The rules:
The rules
1.
No purchasing new clothes or accessories from
retail stores, online stores or any other way, shape or form.
2.
Clothes can be purchased from thrift and/or
opportunity stores as these profits go towards community and charity.
3.
No outfit can be worn twice – change it up with
different accessories, shoes etc.
4.
New things I can buy: underwear, shoes and
leggings. I can buy uniforms as well, but only as necessary, not just because I
can.
5.
I can accept new clothes and accessories as
gifts, but I can’t ask for them or buy them with a voucher.
6.
There is no budget on clothes I can budget for,
but there needs to be a purpose behind buying them.
7.
I will set up an Instagram account to photo blog
my progress.
Why?
Financially
I spend a lot of money on clothes each year, and a good
amount of this is ‘fast fashion’, that is clothes that have an intentionally
short life span as dictated by the companies that produce, market and sell
these items. I’ll be honest – I love K-Mart. I love buying cheap clothes when
they are on special from Target. But I don’t need a lot of what I’m buying
either, and what I am buying does not often produce enough bang for my buck to make it worthwhile.
I also buy online a lot, and a number of times clothes I
have ordered have not been a good fit (or fit at all). I don’t need any more
clutter in my life, and yes, clothes are clutter.
Ethically
I have already stated my love for cheap clothes, and as many
people are aware, cheap clothes do come with a cost. Before becoming a happy
clothes consumer again, I want to spend some time looking at the best options I
can take to ensure the clothes I am buying are ethically produced.
There are plenty of options out there for what I used to
know as ‘fair trade clothing’, though now it has a bunch of different titles.
My 400 Days project isn’t about taking away from these retailers and charities
who encourage clothing produced in a socially sustainable and equitable way.
It’s more that I have recognised that I have made choices, willingly, in the
past, and I wish to correct that with more self education.
Supporting others
“Thirfting” or op shopping is one way I can do something to
support other people. Profits from charity shops go directly back into
supporting those in need, or supporting the community. There are a huge range
of op shops who support different causes. I want to stop giving money to big
retailers and start giving back a little. In addition to this, my husband and I are really keen to stay away from the duopoly that is our two big supermarket chains in Australia, and in some ways, this applies to putting money somewhere else other than in the hands of big business.
I love thrifting
If you have ever met me, I have probably dragged you into an
op shop at some stage. I love the quirky patterns, the groovy pants, the
awesome dresses you can’t find elsewhere.
Being a bigger girl, it’s often really hard for me to find
that clothes that fit and are a flattering cut. I can wear mumus and flow
shirts and look ridiculous, or I can squeeze into bootleg jeans and look
equally silly. I wear a lot of dresses and I only wear things that I think look
good on me. An op shop is a great place to source so-called “plus size” clothes
without having to fork out plus sized money.
I also tend to wear and then flip items I buy. Clothes sold
by discount department stores and cheap clothing shops have little or no resale
value and can’t be sold at any preloved market. Knowing this has also put me in
a position of power and understanding, so usually when I buy clothes I buy as
much vintage or designer gear as possible. Of course, some op shops are very
aware of the retail price of items, others not so much. I don’t make a lot of
money out of flipping items, but the advantage of selling them at a preloved
market, such as Round She Goes, means that people are actively looking for this
stuff and take it out of circulation, at least until they decide to pass it on.
Knowing my slight addiction to thrifting probably explains
why I don’t think this will be too much of a challenge for me, but I know there
will come a point where I really want something new and can’t get it.
Additional rules:
- Alternate weeks (all even numbered) are 'Shop My Closet' weeks. That means that I can't buy anything at all that week and must only wear items from my wardrobe. Luckily I have a huge stash of clothing. I'll post these pictures too.
- The hashtag for my project is #400daysofthrifting
- I can buy new shoes if I need to, but honestly, I am not at all into shoes. I am cursed with wide feet and this is not an enjoyable shop for me. However, I am hoping to seek out ethically sound shoe manufacturers and this will be one of my little tasks.
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