Who’s ready for some spring shopping?! I know I am. This cold weather is KILLING me. But before we all run out and buy all new things for spring, today I wanted to bring up a topic that I’ve been seeing more and more of. The idea of, and changing industry of “Fast fashion.”
What is Fast Fashion?
It’s basically what a lot of us are buying all the time. It’s those $20 dresses on Amazon, it’s the super trendy Forever 21 pieces we buy and only wear once, it’s even more expensive things we might find at a department store or boutique that we wear one season and then we’re done with.
The world we live in has become so FAST. Trends that are seen on the runway are literally duplicated by Zara and available to the consumer in the same season! Bloggers and social media influencers are selling the crap out of the cutest $15 sandals from amazon because they’re fast. They’re inexpensive and people don’t have to second guess the price, they’re easy because they’re sold on Amazon, and they arrive to their door in 2 days! That is some fast fashion if I’ve ever seen it.
What does all this mean? This means we’re consuming fashion at a significantly higher rate than ever before. We’re buying more, ultimately spending more, we’re hardly wearing the same things twice and we’re living in this more, more, more mentality. But, you also have to ask the question, where does all this go? What do you do with all the excess? Unfortunately a lot of it ends up in landfills, which is not cool. Some of it is sold at yard sales and consignment sales, some is donated to goodwill but at the end of the day, you just spent a ton of money on things you’re literally just disposing of one way or another.
I’ll admit I’m very much a victim of fast fashion. Since I own a store I’ve found I sell my stuff when I’m wearing it. So, I need to be wearing it a lot! I can’t wear the same thing everyday, so that means with every new release I’m usually getting something for myself to wear around town, in the store, etc. That means I end up always wearing new clothes which sounds fun, but isn’t very practical for my closet.
What Do We Do About Fast Fashion?
Well, the first step is admitting we have a problem. Ha! Let’s all admit we’re victim of the fast fashion mentality, and pose the question what CAN we do about it? Well if you follow me on instagram I hope you saw my closet clean out saga this past weekend! In that case you know what I do. I consign a lot of my clothes at Statemint Consignment. I sell at a local, seasonal consignment sale and I also shop a lot at consignment sales. I’ve found some really amazing pieces for very affordable prices at Statemint and I truly love shopping the sale every year! Sometimes I even buy, and sell those items in the sale the following year!
Statemint has become a staple for me. I love that I get to sell and make some money from giving my clothes I’ve gotten my wear out of to someone else! I also love that I’m able to make lots of room in my closet each season. But I my favorite part is that I get to shop other people’s closet! (My girl crush, The Vintage Epicurean, is selling this year and I’m pumped about finding some of her goodies!) I typically leave with 10-15 new items and never spend over $100! That’s a total win in my book!
Right now I’m also in the process of getting a huge donate pile going! I’m donating a TON of old, worn out, slightly damaged clothes that won’t quite sell at a consignment sale. I don’t need a ton of clothes in my house and in my life cluttering up my space and my mind. If you sell at Statemint you also have the option to mark items you don’t want to pick up as “donate” and they take them all to be donated for you. It’s seriously the best!
If you’re local, you should totally come shop with me at Statemint next weekend! The sale is Friday, Saturday & Sunday! (Make sure you follow them on instagram for more details and sneak peeks!) And if you’re not local I encourage you to find a consignment sale to sell & shop or in the very least I encourage you to do a little closet cleaning out this spring!
