Happy day after thanksgiving!
If you want, skip to the list at the end of this post for a list of good places to buy from instead of always getting fast fashion/new clothing.
If there's one thing that I know we can do as individuals in lessening our environmental impact, it is lessening our consumption as one way of putting our money where our mouth is (or at least where my mouth is in my case!). Supporting ethical, environmentally conscious companies is a choice that I try to make as often as possible. Because they're often more expensive, it certainly means shopping less often and sometimes having to go to Target or Walmart to get something that I just can't afford buying at a more ethical/more expensive seller.
Buying clothes that are made from large companies that you find in most shopping malls like Forever 21, American Eagle, and Urban Outfitters (whose clothes I guiltily love), are often mass produced in countries with fewer workers rights and wage laws, and often take advantage of the poor and marginalized in order to make a huge profit in places like Europe and the United States. Plus, there are MILLIONS of pieces of clothing currently in circulation that are lightly worn or used. Trust me, I love getting something brand new as much as the next person, but I don't need every single item I buy to be brand new. Especially things like sweaters, jeans, pants, jackets, etc.
Even companies like Goodwill and Salvation Army have some sketchy practices and don't always treat their workers well...
However: nothing in this world is black & white. I know Goodwill does some good work, so I'll often shop at the local Goodwill with my friends rather than running to Target or Goodwill.
Here's how I rank and prioritize the different clothing items I buy, where I look for and buy it from, and some of the general philosophies I try to live by:
For Used Clothes (shirts, sweaters, jeans, pants, jackets), Shoes, Costumes, Furniture, Gifts, Kitchen supplies, Beach supplies, Cloth for sewing or repairing, Random odds & ends:
1. First I would try and check local thrift shops (aka not Goodwill and Salvation army. Cute church-run ones, or other local non-profits that run thrift shops are really great to support)
2. Goodwill, Habitat for Humanity, or other national, larger thrift stores. These places are gonna be more sustainable than buying brand new, as you're still circulating and essentially recycling materials. Plus, the jeans I find are always nice and worn in already, and I feel less guilty about cropping sweaters, sweatshirts, or shirts myself if I bought 'em used.
3. eBay, Poshmark, ThreadUp and other online thrift stores & apps. I literally barely buy new shoes anymore thanks to eBay. This is also a great way to save money if you're looking for specific brands (like I am sometimes with Chacos, Tevas, and generally stuff that I would be buying new at REI if it weren't for places like eBay)
3. Your local "Buy & Sell" or "Free & For Sale" Facebook pages! I know this is much easier to find and be a part of on a university campus, but I know that a lot of these pages exist, and especially are really helpful for bigger stuff like furniture, kitchen and home supplies, etc.
For New Clothes like underwear, basics, and other more specific things:
1. Check out this list of sustainably sourced & ethical clothing companies!! https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/fair-trade-clothing
One of those companies that I've bought from is PACT, and I got a bunch of their (rather P R I C E Y) organic cotton undies, but I fell in love with them. I started by ordering 3 pairs and ended up ordering 6 more. Sometimes you gotta treat yourself ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
2. Companies that support NGOs with a certain percentage (if you've ever expressed in the environment, these are probably always sending you advertisements in your instagram feed). My personal favorite is Happy Earth: https://www.happyearthapparel.com/
I am an ambassador for them because I truly really love their environmentally-themed clothes and they donate FIFTY (50%!!) PERCENT of their profits to environmental and sustainability focused Nonprofits. Pretty damn good in my opinion.
My discount code for 15% off your order with Happy Earth is biancashappyearth. :) Go ham with that!!
Obviously, in many places in this world it is just not a reality for most people to be buying fancy stuff like my PACT underwear all the time. However, a lot of these options are usually cheaper, and by supporting thrift stores with your dollars that often will give back to the community in many ways. I know that I can't buy every single thing used (and one of my sisters would be appalled at my fashion sense if I tried to), but that's also okay. I think that by, as much as possible, using my wallet to make an impact is something that we can all try to do every day.
Cheers, and happy Green Friday,
Bianca
Easy list of places to check out for clothing:
1. Local Thrift Shops
2. Goodwill
3. Free & For Sale in different localities. Eg, NYC's version: https://www.facebook.com/groups/NewYorkSales/
4. eBay! https://www.ebay.com/
5. Poshmark (both buy and sell stuff) https://poshmark.com/category/Women?utm_source=bsdm&gdm_bottom=false&campaign_id=319292836&utm_campaign=319292836&enable_guest_buy_flow=true&msclkid=73964fd4e0251a6dfcb11235438aa3da
6. ThredUP online consignment and thrift shop: https://www.thredup.com/
Others like ThredUP include:
- Refashioner: https://refashioner.com/
- Swap.com https://www.swap.com/
- Goodtwice: https://goodtwice.com/
- Gone Tomorrow: https://www.gone-tomorrow.com/
7. This list of ethical companies for NEW clothes: https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/fair-trade-clothing
8. PACT, an ethically and sustainably sourced company I can personally recommend: https://wearpact.com/
9. Happy Earth: https://www.happyearthapparel.com/ (use discount code biancashappyearth for 15% off!)
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