Is For Love and Lemons Fast Fashion?

For Love and Lemons is the manifestation of two childhood best friends’ dreams and is a 100% women-led endeavor dedicated to integrating love and fashion in every stitch. It was in Wyoming that the story started when Laura Hill, one of the co-founders of the brand moved there at the age of 12 from Minnesota. She instantly connected with Gillian Rose Kern, the other co-founder of FL&L.

Both friends had always been business-minded and wished to do something together that would allow them to nurture their friendship every day. Thus, they opened a lemonade stand where they both dreamt of working together in the future. Later, Laura got a business degree while Gillian studied fashion. It was on a trip to Australia together that the two women could not help but be inspired by the fashion and lifestyle there.

Upon returning to Wyoming, they instantly began to save up money to open their fashion line. For Love and Lemon was ultimately born after moving to Los Angeles in 1996. The name serves as a reminder of the love and friendship that they had shared since they were 12. One thing that they knew was that they did not want to become just another fashion brand in this already saturated market. They wished to distinguish themselves and they used fashion to do just that.

For Love and Lemons’ collections exhibit adventure, exoticism, and individuality. Every stitch is made keeping creativity and innovation in mind which is fueled by the excellent design team of the brand. With only 40 employees working behind the company, For Love and Lemons may not be as mainstream as other brands, but it is authentic and serves quality.

Each member of the team is hand-picked to help make the brand shine brighter. It sells casual wear like t-shirts, tops, and bottoms, to formal wear consisting of dresses and lingerie. Each piece curated by the brand screams sophistication and intrigue due to its unique designs.

 

Sustainability Rating: 4/10

Category: Clothing

For: Women

Products: Dresses, Lingerie, Bridal Wear, Swimwear   

Style: Contemporary, Elegant, Formal

Quality: Low, Medium

Prices: -

Size: -

Fabrics: Polyester, Organic Cotton, Spandex, Viscose, Elastane, Linen, Leather, Nylon

100% Organic: No

100% Vegan: No

Ethical and Fair: No

Recycling: No

Manufacturing Countries: Not Transparent Enough

Certifications: Not Transparent Enough

The founders define their collections to be rebellious and non-conforming by societal standards. The brand’s designs boast a curious mix of elegance, uniqueness, and modernity. The best way to describe For Love and Lemons’ clothing is to call them unconventional but in a good way because the garments are extremely intriguing and seem to be made using good quality fabric.

From bridal wear to lingerie, the brand does not lose its essential roots anywhere. Every piece of clothing screams the brand’s name with the intricacy of the stitches and the sophisticated designs. The brand’s website can only be described with the word feminine due to the figure-flattering dresses and lingerie pieces displayed on the very front page in the most beautiful colors.

The brand claims to have love and friendship at the very heart of its foundation and owes to communicate this love to its loyal customers. In addition to this, the brand also wants to share this love with the planet and improve its sustainability efforts. Despite being functional since 1996, it was only recently that the team at FL&L realized the significance of being eco-friendly. Since then, the brand has started to make moves to become a sustainable brand and although it is far from being one at present, it has nevertheless taken steps to improve through the years.

Currently, For Love and Lemons can be categorized as a fast fashion brand but not completely because it does not believe in following trends, but in setting them. Fast fashion brands usually work on trends. They change their collections just in time for old trends to fade and new ones to emerge thus, their collections change very fast because trends come and go like lightening in the present world.

This has proved to be quite destructive for the planet as the mass-produced garments are dumped in landfills which contribute to the ever-increasing rate of global warming due to the generation of toxic wastes. Moreover, fast fashion brands typically employ the services of factories located in less developed countries where labor is not only cheap but exploitative. Thus, fast fashion brands do not only harm the Earth but the people as well. The entire model of fast fashion is based on the exploitation of nature and poor people so no matter how much we try; it can never be sustainable or ethical.

For Love and Lemons claims to have a local factory in Los Angeles and the other in China which is advantageous due to its high technological machinery. It promises that it has created a safe and healthy working environment for the workers and pays livable wages. However, the GoodOnYou directory is not satisfied by the brand’s claims. It has given it a People rating of Not Good Enough because although its final production stage is certified by BSCI, it sources its garments from countries where labor abuse is rampant. It also does not provide proof that its workers are given their full rights and paid a livable wage.

The brand states it has hired a Sustainable Designer who has been overseeing the work at the company and trying to integrate more eco-friendly ways to do things. This way the company put out a collection called Sustainability is Beautiful which featured clothing made of 100% recycled material. It also made its 2021 Spring collection prototypes using leftover materials only.

Moreover, its organic and recycled materials have been certified by GOTS and GRS. These all seem to be steps taken in the right direction. For Love and Lemons also proudly states that it does not use screen printing as digital printing has been proven to be more sustainable as it uses comparatively less water.

The GoodOnYou directory again rates it as Not Good Enough for its sustainability efforts because once again, the brand provides no proof about taking all these actions for sustainability. On a positive note, it has a really good animal rating as the brand does not seem to use any animal-derived materials even though it does not label itself as vegan.

Overall, For Love and Lemons is well on its way to becoming environmentally friendly but the journey is far from over right now because it is still lacking in many areas, especially transparency. Without proof, all of its claims about being sustainable may as well be useless. However, the brand looks authentic in terms of design and quality so it is worth checking out.

 

Behind the Brand | For Love & Lemons (forloveandlemons.com)

Babes Behind The Brand: For Love & Lemons (theskinnyconfidential.com)

Sustainability | For Love & Lemons (forloveandlemons.com)

For Love and Lemons - Sustainability Rating - Good On You

For Love & Lemons Ramps Up Sustainability with New Collection | California Apparel News