Angela Hamilton

Where to Buy Ethically Made Shoes Under $300

updated on March 26, 2021 by Angela Hamilton

When it comes to sustainable shopping, ethically made shoes aren’t the most affordable. It kind of makes sense, though, right? If there’s a wardrobe staple worth investing in, there’s no better one than on quality footwear that you can walk around in for months (or even years) before discarding.

Not to mention, shoes are one of the toughest fashion pieces to purchase secondhand (in my opinion)–though I applaud anyone who has the patience to do so as it can be quite the search to find the right pair for you.

I think shoes are generally bound to be expensive (those of good quality, anyway!) so it’s worth it to me to pay the added price of ensuring they are ethically made. That said, each of the companies below has their own sustainability standards, so it’s up to you to decide if you are comfortable with their level of transparency and use of certain materials. Shoes are tricky! But I hope this gets you off to a good start…

Chicago Ankle Strap Heels in Canela by 1 People $179 / Above photo by @charityvictoria

Danish sustainable womenswear brand 1 People, who is a new member of our ethical shop directory, has a line of shoes under $200 made from ethically-harvested teak wood with recycled brass details. After trying them on and reviewing them in person (we took this photo during our last shoot!), I knew I had to add them to this guide! The sandals are casual and comfortable, and the teak heel is stunning. If I ever put on jeans again, these will look perfect with crops!

The 1 People scarf (printed on 100% Regenerated Silk) we styled these shoes on is beautiful as well, and we’ll share more soon. In the meantime, be sure to use code ANGELA if you shop their site for 10% off your purchase.

Atelier Alienor Olive Lace Up Sandals $165

Islenas Off Grid Sandals $150

Augusta The Brand from Wolf & Badger $260

Ea Par Ta Espadrilles Palla Sora Sandals $210

Llani Shop Modern Boot in Merlot Cheque $130

About Arianne Mel Dahlia $335

Soludos Yin Yang Platform Sneaker in Coral $149

ABLE Sarai D’orsay Heel $98

Loeffler Randall Maisie Bermuda Pink Sport Sandal $195 (but if you need something more formal, the prettiest splurge would be Cammellia Bow Sandal Emerald $395)

Freedom Moses Candy Slides $50 (photo by @blaireadiebee)

Zuzii Romy Clogs in Avocado $215

Alohas Double Strap Camel Sandal (Preorder) $98/$117

Yumayo Gila Metallic slide $140

Georgia Wasabi $395 This is the one pair of all ethical shoe brands that I can see spending $400 on. HILOS mission to provide circular footwear is so fascinating to me! That means shoes are created to be recycled—deconstructed and repurposed. They’re also made from performance (AKA workout-y materials and 3D printed!) I just happened across them on Instagram one day and had to to learn more. It’s just such a unique design I can see why someone might consider this investment piece.

Where do you shop for ethically made shoes? Let us know so we can edit the post with your faves!

15 Eco Club Approved Size Inclusive Ethical Fashion Brands

updated on May 30, 2023 by Angela Hamilton

I know we’re coming in hot with the roundups as of late, but let’s just blame the changing of the seasons, okay? Spring makes me want to refresh my wardrobe, my decor, my routine, and make allll the plans. We’ve had a post about size inclusive ethical fashion brands on the calendar for a while because thankfully we’re seeing more and more conscious companies offer more sizing options (thanks to so many womxn advocating for it over the years).

Ethical fashion brands are the perfect ones to provide more options too, because many of them are made-to-order or produced in very small batches. It helps everyone shop more sustainably as we don’t have to buy things pretty much assuming they won’t fit right in some way or another, and will either need to be exchanged/returned or at least altered (or worse, sit in our closets unworn).

Here are 15 eco club approved size inclusive ethical fashion brands to put on your radar, if not already! We’ve linked to a few size charts below and general sizing information about each brand, but keep in mind they are not all US based (many are in Canada) and sizing differs so, so greatly across the industry… even one determined to do better! So don’t forget to check out each individual site and please let us know if have others to add to this list!

How we adore the patterns and prints over at Big Bud Press. This butterfly jumpsuit is shown on models sized S, M, and 3XL (unisex sizing).

Smart Glamour, handmade in NYC, is committed to designing clothing for every body type, which is represented in their models (thanks to their inclusive model casting process!). Their line is super extensive too, with so many styles and colors to make the perfect custom piece.

Tuesday of California is such a fun brand, offering colorful fashion in XXS-6X from sustainable fabrics like hemp and linen.

Revelle offers not only inclusive sizing (you submit your measurements before ordering—YES!) but a variety of fabrics and colors within each piece as well. They’re also super transparent about what goes into making each piece!

Vestige is a slow fashion brand that offers organic pieces Made in Canada, in sizes XS – 4XL.

San Francisco’s Nettle Studios designs small batch, handmade clothing with flattering fits and dreamy colorways. (This spring’s made to order lilac linen is so pretty!) See size chart here.

Decade offers 100% cotton denim designed for all different body shapes, in sizes up to 38.

Eco Club member Oge Ajibe offers handcrafted, made-to-order clothing XS-XL.

Vancouver based Nettle’s Tale offers inclusive swimwear and clothing.

Alice Alexander is sustainable, ethical and size-inclusive, relaunching in spring 2021 with new styles.

Free Label’s ethical fashion is XS-4X. They also have a marketplace highlighting BIPOC brands!

Loud Bodies is your go-to for accessible plus size fashion ranging from XXS to 10XL (see size chart here). Tons of gorgeous prints here!

Sotela is known for their gorgeous size-inclusive jumpsuits that also come in petite, regular, and tall lengths. They offer lots of beautiful shades and can even accommodate half sizes. Shop all to find pants, dresses, and tops as well.

WRAY NYC has the coolest colorful and print happy fair trade fashion from XS to 5XL, and some pant styles up to 24.

Tamara Malas has everything from shiny jackets to printed undies to wide leg pants in sizes 10-32.

Where do you shop for sustainable and ethical size inclusive and plus sized fashion?

Top Rated Clean Beauty Products for 2021

updated on November 2, 2021 by Angela Hamilton

Few things are more satisfying than finding your new go-to beauty or skincare product. It can take a lot of trial and error (AKA wasted dollars) to find the right fit for your needs and coveted look. Choosing clean beauty adds a layer of complexity because 1) products are usually made with less conventional ingredients, so you aren’t quite sure about effectiveness, impact, etc., and 2) if you are searching for clean beauty, chances are you simply want to ensure your products aren’t made from potential toxins. But what are those toxins, anyway? And do we trust the people saying they are toxic? What do we know?! Acccck. Lastly, there’s the added concern that the term green beauty attempts to address, which is whether the making of your beauty products are harmful to animals or the environment.

And unfortunately, yes, the criticisms that green beauty faces are correct–it’s still part of a largely unregulated industry that allows any company to label their product in any way they’d like, which means of course that they can claim something is or isn’t toxic or environmentally friendly or whatever, as long as it’s in accordance with their own self-made standards. I’ve taken this into account when choosing products to link to on our site, but I certainly don’t know all the answers! I just know the companies I’m personally comfortable buying from.

All that to say, take the term ‘clean beauty’ with a gain of salt. There isn’t currently a perfect umbrella term for beauty that respects nature, animals, people, and stays clear of harmful chemicals, and has a proper certification system. The list below is a compilation of the top rated clean beauty products in 2021 across many sources, but uh huh, being green as well is a big deal to us too, so that’s definitely a factor in what we’ve chosen here too.

Tower 28 Shine On Lip Jelly is high shine and super moisturizing. It’s non-comedogenic, non-irritating, gluten and fragrance-free, since it’s designed for sensitive skin. See their no-no list right here. It’s also vegan and made in USA.

Indie Lee Brightening Cleanser is top rated because it’s super effective on many skin types and smells great. Another Credo Beauty (who has the most extensive clean beauty standards) approved product, Indie Lee is pretty focused on empowering the consumer… Check out their blog and podcast for more education on specific ingredients and industry knowledge. They’re always made with ethically sourced ingredients and eco friendly packaging. They also have a recycling program.

Glow Elixir CBD Beauty Oil from Undefined Beauty is hydrating, lightweight, and CBD infused. Their “free-from” list is pretty extensive and includes artificial dyes and synthetic fragrances. It’s vegan and made in USA.

Eu’Genia Shea Butter only contains one ingredient, 100% pure shea butter harvested with a cooperative in Northern Ghana. Loved because it’s super moisturizing, dermatological strength, and good for sensitive skin and skin issues.

Saie Dew Balm is touted as a effective, dewy buildable highlighter that includes a unique ingredient: marshmallow root extract. They are committed to nontoxic, ethically sourced ingredients.

Clean beauty coveted ILIA’s Limitless Lash Mascara has some of the best ratings of any mascara for its non-clumping, non-smudge formula. It was named best in green beauty by Allure, Glamour, and The Detox Market. It is made from 99% naturally derived ingredients. Ilia is also part of Terracycle.

Exa High Fidelity Foundation comes in 45 shades, no wonder it’s top rated! It’s also plant based, cruelty free, vegan, dermatologist tested, and safe for sensitive skin. When it comes to packaging, they have yet to ditch plastic completely (because of the pump and cap, like most beauty brands), but they say they’re looking for solutions.

Kari Gran Lip Whip is loved by those who prefer a natural looking lip color that doesn’t dry you out. Kari Gran uses organic ingredients and sustainable practices such as their ‘plastic neutral’ promise, which is kind of an interesting way to approach the plastic in beauty issue.

Kosas The Sun Show Moisturizing Baked Bronzer is a top rated fragrance-free, talc-free bronzer made with shea butter. They’re also leaping bunny certified. See more here.

More of a skincare product, Kinships’s Self Reflect Sunscreen is making waves as an effective mineral sunscreen with plant-based probiotics. It’s super lightweight and easy to use as a base below your makeup.

Mischo Beauty Worthy Nail Polish is known for their luxe vegan nail polishes and this is rated best of the best. Everyone loves that they’re glossy, durable, and chip-resistant.

Axiology Vegan Lipstick is top rated as a non-drying formula with many gorgeous hues! They’re PETA certified, and between their natural ingredients and amazing packaging (including their zero waste balmies that you know we are obsessed with), I think they’re one of the greenest beauty brands out there.

Another Ilia product made the list of top rated clean beauty. ILIA Multi Stick is an award-winning multi-use product. Personally I love multi-sticks like this. It’s definitely sustainable not to have to buy multiple products!

54 Thrones Beauty Butter is having a moment due to its nourishing shea butter formula (not to mention, beautiful branding and feature in Oprah’s favorite things!) that’s also Paraben-Free, Cruelty-Free, GMO-free, and Sulfate-Free.

When it comes to eye makeup, Aether Beauty Amethyst Crystal Gemstone Palette mixes pretty hues with moisturizing ingredients like coconut oil to keep things smooth and glowy. The only fragrance included comes from essential oils. Also Credo Beauty approved.

Have you tried any of these top rated clean beauty products? Any of your favorite brands on the list? Stay tuned because we’ll be sharing reviews for a few of these trendy options!

Why Your Ethical Brand Needs A Blog

updated on March 7, 2021 by Angela Hamilton

If you asked me a couple years ago whether ecommerce shops needed blogs to support their businesses, I honestly would have said no. I can’t begin to estimate the amount of blogs I’ve seen over the last ten years, and it’s always bothered me when brands throw one up, only to post a welcome entry and never touch it again. I get it! Blogging is hard work (why do you think I’ve been able to make it as a freelance writer all this time?!) and when running your business solo or as a small team, there often just isn’t time. In that case, I’m like, just skip it. Don’t leave it hanging there like a forgotten project.

Now that I’ve had more experience freelancing for ethical brands and ecommerce shops (mostly on Shopify—more on that later!), I’m passionate about helping them harness the power of a blog to find more success with their businesses. Below, I’ll share the biggest reasons your ethical brand needs a blog:

SEO

Maybe you’ve heard this before, but let me break it down for you because it truly took years for the importance of SEO to sink in for me. If you are operating your shop independently (say via Shopify or Squarespace versus Etsy), you’re truly starting from scratch. This means you need to bring in 100% of your own traffic. And unless you have thousands of people coming over from social media on the daily, you probably need SEO to help you bring in the views.

Shops, especially ethical brands who perhaps don’t have a ton of individual product listings (because, small batch!), totally need that extra text, links, and opportunity for shares that come with a blog, in order to come up on Google. Without it, it’s very likely that your shop doesn’t even have enough text to really make a dent! Now, this this is only part of the whole SEO puzzle, but it can make such a huge difference in organic search for your shop.

BRAND STORYTELLING

If you are positioning yourself as an ethical brand, it’s probably because you are working really hard to “do things right” – focusing on people and planet over profit, growing slowly or staying small, basically spending a lot more $$$ to provide goods ethically.

For the most part, your target audience is probably at least somewhat a discerning customer. Otherwise, they don’t understand why your goods cost more or are made of this or that and why it’s better. You have to show them what makes you so special. And buyers aren’t going to fall for anything. They want to see the proof. A blog is such an awesome tool for storytelling, for sharing all of those parts of your WHY that don’t make it onto the homepage tagline or product description.

CONTENT CREATION

The biggest issue I see with sustainable and ethical brands is that in making things slowly and in small batches, they feel they run out of content too easily to share on social media or in their newsletters. Well guess what? A blog will provide you with so much to share. You can distill each blog post down into several pieces of “micro content” that you share with your audience (which you can often post more than once, too!). A blog keeps you on top of your content game.

Of course, it’s an investment (whether in time or work or money) that isn’t going to reward right away. That’s why so many ethical brands skip it to begin with—there are so many other “must dos” in a business. You’re not necessarily starting a blog to go viral, though you never have a chance if you don’t start one! You’re building SEO, brand trust, and a library of quality content that lives on the internets in its infinite forms (social media, Pinterest, Google, newsletters).

Do you have any ethical brand blogs you love to read? A few of my favorites are Christy Dawn, MINNA, and Zuahaza.

PS: Click here for more resources for sustainable brands!

15 Best Sustainable Loungewear Brands

updated on December 21, 2023 by Angela Hamilton

It’s no secret that many ethical clothing brands focus on sustainable basics–they’re trendless staples in every closet and can often be more affordable than sustainable statement pieces. But thanks to the pandemic, loungewear is a trend born of necessity. I haven’t heard anyone complain about not having to wear jeans, have you? You may have already landed on your favorite sustainably made joggers, but how’s the rest of your wardrobe looking? Is it as cozy as those joggers? Whether it’s hoodies, sweaters, t-shirts, or any other favorite basics, we rounded up the coziest looking clothes in this list of the best sustainable loungewear brands. Go ahead, wear them out of the house.

Aurelie Crop Hoodie Lavender

1. Indigo Luna creates sustainably made yoga wear, loungewear, swimwear, and linen.

Hemp Wide Leg Pants

2. Uniform Handmade offers a minimal collection of thoughtfully and beautifully designed pieces. Perfect for zoom meetings!

3. We all know and love Girlfriend for their leggings and sport bras made from recycled plastic bottles, but if if you want to get even cozier than the leggings, they launched a collection of joggers and sweats, too.

4. Wisconsin-based Rawson Studio is home to basics, thermals, cozy modern workwear and other sustainable loungewear available on Etsy. While the above photo features ladies, they have lots of genderless and male garments too. They’re super affordable and sell vintage too!

Organic Cotton Henley Waffle Pullover

5. Back Beat Co, our long time eco club member, is the best of the best when it comes to sustainable loungewear. Their laidback California style clothing is exactly what you need to feel relaxed. (no longer in business)

6. California Cloth Foundry (available from eco club member Made Trade) I’ve been eyeing this Colorgrown Split Crew Tee forever and ever. Doesn’t it looks so comfy, yet v cute?!

Easy Does It Tank

7. Foundationals focuses on high quality sustainable materials like organic cotton for their laidback basics. The fit looks incredible. They truly do make chic look effortless!

8. Does MATE even need an introduction? Their Organic Thermal sets are my fave. Over the holidays I treated myself to one of their thermal joggers and they are the best pair I own… and the most sustainable.

9. One of the more affordable options for sustainable loungewear, Softwear has super cozy matching sets, and loungewear for men, too.

10. Object Apparel unisex loungewear is made by hand in Detroit, all natural and nontoxic. I’m totally into their high waisted Hemp Blend Undies and Organic Poppy Pullover.

11. I own People of Leisure‘s Daybreak Hoodie (another quarantine purchase) and I love it! It’s super light and fitted so it’s good for going on long walks here in Seattle, where you start off chilly but want something light (and easy to tie around your waist) as you warm up. There are so many things from them on my wishlist!

12. Grant Blvd makes loungewear, basics, and even outerwear ALL from reclaimed fabric. Many are screenprinted with important messages like End Cash Bail, above. I have their ‘sustainable shit only’ fanny pack. Plus, they’re Beyonce approved!

Cap Tee in White

13. Sancho‘s women’s loungewear section just might be the capsule wardrobe we all need.

14. I recently met The Waight on Instagram, a slow fashion brand that accepts pre-orders to minimize waste. They have a collection of undyed garments and also use avocado dyes! Does this not look like the coziest sweat set ever?!

Bang Sweater Henley | Cloudy

15. Lastly, Ajaie Alaie creates handmade garments in Brooklyn with intention.

What’s your favorite sustainable loungewear brand? Let’s get this list even longer!

15 Unique Zero Waste Goods For Design Lovers

updated on April 12, 2025 by Angela Hamilton

I don’t know about you, but in my circles, the zero waste movement isn’t exactly known for beautiful design. Whether it’s the packaging (or cleverly, lack thereof) or products themselves, zero waste goods often look like undone versions of their more popular, plastic-using, corner-cutting counterparts. But while most zero waste gifts are less than glamorous (and yeah, that’s kind of the point), there are plenty of intelligently designed, and beautifully done, sustainable products to own and to give. Not quite sold? Find our favorite unique zero waste gift ideas below, that make your conscious living journey (and that of your design friends) a whole lot more interesting!

Top to bottom, left to right:

You’ve probably seen Pela’s zero waste iPhone cases, but they now have compostable Apple watch bands in a few cute colors!

Swedish dishcloths are 100% biodegradable and compostable, and these flower printed versions from Sister Collective are the cutest.

Love these bottle cleaning brushes from Public–they’re made of natural fiber bristles and have wool tips!

Everist is a brand new waterless haircare company who produces shampoo concentrates in zero waste packaging. So cool!

Furoshiki wrap is one of the prettiest ways to ensure your gift packaging is not only sustainable but beautiful. These linen kitchen towel wraps from Ardent Goods at Waste Less Shop are designed to act as gift wrap that can be reused by the recipient in the kitchen afterward!

These Sprout plantable pencils from Package Free would make a fun gift for eco-friendly mamas or teachers! They’re customizable and when they’re all outta juice, you can plant them!

Truthbrush beautiful bamboo toothbrushes and toothpaste tablets are gorgeously designed and ship carbon neutral.

Goldrick Natural Living has many beautiful products to support your conscious living journey but their pocket soaps are especially clever.

Another amazing find from Eco Collective is their stain removal laundry stick! It’s plastic, fragrance, and palm oil free too.

Blue Heron Botanicals lip balm comes in the prettiest eco friendly, plastic-free packaging.

Axiology’s zero waste balmies come in such innovative packaging for a beauty product in an industry known for waste (and toxins). I also love that these products are multi-functional, they literally do the work of your blush, highlighter, eye shadow, and lip color!

We found Bio Scents on Instagram and have been eyeing their essential oils that come in thoughtful eco friendly packaging ever since. They’ve replaced the traditionally chunky plastic caps most essential oils come in with a super pretty wood design and colorful labels, and the only bit of plastic on them is recycled. They’re also starting a refill process!

Which zero waste goods are you most inspired by? I love when good design is applied to an essential, like low-waste household and personal care!