Re-Use

RE-

It has become increasingly clear in our society that our everyday actions have an impact on our environment. Concerned individuals are making changes to their lifestyles in attempts to limit their carbon footprint, many have changed to a plantbased diet, or switched to an electric car. Overall, there is an increased desire for an environmentally conscious economy. Something people may not consider when calculating their environmental impact is the clothing they buy and stores they shop at. The world consumes eighty billion pounds of new clothing each year, this is up four hundred percent from two decades ago. The average American throws away about eighty-one pounds of clothing per year, ninety-five percent of those can be recycled yet eighty-five percent ends up in landfills. This includes certain textiles such as polyester, spandex, and nylon which can take twenty to two hundred years to fully biodegrade. In recent years fast fashion has infiltrated the industry. Fast fashion can be defined as “cheap, trendy clothing, that samples ideas from the catwalk or celebrity culture and turns them into garments in high street stores at breakneck speed” and it has seen a twenty-two percent increase in popularity in the past three years. Recognizable fast fashion brands include Forever 21, Rue 21, PrettyLittleThing, and Boohoo. Fast fashion allows consumers to wear stylish clothes at an affordable cost. The problem is not the clothing itself, but the system used to manufacture these products and its larger impact on society. The fast fashion industry’s exploitation extends beyond high end designers, taking advantage of their textile workers as well. The atrocious treatment, pay, and working conditions of workers is one of the biggest issues found in the industry. Eighty percent of textile workers are young women between the ages of 18-24 and there is evidence of forced labor found in various countries according to the 2018 U.S. Department of Labor report. In this industry profit is above all. Consequently, when it is time to cut down costs to increase profits, the first corner cut is at the expense of the workers. Sixteen-hour days, seven days a week, is the regular work schedule and workers are unable to refuse overtime, nor can they afford to. Unacceptable health and safety conditions are rampant in these factories. Employees are forced to work in unsafe factories buildings with little to no ventilation where they inhale toxic substances. Injuries and disease are common in textile production due to the lack of safe standard in place. Workers are subjected to verbal and physical abuse as consequence for not reaching daily quotas. Worse off, many of these factory workers are children. 168 million children across the globe are forced to work, a majority being in the textile industry due to the low-skilled labor. A lot of brands are considered to be fast fashion nowadays, however there are several brands that create sustainable designs and use environmentally friendly textiles. Clothing brands such as Pact, Reformation, and Everlane are rather affordable compared to other brands but can run you upwards of fifty dollars an item. An alternative I would highly suggest is buying your clothing second hand, it is the most affordable way to participate in sustainable fashion. Buying second-hand clothing is super easy and you can find it through various outlets, such as consignment stores, vintage boutiques, and mobile marketplaces like Depop. Some vintage or re-sale brands can be expensive, that’s why my favorite way to participate in sustainable fashion in to shop at thrift stores. The benefit of thrifting your clothes is the affordability. If you put in the effort to search through the racks, you can find brands like Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, and Tommy Hilfiger at insanely low prices. Speaking from personal experience, I’ve gotten some of my best wardrobe pieces for a reasonable price at thrift stores. The jeans I buy from thrift stores are quality brands such as Levi’s and Calvin Klein, quality second-hand items like these are There are plenty of local second-hand stores you can shop at in Tallahassee, here aresome good spots to hit: Lucky Duck Resale for Autism (Cash Only) Community Thrift Market Good Samaritan Salvation Army Living Harvest Secondhand Sandies Vintage 21 The Other Side City Walk The Fix Thrift Shop Savvy Savage Goodwills USE!

USE! proven to stand the test of time. I understand you cannot find everything you need at a thrift store, there are things you will need to buy brand new like underwear, but there are plenty ways you can incorporate second-hand pieces into your wardrobe. For example, I’m a server and I’ve gotten all my uniform pieces from Goodwill. There is no reason to spend fifty dollars on a black button down and black pants from any store, when you could go to your local thrift store and get those same pieces for around ten dollars. You are saving money and you are helping reduce pollution by reusing clothes and increasing demand for second-hand clothing while simultaneously decreasing demand for new, fast fashion. The little things make a difference; if you need a new coat, sweater, or dress check out the local thrift shop first before you go online or to your nearest mall.