Being ethical implies sacrifice.

Guess what. I love clothes. I love choosing something beautiful from my wardrobe, getting dressed and feeling pretty and feminine. Many of my clothes are colourful because it makes me feel cheerful, but I also own more classic, elegant items. And I do love shopping - I love the thrill of hunting for that gorgeous item, finding it, trying it on and looking like myself, yet different and new because my garment is new!

Lately, though, I have become aware of how our clothes are mostly made in developing countries by people whose salaries don't even come close to enabling them to support themselves. This in turn led me to question the way I shop, and I recently wrote a blog about ethical clothing. I decided that I would strive to buy my clothes from second-hand shops or jumble sales whenever possible.

Countless times, I have glanced at fashion shop windows at something pretty, then thought, "no".

Until yesterday.

Nicholas and I went groceries shopping and we passed a clothes shop on the way. A dress caught my eye: colourful, pretty, sporting cats (I love cats!!!). As if inexorably drawn towards it, I walked into the shop, found the dress on a rail... wanting to try it on.

Then I checked the label. I had to.

"Made in China".

In China, the minimum wage only actually covers 46% of a person's living wage (the wage needed to support oneself and afford things like food, accommodation, healthcare, etc). And if you think that's bad, the minimal wage in Bangladesh only covers 11% of the living wage. That's right.

I really, really wanted that dress. It was so me. But ethically, I just couldn't buy it. So I put the dress down and got ready to leave. Then I had a thought.

I walked up to a shop assistant and politely enquired about the shop's policy on working conditions for those who made the clothes. She looked at me like I was an alien (well, maybe I am).

And today, I tracked down the website of the brand who made that dress and emailed them the same question. Because if enough of us start doing this, things might change. As customers, we don't need to be victims. We have power. Let us try and use it.

That being said, I am still tempted to buy it. Will I be consistent with my own view, or give in to my selfish desire? The battle rages within. 

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Update:

I never received a reply from the brand in question. However, I found another of their dresses, similar in style (cats too, but a different colour scheme) on a second-hand website.

(Picture from http://www.fgtb.be/web/guest/news-fr/-/article/2457832/ , no copyright infringement intended)