Sustainability & Fairness in cosplay - an uncomfortable but necessary thread
(rt's and reposts highly appreciated)

So I thought about this topic a lot in the past months and I think we don't talk about it enough in the cosplay community. In fact, I've never seen one tweet about

it in all the six month I've been in the Twitter cosplay community and this worries me quite a bit.

A few days ago a friend of mine bought a whole cosplay for 14$ on aliexpress and was super happy about it. Of course I could understand it, but at the same time I thought:

How can a whole outfit be produced for 14$??
First the cotton has to be grown amd get harvested. There are people working at the field, who need to get paid.
Then the fabric has to get woven and coloured. Again, there are people working in the factory's, who need to get paid.

Then the cosplay has to be sewn, again by people who are sitting at a sewing machine and who need to get paid.
Then you need to consider, that the company want to make profit out of this cosplay and sometimes there is also a shop, which want to make profit.

I think it's obvious, that with that price, it is simple impossible to give all of the involved people a fair payment and to also not pollute the environment through fertilizer and colours.
Which means unfortunately that for our fun we have wearing a cosplay a lot of people work

under unfair conditions and the environment also suffers.
Are we okay with that?
I'm definitely not and thats why I'm writing this long thread right now.
So what can we do to change something?
I've collected some tips for you, how you can make our hobby more sustainable and

fair. I don't expect you to do all of this, because most times it is expensive and a lot of work. What I ask you to do is: Pick one or two of them and do them! And when you are used to them, pick one more and do it. This way we can slowly change something with a of small

steps in the right direction! Also please spread this thread or other information about the topic to raise awareness!

Tip 1:
buy local
You can save a lot of co2 if you don't let your things get shipped around the whole world.

Tip 2:
use fair trade products and ecological fabric to make your cosplays. Here are some links to fabrics shops, which sell those (I only know german shops, sorry)
http://stoffwelten.de 
http://lillestoff.com 
http://biostoffe.at 

Tip 3: buy second hand clothes and alter them.
This is really cheal and no new product has to be produced for you. Also sell your own clothes you don't wear anymore, instead of throwing them away.

Tip 4: buy second hand cosplays.
There are a lot on ebay or at the bring & buy at conventions. Sometimes you even find high quality or self made cosplays this way. Also sell your old cosplays you don't wear anymore, so other people don't have to buy new products.

Tip 5: sew yourself or commission other cosplayers to make your cosplays.
This way the fabrics still have to get produced, but at least the sewing work is done under fair conditions. Also ask the ones you commission to use ecological fabrics for your cosplay.

Tip 6: share material/ fabric rests you don't need anymore with others.
We all often buy more fabric than we need and maybe someone else can still use it for their cosplays.

Tip 7: share cosplays with other cosplayers with the same size.
You have a cosplay friend with about the same size? Then try asking them to buy a cosplay together and share it! This is also cheaper for both of you.

This are a the things I could came up with for now.Thank you a lot if you read that far! Please share your own ideas in the comments or dm me and I'll add them to the thread! I also appreciate constructive discussions about this topic. If I said anything wrong above

please let me know!
I'm not a native english speaker, so there are probably lots of mistakes in my text, please be patient with me.

tip by @okaara_patty:
"In the USA, a lot of public libraries and schools have a makerspace or a fablab where you can donate or swap leftover fabric and supplies"
Thank you for this great tip!