A More Sustainable Wardrobe

An estimated £140m worth of clothing is sent to UK landfill each year – Source WRAP. The average person today buys 60 % more clothing than in 2000 Less than 1 % of used clothing is recycled into new garments Washing clothes releases half a million tonnes of plastic microfibres into the ocean every year, equivalent to more than 50 billion plastic bottles. - Ellen MacArthur Foundation

It’s pretty shocking how much we consume and the impact that this has. Many of us are unaware how our buying habits are affecting our environment but what is clear is that we need to make some serious changes if we are going to protect our environment for the future. The fashion chains are making changes and you will see new fibres aimed at being more sustainable, less polluting than many we rely on, including cotton. While they may be making changes we, as consumers will also need to play our part. I cannot claim to be the most sustainable clothes shopper on the planet but, I do follow some basic principles. • I buy clothes that I love – not ‘that’ll do’ which means we get some wear out of them but then they sit there unworn because they actually don’t give us a buzz, and soon become replaced or replaceable. I am fussy about what I get. • I know what suits me which means my clothes get worn regularly. I don’t have clothing sitting in my wardrobe still with tags on. On average we wear 15% of our wardrobe 85% of the time, which goes some way to explaining why so much of our clothing ends up in landfill. • I buy for my lifestyle – beautiful dresses that only get worn to tea at the Ritz are not on my list because they aren’t going to get worn! • I try to buy good quality – because I want my clothes to last. It’s really easy to be tempted by the cheap fix, but it’s often regretted. • When my clothes have reached the end of the line I recycle them. • I have begun to look at the second hand options available beyond charity shops. Beyond Retro and Depop have proved fruitful providing more originality in terms of choice than often found on the current high street. There are so many more second hand options, rental too that this is really worth a look (try @ virtualmarketplace). • I love British made options – we do still produce clothing! There are lots of independent British designer/ makers, many to be found at equestrian events (I’m not particularly into horses but the shopping can be amazing, particularly Burghley Horse Trials) and the larger country shows. Northampton is still home to many

British made men’s shoes and you can still buys hats in Luton. There are also an increasing number of brands that have taken sustainable • Alterations – if clothing isn’t fitting, or just needs a tweak to make it more useful I will get it altered. It could even be remodelled into something quite different. It’s really worthwhile particularly when mass produced items don’t all cater for unique shapes! Having repairs professionally done can also breathe new life back into a garment. I think we’re all going to need to reassess how we buy and how much we buy and probably be prepared to spend more for new items into the future. What we can understand though is what really suits us and buy what we love to get the most wear out of our clothes.

Article by Jennie Billings – House of Colour House of Colour has a network of stylists to help you update your look Find your nearest at houseofcolour.co.uk/find-a-stylist 26

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