Fast fashion – When Life Gives You Lemons

It seems that we Brits are addicted to clothing. According to The Environmental Audit Committee, ‘We buy more clothes per person in the UK than any other country in Europe.’ Fast fashion, like fast food, is consumed almost as quickly as it is purchased. And our purchases do not sate our appetites but fuel them.

According to the same committee, ‘By 2030, global apparel consumption is projected to rise by 63%, from 62 million tons today to 102 million tons—equivalent to more than 500 billion additional T-shirts.’ It’s time for a rethink.

**Sometimes less really is more** Image: The blowup on Unsplash

Excessive consumption of clothing hurts the planet and people. If you are interested in learning more, Oxfam has created a very readable blog on the topic, https://www.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam-in-action/oxfam-blog/new-shocking-facts-about-the-impact-of-fast-fashion-on-our-climate but I would like to focus on the positive ways that we can both enjoy fashion, whilst limiting our impact.

Clothes make the man

I love clothes. Wearing a pretty outfit makes me feel more confident and attractive. As a disabled person, I think that dressing well is even more important. When you use a stick or a wheelchair, you do not want to skulk in the shadows drawing looks of pity or worse.

**Twin burdens: disability and poverty** Image: Dmitry Shamis on Unsplash

We are constantly judged by our appearance, but new clothes cost money that we do not necessarily have. Disabled people are doubly disadvantaged, since they are physically and financially impaired. In the UK, there is a 44% income gap between themselves and the able bodied. (Resolution Foundation) And even someone as fortunate as myself, with a generous husband, is acutely aware that I am dependent on his generosity. I am not in a position to earn my own income and always feel a little uncomfortable spending his.

So the question is, How can I dress well for less?

Buy the best

Our parents and grandparents were fully aware that buying good clothes once is always more economical in the long run than cheap ones which barely survive their first wash.

The catch is that quality clothing comes with a higher price tag. One way to get around this is to ask for something special as a gift. I am always delighted to accept a gorgeous jumper for Christmas that I would never buy for myself. Alternately, beautiful clothing is easily sourced second hand at prices no greater than at cheap High Street stores. They are often the least worn. I found a beautiful cashmere jumper on EBay that had been worn once for £25 – the price of a decent T-shirt.

The 24 hour rule

If you were to ask anyone if they had items in their wardrobe that they had never or hardly worn, they would probably confess to buying them on impulse.

Stores and on-line sites are designed to woo you to part with your money for the enticing product on offer. Unfortunately, when we get the item home, it doesn’t match up to the hype. Underused clothes are desperately wasteful. So I recommend this little rule. Wait 24 hours and if you still want it, go for it. You might be surprised to find that you already have something similar in your closet or that you can easily live without it.

Sourcing with planet and people in mind

Though in environmental terms, pre-used clothes are best, we all like to get something new sometimes.

The production of anything has costs both to the planet and the people that make them. Unfortunately, the fashion industry tops the list for terrible employment practises. Most clothing is made by poorly paid women and girls working ridiculous hours in horrible conditions for pitiful pay.

But with a little research, you can find those companies who make some effort to provide good products whilst protecting workers and the planet.

And if you are looking for something specific that is ‘pre-loved’ the Internet gives endless options. Visiting shops and trying on clothes is exhausting for me – it is much better to search on EBay or other sites such as Freecycle, FBMarket or use the Vintage App.

Treating with care

Once you find the item you love, the next task is to keep it in good condition. Some of these suggestions are hilariously old-fashioned. Wear an apron, if like me, flour tends to fly when cooking. I have a rather snazzy range. They are always welcome gifts.

**Aprons that add colour and keep your clothes clean**!
Image: Karen Costello-McFeat

Here are some other suggestions to keep the clothes you love longer:

Only wash clothes when necessary. Small marks can be removed with a damp cloth and lightly worn outfits aired.
Wear a cotton T-shirt underneath. It will protect delicate fabrics and remove the need for frequent washing.
Be aware that many synthetic fabrics release plastic microfibres into the water supply when washed – so switch to natural fibres or wash sparingly.
Air dry rather than tumble dry.
Wash on the coolest setting. Modern detergents and washing machines do a great job on low temperatures on fast cycles.

If you love it, mend it

Clothes suffer from wear and tear like everything else, but the beauty of fabrics is that they are often easily mended. We can attempt to mend invisibly or make it a feature of the item. YouTube is full of wonderful videos on the Japanese mending method called Sashiko. Once used by the poor to mend their clothes, it is now the height of fashion.

I appreciate that sometimes mending costs are high – but if the item fits and is something your love, it is probably worth the expense.

What you can’t mend, repurpose

And if you can’t mend it, repurpose it! Old shirts make excellent cushions covers and a jumper accidentally put in the hot wash makes great felt. Jane used hers to make a beautiful soft glasses case for Penny. The options are as endless as the uses for fabrics themselves. But when they really get to the end of their life, they make great wash cloths and if made from natural fibres, can go on the compost heap.

Give and Take

Shockingly, ‘Around 300,000 tonnes of textile waste ends up in household black bins every year, sent to landfill or incinerators. Less than 1% of material used to produce clothing is recycled into new clothing at the end of its life. — House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee, 2019

This is an incredible waste when all these items can easily be donated instead. Decent quality clothing is always welcome at charity shops and you can increase your gift by signing a Gift Aid form. That way, for every £1 your donation brings, the charity receives an extra 25p.

And while you’re there, you may well just pick up a bargain yourself.

Look great and feel good

If we take care of what we have, mend, repurpose and consider buying second -hand, we can both look great and feel good. Our actions will help preserve precious resources and support good causes. Shopping for new, ethically sources products helps workers and world alike.

Its time to reject the concept that only new is good. We cannot afford to maintain it. After all, a rose that is second hand is still a rose.

If anything is causing us to rush into the chaos brought about by climate change, it is the very human desire for novelty. In the past, this curious and adventurous spirit has brought humanity unimagined gains, but it is time to rethink how we direct our desire for the new.

We all love objects and experiences that are original and there is nothing wrong with indulging from time to time. However, despite what social media may suggest, we don’t need to do it all the time. Our desire for change can often be satisfied just as easily and joyfully closer to home.

The allure of travel

First, mea culpa. As a young person, I was addicted to travel, saving every penny from holiday and Saturday jobs to fund my next adventure. And I still love to explore new lands and cultures. Abroad, all is new. As someone fascinated by everyone and everything, travel is my cerebral sweetie shop. Since so many of my best memories are from other locations, I would be the last person to say that travel is bad.

However, travel, especially air travel, does have consequences for the planet. My husband recently went on a business trip to the Dolomites in Italy. He sent me this glorious picture below, but when he returned he said the towns near where he was staying were sad places with closed hotels and restaurants, few facilities and many boarded up houses. This region, once a thriving tourist resort for skiers, is now empty. The snow has gone and so too the income that sustained their communities.

Stunning Dolomites – but not enough snow Image: Jeff Costello-McFeat

Last year in France, half of the 7,500 slopes closed due to inadequate snow fall and this has been repeated all over the world. Of course, this is devastating for the hotels and restaurants reliant on that trade, but it is also a rather worrying indicator of how our climate is changing.

In contrast, some places like Venice are so overwhelmed with tourists that they have introduced a tourist tax in part to deal with the excessive amount of rubbish. Such fragile and historic places are also put under great strain by the mere footfall of so many people and the services they require. Venice is a unique place, but there are certainly many other equally wonderful cities to explore without feeling that you are in a crowd at a football stadium.

I have probably bored everyone witless with my stories from Scotland, but our country is so rich in history, landscape and culture that one could not exhaust it in one life-time.

Shop till you drop

As the spring sunshine prompts us to shed our winter wear, how tempting it is to celebrate with a new, seasonally appropriate outfit. Gorgeous brochures flop through the letter box, pop ups litter our feeds and unless you entirely avoid anywhere with a retail outlet, we are bombarded with gorgeous possibilities.

Most of us are aware that a desire to buy continuously can be a sign of deeper problems, but even the most well-balanced of souls will fancy something new now and again.

**How much is enough?** Freestocks on Unsplash

But satisfying this desire need not cost the Earth – metaphorically or literally. It takes a little more research, but it is possible to buy goods that support communities without destroying their environments or health. We can choose to buy well-made products that we know will last beyond the next few months. We can choose companies who have strict policies on who makes their clothes and the conditions under which they make them. We can also choose those companies who favour organic materials, thus saving the farmers and locals from the ill-effects of pesticides. In the end, these products will not only make us look good but feel good too.

New for old

For extra virtue points, we can but some of our clothes from charity shops. My husband gets most of his shirts there: many are new with tags and some have only once seen a washing machine. For a few pounds, he obtains designer shirts that look fantastic. (I think I need to start looking in the men’s section!)

EBay offers second-hand goods at super cheap prices and with exceptional choice. Freecycle offers all kinds of things from sofas to children’s toys for free. You only need to sign up to join.

I know many people are reluctant to go down this route from a sort of pride (and it took me a while to get my head around it) but I think it is worth trying to change our attitude. Here are goods we can enjoy and save from the over-flowing landfill sites and help worthy causes at the same time.

And if you’d rather not enjoy someone else’s recycled clothing, perhaps you might enjoy up-cycling your own! On a rare occasion that I was watching The Sewing Bee, they were practising visible mending or the Japanese art of sashiko. Done properly, sashiko aims not only to mend an item but to actually make it more beautiful. The knitwear expert, Flora Collingwood-Norris, certainly achieves this and adds exquisite embroidery to much loved, needing-care jumpers.

**The dog ate my dress**
Image: Karen Costello-McFeat on Unsplash

Suitably inspired, I set about making my own repairs to a pinafore I love but which Hermione clearly did not. (As a puppy, she chewed everything and this was just one more casualty.) The tear was L-shaped and difficult to sew neatly. It would need a patch. With the aid of Bondaweb, I made one and used a heart-shaped blanket stitch to attach it. Though far from professional, it makes me smile and has reclaimed my pinafore for another few years of wear.

Avoiding being a dedicated follower of fashion

Although we tend to think of fashion in terms of clothing, it spreads across all aspects of manufacturing from the shape of cars to the colour of appliances. Each month I receive Country Living magazine and often chuckle over the headlines that state that florals are now in a month after extolling the virtue of Swedish minimalism. To be a dedicated follower of fashion, we’d need a very big budget indeed. We’d also need to dispose of everything mere weeks after their purchase, which is hardly a sensible way to behave.

An alternative is to try to avoid being quite in fashion at all – selecting what you love and suits you and your life-style and not worrying too much if it is on trend. Another way is to take advantage of things out of fashion and make them your own. A rather enterprising friend’s daughter used her woodworking skills to take an old wardrobe and transform it into a drinks cabinet.

Older furniture can be picked up for a song and is often made with high quality wood.

**A newly useful piece of furniture** Image: Amy Perkins

In books and on-line there are any number of brilliant folk willing to show us how to use the materials of the planet more wisely. Through following their advice, we may not bring about significant change by ourselves, but we can be part of a larger mind-shift that may, just may, save us all.

Tag: Fast fashion

Second Hand Rose – Clothing