Green Friday - What is it? Can I shop it?

We all know about Black Friday. Obviously, it's the day after Thanksgiving Day. It's a day to get some really great deals on all types of stuff you've been wanting all year, whether you go to the store itself or do it from the comfort of your own home via online shopping. Black Friday definitely is a great time to be a consumer (and a business), but it's not very good for the environment. In fact, it makes a really big impact on it! Green Friday, its "brother from another mother' is more our style. And you might ask: "What's the difference?"

Well.

Black Friday

Black Friday has a couple of possible origins, one of which is more serious than the other. The other is that it originates from a hilarious habit of people taking the day after Thanksgiving off... because who wouldn't want a 4-day weekend? Let's be real. It's the day that a lot of people would use to get their Christmas shopping done and out of the way while they took their "sick day."  <- It's kind of funny, isn't it?

We covered a lot more detail about Black Friday in our blog "What's up with Black Friday?" just last year. It talks all about the more... solemn version of its origin and the darker side of the holiday.

But at the moment, we all know Black Friday as a really great time to get some good deals on your holiday shopping! But how much of a hassle is it to go to the shops when everyone else and their mother is there? The crowds, the push and shove, and the sheer amount of waste on this day is something that really makes it fall flat a bit.

You may not know about the dark side of Black Friday. It's not advertised, because businesses sure do like to make money!

Impulse buying is a highlight on this day, and a lot of people end up buying things they actually will never use. There's always the pressure of buying something because "it's on sale and I might need it later." Inevitably, half of these are things that will suck in your money and your space until you end up throwing them away. The big impact of Black Friday is the mountains of trash it causes, and its victim is our planet.

So what is Green Friday?

Green Friday is a movement to help encourage more mindful shopping: buying sustainable products that you need and will use. Many eco-friendly brands, on principle, close their doors on Black Friday in a bid to eliminate waste. There are still some online shops that offer good deals on the day, but the Green Friday movement is very anti-Black Friday. The waste isn't something that our planet needs, and it's definitely something we can reduce just by stopping to think if we're actually going to use the items in our cart.

Green Friday is all about avoiding online sales and highlighting the massive scale of CO2 emitted and waste produced the day after Thanksgiving. It's a newer concept, as compared to Black Friday, and has grown recently to include outdoor events and learning opportunities, along with mindful shopping. Environmental appreciation is a large part of the movement!

So this Green Friday, our goal isn't to buy everything that we see that we might need... it's to shop sustainably:

Shop sustainably for our closets and our wallets, but also for the environment.

Being mindful of what we buy is our goal!

To that end, here are some good fashion choices for sustainable shopping at a good price... just be careful to get only what you really need!

Here are 4 great places to shop this Green Friday:

1. ThredUp: An online consignment and thrift store that works for your closet, your wallet and the planet, thredUP already has up to 50% off your first order. They also have huge markdowns this Black Friday!
2. Wolven: Wolven recycles plastic water bottles by making them into clothing, and it's some pretty good-looking stuff, too! Their packaging is also sustainable… and right now everything is 40% off! Feels good for your wallet, right?
3. TruEarth: Tru Earth is famous for their eco-strips: the smarter way to clean laundry. They're clean, green, and simple! They also offer cleaning strips to replace buying cleaning liquid for your home! This holiday season they have a special holiday sale where you can save up to 37%!
4. 100% Pure: We'd be remiss to mention sustainable beauty because we know it's on everyone's mind! 100% Pure offers $10 beauty deals for every purchase of $35 or more. The brand prides themselves on using 100% pure ingredients in their products, and making an effort to be environmentally sustainable to give back to the global community.

And 4 for shopping with peace of mind:

1. MADE TREE: A woman-owned, family company, MADE TRADE focuses on being “ethically elevated.” They painstakingly hand-select only the most beautifully-designed, ethically-made goods that put people and our planet first.
   They also regularly have Green Friday deals!
2. TenTree: With ethical manufacturing and a small global footprint, TenTree is a brand that focuses on sustainable shopping that gives back.
   Not just for Black Friday, they guarantee that every item you buy plants 10 trees. Let's get re-foresting!
3. The Knotty Ones: The Knotty Ones believe in celebrating quality garments that last for many seasons. They use natural and sustainable fabrics in their knitwear, created at a fraction of the environmental impact of fast fashion.
   They not only offer 20% off knits storewide, but they put an extra 20% of their profits towards financial literacy training of their knitters.
4. WILD FABRIK: WILD FABRIK focuses on full transparency for every product and aims to give back to the planet, hoping to leave it better than we found it. We want to help you connect with sustainable retailers and conscious clothing brands for whatever you're looking for: from women's fashion to men's fashion, accessories to home goods, and beyond - all in a very green, environmentally-friendly way.