Have you Cottoned on yet?

Want be nice to your skin? Hell yeah! Want to be nice to the planet? Why not! Then it seems this slowly growing trend of organic cotton is the one and I want to ‘sow the seed’ for a new way of thinking about fashion (like what I did there). Now when you stuff cereal in the morning at a million miles per hour before dashing out of the door late for work (no? just me?) you will be vaguely aware of where your food has come from and whether it is organic or not, whether it has been genetically enhanced or sprayed with pesticides.

Organic food is increasingly becoming the choice du jour because we are made aware of the negative effects in the way non organic food is produced, and we have to come to the conclusion that sometimes, it’s worth that extra few pence to look after our tummies.

BUT. A big butt (exc-huuuse me?).... Are you aware that the fourth most damaging crop in the world due to toxic chemicals is Cotton? And that its the most sprayed on crop in the world, even though it takes up the least space (3 percent)? No I wasn’t either. I also wasn’t aware that conventional cotton uses about 25% of the world's insecticides. Well I never. The bit that bothered me the most when doing me bit of research was that Cotton made with pesticides contains Carcinogens and chemicals which can cause skin irritation like neurodermatitis, eczema and at worst in very rare cases, cancer. WWHHAT?!

If organic cotton is grown, it is much safer to our skin, but it’s also giving the environment a big cuddle because it encourages healthy soil (farming with pesticides is slowly killing the soil and there will one day be nothing to farm on, gulp) and keeps the ecosystem at its best.

Fairtrade Cotton is something else to look out for, it supports the cotton industry in all the 22 countries that grow organic cotton and supports the farmers and workers who work hard to create the world's most common clothing material. Check out the book 50 Reasons To Buy Fairtrade by Miles Litvinoff.

There are many stores starting to ahem, cotton on, and sell organic cotton, and they are proving that fashion is still a key element to the clothes and it doesn’t come at a huge cost. The Green Room, a part of ASOS, offers eco friendly fashion at seemingly no extra cost than the other trends and with just as much ‘pazazz’ (always wanted to squeeze that word in somewhere). One of the brands is People Tree, with designs by our very own style princess, Emma Watson. Have a looksy

cheked shirt £42 People Tree, checked maxi skirt £55 People Tree, skirt £30 ASOS Africa

http://www.asos.com/Women/The-Green-Room/Cat/pgecategory.aspx?cid=10062&r=2

As ever, H&M have come up trumps this summer and have released their Conscious collection. All white, floaty scrumptious pieces in answer to this season’s white trend and perfect for those lazy hazy summer days. Panic crept in when I went in to check it out and nearly all the stock had sold out in one day, which is amazing because people are ‘cottoning on’, but there was none left for Elspeth! Fear not though my friends because they are receiving deliveries all the time so get down there and get yours. Here are some looks, fawn away.

Dress £19.99, top £14.99 both H&M

http://www.hm.com/gb/conscious-collection

So in conclusion, (I sound like a school teacher – don’t worry I won’t give you homework!) you aren’t a hippy tree hugger if you wear organic, you don’t have to spend more or look dowdy if you wear organic, and you can look after yourself and the planet. Job done.