When people find out that I write about eco-friendly fashion, their most common response is, “I can’t afford that.” And while I could point them to Etsy, consignment shops, and, um, this website, I understand how hard it can be to slog through the muck to find that perfect item…and have someone tell you that it’s not good enough; that it has to be organic, or recycled, or BPA-free…

With that in mind, it’s high time I share one of Lindsay’s and my ethical fashion secrets: eco-friendly sale sites. Earlier this month we featured the budget fashion websites we’re most excited to shop about in 2012 on Broke & Beautiful, and now it’s Awakened Aesthetic’s turn! Every site below either caters to all-eco-fashion or features hoards of US-made, fairly-traded and organic designs.

#1: OpenSky

OpenSky isn’t the most eco-friendly – it can’t be, with curators from all walks of life spanning the design, health, food and fashion categories – but with bombshell vegans like Alicia Silverstone and green mavens like EcoStilleto, you have a lot to choose from.  I spend sooooo many hours on this website: following curators, adding organic foods to my wish list, swooning over eco-friendly clothing and vegan shoes.  It takes some fortitude, and also a lot of snacks, but my wish list grows strong.  (Time to go back to the health and fitness section again…)

And that, to me, is the best thing of all: OpenSky isn’t just about fashion.  Or beauty.  Or whatever.  It spans all of my obsessions, allowing me to order new headphones, gluten-free cookies (must…replenish…snacks) and a Five Bamboo dress all at the same time.

I follow an absolute symphony of people, and I won’t force you to slog through a list a miles long, so instead I’ll give you a short and dirty list of my favorite curators on OpenSky right now:

• Michele Varian, a designer who features products using sustainably harvested and reclaimed wood;
• Keri Glassman, a dietitian with a penchant for organic tea;
• Cynthia Rowley, whom I bow to (she also often features indie designers and organics);
• Carolyn Murphy, a local-loving model featuring lots of US-made fashion and food;
• Shopafrolic – see that ostrich clutch above? It’s faux, and they feature it!;
• Bradley Bayou, whose choices encompass everything I want in my home and on my body;
• Alicia Silverstone, one of my first choices to follow, only features sustainable, vegan products; and
• MarcellaVallodolid, whom I’d never head of before I fell in love with the organic bamboo cutting board she’s currently featuring.

#2: LovingEco

Awakened Aesthetic partnered with LovingEco last September, and we’d do it again in a heartbeat.  What I love about LovingEco is the way they sneakily educate you as you shop:

• Next to the price of each sale item is a list of icons that tell you the ways in which the item is ethical (biodegradable, fair trade, handmade, vegan, etc.);
• Beneath the price is the name of the non-profit you’ll be donating to with each purchase; and
• Each week, LovingEco features TasteMakers, who have a chance to support their own favorite charity.

Every time I visit LovingEco I learn more about the brands and charitable organizations they’re involved with…and I’m doing it while shopping.  For things that are on sale.  Um, yeah.

Did I mention that their sales last all week?  Because I don’t have to rush through the typical one-day sample sale, I can take my time deciding exactly which Mata Traders dress I have to have, knowing that my purchase does something good for multiple eco-aware companies.

#3: Pure Citizen

Pure Citizen is moving up in the ranks!  Along with our feature in 2010, they’ve also been discussed on Refinery 29 and CNBC – and with good reason: Pure Citizen does flash sales right, sending its subscribers short daily emails (the Daily Love) with a list of the ethical brands they’re featuring each day.  Each sale lasts 72 hours and offers organic and vegan fashion at between thirty and ninety percent off.

Those high discounts have…well, it’s not a catch, per se.  More of an incentive.  If you think you’re getting a screaming deal, you can choose to donate part of they money you’ve saved to charity – directly, with one click, through Pure Citizen‘s website.  They’ve already raised thousands of dollars!

I’m a huge fan of Pure Citizen’s Last Chance Sale, which always features ethical brands at deep discounts – it’s like a flash sale clearance section.

#4: Citizens Planet

I get kind of giddy about maps.

Citizens Planet aims to “bridge the global fashion gap” by offering its members a chance to learn about and purchase from designers and brands from around the world.  They do all the legwork – chatting with locals, scouring small boutique stores – and are focused on finding brands that best reflect the culture surrounding them, allowing a girl in Seattle to wear real, localized, classic French fashion without paying an arm and a leg.  This is the kind of site I get excited for, because it immediately reminds me of all of the cool places and people in the world – and makes me strive a little harder to see them someday.

#5: Fab.com

Ohmygodyouguys. Fab. If you haven’t gotten into Fab.com yet, now is the time. They’re this sexy beacon of independent art and design, featuring artists that span style and era while playing with the idea of function and form. Fab’s like that cool artistic guy you met in college and wish you had the stones to talk to, but he’s just so cool… – except in this version of events you and Fab meet at a party and he’s actually really down to earth, and later you realize that you’re an interesting, sexy person too, so there’s really nothing to be nervous about.

All this to say that Fab features tons of unique designs, but it all seems somehow relateable – you know?

Have you found a new favorite eco-fashion website?  Tell me about it!

Tags: Awakened Options: Organic, eco, eco fashion, lists, Sales, tips, Websites

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