Addicted to thrifting? Wondering where all your money’s gone? Feeling the fashion clutter feels? If you answered “yes” to any of the above, it might be time for a fashion detox.
From Slow Fashion Season to ReMake’s 90-day No New Clothes challenge to the Rule of 5, more of us are looking for ways to circuit-break bad fashion habits. There’s a real movement going on with conscious fashionistas sharing what’s worked for them when it comes to slowing down, buying and wasting less.
Our first guest for 2024 is Jenna Flood, a slow fashion stylist who’s been sharing tips and tricks with her followers around what she calls her Wardrobe Freeze.
It all began for Jenna after she created a spreadsheet to track where her money was disappearing to. Turns out she was over-spending on ethical brands and treating second-hand like it was fast fashion – ultra high turnover. It didn’t help that she works in a consignment store surrounded by temptation…
What rules did she set for herself? How did she stick with them? And, was it worth it?
Jenna says completing her challenge has left her with a thrilling sense of freedom.
Now, you can’t buy that!
NOTES
JENNA FLOOD is a a slow fashion stylist based in Melbourne, Ausrtralia. She says: “Jenna believes in slowing down our clothing consumption by curating capsule wardrobes and buying for long term investments instead of purchasing on a whim or following short trends. She hopes that in the future, more people invest in the sharing economy by renting or borrowing garments instead of owning them. For her clients and photoshoots, Jenna sources all her clothing from second-hand stores, consignment stores, vintage stores and from sustainable brand designers themselves.” Find her website, ironicminimalist.com
MUTUAL MUSE is a fashion consignment store with three branches in Melbourne, founded by Kirsta Hawkins. Find them here.
Here’s a link to the Australian Fashion Council’s new Seamless clothing stewardship scheme, and the new report on textile and clothing consumption and waste.
““This challenge isn’t about clearing out your wardrobe or becoming a minimalist, it’s about changing the way you engage with fashion and forming a healthier relationship with your clothing spend””
ORSOLA DE CASTRO is co-founder of Fashion Revolution. Listen to her on Episode +. Read Orsola’s insta post here. Clare recommends her book, Loved Clothes Last.
Clare mentions an Aussie news story about a woman in Gippsland, Victoria, who’d completed a 100-day challenge to wear the same garment every day, over and over. She chose a wool jersey dress - partly for its odour resistant qualities, and when asked about the biggest benefit, she said it was saving precious time and effort deciding what to wear, especially when life got in the way and she or her child were sick. Read it here.
THE BROKE GENERATION by Emma Edwards is platform to “help millennials feel good about money”. Discover here.
SLOW FASHION SEASON began in Europe as campaign to enourage fashion shoppers to link their behaviour with the climate crisis. It’s since gone global, and the latest 30-day fast fashion fast is on now. More here and on Instagram. Follow Mumbai-based board member and slow fashion advocate Puja here.
British journalist TIFFANIE DARKE is an ex fashion newspaper editor and current co-owner of the Agora Ibiza sustainable fashion boutique. In 2023, she encouraged her fashion friends to pledge to buy just five items of clothing all year (bar socks and underwear.) She calls it the RULE OF 5. Find the rules here. Follow Tiffanie here.
MORE NO-BUY STORIES…
Marie Claire UK’s sustainability editor Ally Head set her own shopping pause challenge last year, and wrote about the experience: “We're all prone to buying too much - something that has only been reaffirmed by this year's damning IPCC report which highlighted the horrifying impact overconsumption is having on both people and planet. The message was clear - act now, before it's too late. Shop less and upcycle more. And so that's what I've done. I've seriously changed the way I shop this year and have been on quite the journey when it comes to what I wear, how I spend, and how I style myself. “ Read the rest here.
PROJECT 333 American minimalist Courtney Carver started her Be More with Less as a blog in 2010. Her “minimalist challenge” begins with choosing 33 fashion items to wear for three months. Since then it’s turned into a book, an online course and has beeb featured on Oprah.
BUY NOTHING NEW MONTH was started by Australian Tamara Di Mattina back in2011, and is now an annual event in October and has picked up all around the world. Still going strong.
“Imagine if you could…. replicate the joy you get from buying new things with the wardrobe you already have”. ”
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