobs, all of East Fork’s eco-friendly pottery is made in Asheville, North Carolina and is working to center equity and inclusion throughout their business.
Categories: Plates, Bowls, Cups, Drinking Glasses, Flatware/Silverware,
Conscious Qualities: Locally-Made, Transparent Production
Price Range: $$$
2. Our Place
From the same brand that brought us their cult-favorite Always Pan, comes a gorgeous collection of non-toxic dinnerware and sustainable pottery.
Our Place has hand-painted main plates and side bowls made with recycled and virgin porcelain ceramic and dinner glasses handmade from recycled glass and colored with natural dyes.
Categories: Glassware, Bowls, Plates
Conscious Qualities: Eco Materials, Gives Back, WOC-Owned
Price Range: $$
3. Fable
Prioritizing timelessness and sustainability, Fable sources quality materials and simple designs that last the test of time.
The eco-minded dinnerware company partners with makers in Portugal, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US that use conscious practices, like ethical employment, craftsmanship, and low-waste practices (like sourcing recycled clay).
Categories: Dinnerware, Drinkware, Cutlery, Serveware, and Decor
Conscious Qualities: Quality Craftsmanship, Low Waste Practices, Responsibly Sourced
Price Range: $$$
4. Zungleboo
Lightweight, shatterproof, and made from corn starch + bamboo fiber, Zungleboo creates family-friendly and eco-friendly dinnerware!
Their versatile plant-based bowls and plates are also dishwasher and microwave safe, making them easy to care for no matter how busy mealtime is. As Zungleboo writes on their website, their sustainable dinnerware is “from real plants, for real life”.
Categories: Bowls, Plates
Conscious Qualities: Eco Materials, WOC-Owned
Price Range: $$
Use code CONSCIOUS15 for 15% off!
5. Urban Natural
Green home retailer Urban Natural has stunning eco-friendly tabletop goods from leading contemporary brands like Farmhouse Pottery and Ethnicraft.
The brands Urban Natural curates source natural materials, use time-honored processes, and take quality craftsmanship seriously.
Categories: Plates, Bowls, Cups & Mugs, Flatware
Conscious Qualities: Artisan Goods, Natural Materials, Locally and Ethically Made
Price Range: $$ – $$$
6. GOODEE
For artisanal plates that can elevate your tablescape, GOODEE is the answer.
From 100% porcelain stone ceramic plates hand-crafted in the ancient Japanese town of Arita and hand-painted plates made from Egyptian clay to marble patterned ecothylene® (upcycled BPA-free plastic) plates ideal for family-friendly daily wares, GOODEE has options for everyone.
Categories: Plates, Glassware, Cups & Mugs, Serving, Flatware
Conscious Qualities: Ethical Production, Craft Preservation
Price Range: $$$
7. Ekobo
Ekobo’s colorful eco-friendly dinnerware is available in a variety of colors and sizes, perfect for mixing and matching to create a unique sustainable table setting for any space.
The eco-friendly dinnerware from Ekobo is made from upcycled bamboo and the result is durable, dishwasher-safe, and non-toxic diningware.
Categories: Plates, Bowls, Cups, Trays, Baby Diningware
Conscious Qualities: Eco Materials
Price Range: $$
More Guides For An Eco-Friendly Kitchen:
Best Fair Trade and Eco-Friendly Tablecloths
Your Sustainable and Zero Waste Kitchen Guide
The Best Zero Waste Food Storage Options
The post 7 Eco-Friendly Dinnerware Brands To Set Your Sustainable Table appeared first on Conscious Life & Style.
7 Eco-Friendly Dinnerware Brands To Set Your Sustainable Table
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