Nope, that photo is not of clothing, at least not that we can make out, I chose this one as this (the landfill) is where so much of our clothing winds up.
I wrote a pretty solid post on fast fashion back in 2022 and unfortunately, the details are still relevant. Check it out here.
I became aware of the brand Shein just the other day when I saw posts about Coachella. Apparently, everyone buys new clothes for Coachella and a lot of them come from companies like Shein so they have many "lewks" available throughout the festival. I haven't been to a music festival or even an all day show in a very long time but I have to say, I never bought anything new. I knew I was likely to get dirty, pushed, sneakers stepped on, sweaty...etc. so I wore what was comfortable. 🤷♀️
According to this article by the Eco-Stylist, Shein is the top fast fashion company, their app downloads exceed Amazon's! They do seem very invested in consumerism and pushing it daily. Shein can upload thousands of new styles every day!
"Fast fashion is notorious for creating massive amounts of textile waste. The “take-make-dispose” model, in which clothing is quickly produced, worn a few times, and then discarded, has led to a staggering amount of clothing ending up in landfills. In fact, it is estimated that around 85% of textiles end up in landfills each year, with SHEIN being one of the main contributors to this problem and to irresponsible consumer behavior."
Wow. Typically, the number of times an article of fast fashion clothing is worn: less than 10. That is staggering. I've been wearing the same clothes for the last 10 years, not 10 times! The article also addresses Shein's employment practices, which are, let's just say, not good. Much like the animal agriculture industry, it is about creating more "product" as quickly and cheaply as possible.
For more information on Fast Fashion and where to find sustainable clothing options:
Earth Day website: https://www.earthday.org/campaign/sustainable-fashion/
Eco-stylist: https://www.eco-stylist.com/23-ethical-alternatives-to-shein/
Eco-stylist brand guide: https://www.eco-stylist.com/sustainable-brands/ I have to add a caveat for this, as far as I'm concerned, and they should be too, clothing made from animals is not sustainable as our animal agriculture system is not sustainable. Further, it is unnecessary and cruel. I've decided to include this website as they do have quite a few vegan companies on the list.
Check out this article on Vox.com - "It's time to break up with fast fashion"
Clothing overconsumption is awful for the environment and hurts the poorest of the world’s poor. The boom of fast fashion...has normalized a culture of constantly buying new clothes without thinking twice about the consequences to other people, animals, or the planet at large."
You may have noticed that I did not yet mention plastics in this blog, good catch! Here it is!
Washing our synthetic clothing accounts for 35% of all microplastics in the ocean making them the largest source of microplastic pollution in the world’s oceans. Microplastics infiltrate the food chain and, in a study in the Netherlands in March 2022, microplastics were found in the blood of 80% of those tested, half of which were PET (polyethylene terephthalate), the plastic material found in clothing.
I'm feeling really inspired to bring more sustainable pieces into my wardrobe as other items need replacing. I just got lost in thought and started thinking about how freeing it would be to have only a small number of clothing items. I imagined looking into that closet and knowing exactly what I had to wear. The ease with which clothing decisions would be made if I only owned what properly fit and looked good on me. That sounds incredible.
What surprised you the most about this topic? Tell me in the comments below.