Fair Trade Fashion

Fair Trade Fashion by jaythejedi featuring dresses

All of the items in the above outfit are fair trade, excluding the sunflower, bird, rain, and paintbrush graphics.  These items (except the rug) are all fairly affordable and I would love to have each one.  You may think that fair trade is expensive, and that's true, but it's also false.  Similar items from different countries can have very different prices because of how fair trade works.  One of the principles of fair trade is that the artisans who make the products earn a living wage.  The living wage varies from country to country so the price also varies depending on the country the product is from.  Some products in the fair trade store I work at seem quite expensive, but for the amount of work that goes into them, it's a reasonable price.  However other products (especially the scarves) seem really inexpensive for the amount of work that goes into them.  There are handwoven hand-dyed scarves that cost as low as $12 each!  That is because the living wage in those countries is so much lower that the artists still make a living wage with those low prices.

Oh, the Places You'll Go! by jaythejedi featuring victorian home decor

In this outfit the clutch, necklace, bracelet, and shoes are all fair trade.  Could you have figured that out if I hadn't told you?  Fair trade products can be really fashionable and really affordable.  In fact I have found that many fair trade products from around the world are lower priced than similar products handmade in the United States.