H&M Conscious Collection

 H&M was my first port of call when I started my ethical lent way back in February, for a long time their righteous little green tags have encouraged me to part with my cash on the grounds that “it’s good for the world, right?” However, with my ethical head on I delved deeper into the little green tag, and to be honest “40% organic cotton” was not going to cut it with me anymore.  In fact, I was a little annoyed that they could promote green credentials without actually doing that much, I mean if The Body Shop can do cosmetics that are made from fairly traded ingredients, support local farmers and protect animals from cruelty on the high street than surely H&M could up their game from 40% organic cotton t-shirts.

And it seems they have...

Launched to coincide with April’s Earth Month, H&M have released their new “Conscious Collection”. The organic cotton is back but this time it’s partnered with Tencel, and recycled polyester. So far so good. 

The womenswear collection features white and lots of it. Broderie anglaise, blouses, tunics and pretty detailing combined with minimalist tailoring give a modern but romantic English summer feeling. However, the visual merchandisers at H&M are a sneaky bunch, and their big “conscious collection” promotional section instore also features some of their not so conscious collections. With a few white, summery non conscious items stuffed in between the well meaning collection, H&M loses points with me, obviously hoping that people would get caught up in the eco goodness and forget to check for that little green tag! Cheeky.

Some of the clothes are lovely and the price points are spot on which is one of the most important things about make conscious fashion work on the high street- I can’t be the only one who walks away from brands like People Tree because I can’t quite stretch to £80 for a summer dress... H&M are offering a well designed, well thought out collection which, crucially, combines fashion and eco credentials at an affordable and accessible high street price.

I definitely appreciate the effort here but we are still a long way away from having the much needed fashion equivalent of The Body Shop.  A good start and from a fashion point of view, a good, relevant collection  but I believe that there is further to go, H&M have thrown down a gauntlet, showing that it can be done and other high street retailers need to take note and step up their eco game.  Be wary when you shop though, that little green tag doesn’t always mean guilt free shopping- always check what you are actually buying.

The Body Shop: The Return

Walking past The Body Shop, the smell conjures images from my childhood: heavily scented bath pearls, tootsie toe separators, magic flannels and cartoon animals. It does not make me thing excitement, glamour, luxury or relaxation- all the things I feel when I enter a department store cosmetics area. However, in the spirit of my Ethical Lent and missing my daily shopping trip on the high street I returned to my childhood stomping ground.

I knew that The Body Shop were anti animal cruelty (hence the little elephants that adorned all my flannels when I was little) but I had no idea just how driven the company is to be ethical. Animal protection aside they also have a vested interest in where the ingredients in their products come from, who grows them, how they’re processed and what impact they have on your skin and the planet.  Sounds like the perfect place for an ethically minded cosmetics junkie to stock up!

Now, as you may have gathered, I am beyond demanding when it comes to my cosmetic sales people, I want them to pamper me, lavish me with complicated information, interrogate my skin and leave me feeling hopeful that my face will never again be marred by a pimple or a wrinkle. I don’t mind paying £30 for a pot of moisturiser for this pleasure. On my first visit to the Body Shop in Kingston a lovely young man talked me through the moisturisers and managed to sell me a particularly gorgeous smelling Vitamin C one on the basis that “it’s good for young people like us if you’ve had a heavy night out.  Feeling very pleased with his enthusiasm, flattered by his well, flattery and buoyant from the cheap price (a mere £11!) I left the shop vowing to return to face my foundation demons.

Here’s where it began to fall apart. To say I’m pale is an understatement, I am practically translucent and The Body Shop does not cater for my end of the colour spectrum. After unenthusiastically showing me the colours of the foundations on her hand, the sales assistant told me to try Nicola “Girls Aloud” Robert’s brand of make up for especially pale people. Not impressed.

Conclusion: This is a place where people could make a small change to the way they live every day. Amazing to have ethics like these available on our very high street. I fully intend to go back and replace all my shampoos, shower gels, bath soaks, cleansers and moisturisers with their fabulously ethical and wonderfully priced versions. However, I remain unconvinced on the make up front and heading towards and as I hurtle towards an empty bottle of foundation, I am running out of options!