SUSTAINABLE CONSUMERISM
DENIZ AKKAYA
If you think you don’t have enough time or money for sustainable shopping habits, think again. So we’ve listed 7 steps to a more sustainable wardrobe just for you…
The idea of creating a sustainable or ethical wardrobe from scratch has now become an idea that we all need to gradually warm up due to the climate emergency. Creating your wardrobe from scratch and adopting more sustainable shopping habits requires you to give up the fast fashion brands you love and review your choice of trends to follow. These changes can be annoying, but in the long run you will thank yourself for taking these steps 🙂
Here are 7 steps to a more sustainable wardrobe!
1. 30 Wears Test
Livia Firth, founder of Eco Age, a company that issues sustainability certificates to brands, has launched a campaign called #30Wears to encourage people to buy products they only know they’re going to wear. The biggest message of this campaign is every time you buy something, always think, ‘Will I wear it a minimum of 30 times?’ Try this when you shop. If the answer is yes, then buy it. But you’d be surprised how many times you say no.
Try not to buy a piece that you know you’ll only wear once, and instead invest in longer-lasting pieces that you can wear over and over again. Instead of a piece that you know will go out of style in the blink of an eye, turn to versatile pieces that you can combine in various different ways.
2. Who Made My Clothes?
One of the hardest things about trying to be more sustainable is not knowing where to start and, more importantly, where to shop. Social media is an easy way to communicate quickly and directly with brands. When making a purchase, you want to make sure that you are shopping from a brand that is compatible with your values. Check out brands’ websites to find out about their suppliers, if not listed there, you can try to communicate with them through different channels of communication. After a while, your knowledge about brands’ ethics will grow and you’ll start to make more informed decisions.
Transparency is key when it comes to sustainability, so be sure to find out where a brand gets its materials, what it is made of and how sustainable the manufacturing process is.
3. Shopping Habits
Each new garment produced has a significant carbon footprint, depending on its production, the amount of energy needed to produce vintage clothing is zero 🙂
Vintage clothing plays a huge role in making fashion more sustainable. Another eco-friendly way to keep your wardrobe up to date is to turn to rental options instead of buying. Considering that 300,000 tons of unwanted clothing is thrown away and not recycled every year, it is clear that renting out our wardrobes and contributing to the circular economy is an important step towards a more sustainable future.
4. 1 Piece 4 Seasons
Only buy products that you know will work for you all year round. Do not spend your money on summer clothes if you live in a cold climate; winter clothes if you live in a warm climate. Instead, save your money on pieces you can wear in more than one season. Jeans, T-shirts, classic dresses, timeless coats and jackets will make your wardrobe much more sustainable.
5. Donate
By donating unwanted clothes to someone in need, rather than leaving them hanging in your wardrobe, or selling them in second-hand practices, you are putting yourself and others in a more sustainable cycle. Live by the rule of’ donating a piece you keep in your closet in exchange for every piece of clothing you buy’.
6. Take Good Care Of Your Clothes
Sure, if you buy higher quality clothes, they’ll last longer (and you’re more likely to treat them better because they’re more expensive) but this applies to anything hanging in your wardrobe. If you take good care of your clothes, you will buy new ones less often. If you take steps like turning your jeans inside out before washing them, your clothes will last for many years.
7.Choose Quality Over Quantity
It’s all about planning. Buying better quality, more sustainable products will cost more money than buying a cheap fast-fashion product. However, it’s all about changing your mindset. Yes, it’s more expensive, but you’ll probably have it for longer, and overall you’ll make fewer purchases per season. Buying 10-30 high-quality products a year instead of 60 cheap, less environmentally friendly pieces will significantly reduce your carbon footprint. So, save, invest and buy less!
