Hello and welcome back to Sustainability Saturdays with Leeds RAG Fashion Show! We hope you are getting into the festive spirit....
Sustainability is SO important to us at Leeds RAG, we consider it in every decision and action we take. We want to encourage students to shop sustainably, so we have compiled some reasons why shopping second-hand can benefit YOU! We hope that you bear this in mind when making your Christmas present choices this season...
Firstly, as you know, human consumption of food, materials, fashion….and everything else under the sun… has a HUGE impact on our environment. We only have finite resources on this earth and it is up to us to make responsible choices about what we take from it and how we care for it. Every little helps in this respect, we don’t even have to massively disrupt our lifestyle, just little choices from all of us will have a collective difference. This could be as easy as choosing to purchase second-hand fashion rather than helping to fuel the demand for new clothing, or choosing zero waste alternatives to reduce taking home more plastic to dispose of. With the growing amounts of sustainable choices becoming more desirable, it is even easier for us to make these decisions.
These are a selection of our top reasons why we at RAG love to shop second-hand...
1. Shopping second-hand helps us to find unique one-off pieces.
I don’t know about you, but I LOVE shifting through rails at kilo sales and charity shops in the hope that something exciting and unique catches my eye. There is also the sense of satisfaction that you gain when you find a steal of an item at great price- even more so when you have the clear conscience that you haven’t paid into the fast fashion trap and given your money to unethical brands. Look out for a blog post next month where we let you in on our favourite online destinations for sustainable second-hand fashion...
2. Second-hand is more affordable than new fashion.
Like I said, getting a steal of a price for an amazing item is such a good feeling. There is nothing better than leaving a kilo sale with a sack of clothes that cost you under £20- it leaves you with such a buzz you’ll feel great all day. Recently, I visited Left Bank, for a Worth the Weight kilo sale, and left just under an hour later with 4 items (including amazing pure wool jumpers) for just £19.50. That's under £5 an item and I still left with a conscience!! (We are looking at you PLT). You can’t go wrong with prices like these.
As students, we understand feeling tight for money, which is why shopping second-hand is so great- it’s kinder for your wallet, WAY more fun and you can do it knowing you aren’t contributing to unnecessary consumption of new products!
3. Second-hand is kinder to the environment.
Fashion consumption has detrimental environmental and social effects. Astonishingly, over 1.5 trillion litres of water is used by the fashion industry each year in production of new clothing. This is even worse when you consider that there are 750 million people in the world that don’t have access to drinking water. These facts are UNBELIEVABLE; our consumption needs to change- we need to stop demanding new clothing and instead choose to purchase items that already exist!
Furthermore, we need to think more carefully about the materials of the clothing we wear. If we can’t purchase second-hand, it is so important to look at the composition of the clothes we buy; we are effectively highlighting what we want in the industry through our buying choices! For example, as a result of the fashion industry, 190,000 tons of textile microplastic fibres end up in the oceans each year, which damage our marine life and pollute our water supplies. Microplastic fibres come from synthetics, such as polyester, which take up to 200 years to dispose. Unfortunately, synthetic fabrics often make up the composition of cheap fast fashion clothing, which is promoted to us left right and centre as soon as we open our phones, or enter a shopping centre. We need to be stronger than this and avoid buying new clothing wherever possible, in order to reduce water consumption and microplastic pollution!
If you have to buy new, it is important to look for items made from sustainable materials or biodegradable alternatives, such as recycled cotton, hemp, Tencel and bamboo. If we make these changes, we can shift demand away from damaging materials and towards more sustainable solutions to deter companies from bringing new synthetic clothing into circulation!!
4. Shopping second-hand allows us opportunities to find gems from our favourite brands resold for less.
The beauty of second-hand clothing within charity shops and kilo sales is that you can find high street and designer gems for a fraction of the price. This may seem contradictory being as we just told you to check the composition of the clothing you buy- still do this, however it is STILL more sustainable to give new life to a second-hand fast fashion item, than it is to buy a new product regardless of if it is made sustainably. Don’t get me wrong, choosing a new recycled polyester jumper is amazing, but so is thrifting a Zara shirt from a charity shop to give it a new life and prevent it from going to landfill to do even more environmental damage there.
What is also great about second-hand fashion, is that you do not have to compromise on the quality that you are used to. For example, if you know and love the quality of your Nike clothing, you can still find this quality in a thrifted Nike sweater, that hasn’t been made new for our consumption.
Some of our favourite charity shops around Leeds include Oxfam, Sue Ryder and Cancer Research and some great vintage stores to check out include Blue Rinse and Pop Boutique. Stay tuned to this blog to hear more about places to shop second-hand and vintage in upcoming posts in the new year.
5. Second-hand positively contributes to a circular economy.
Check out our last blog post which goes into more detail about following a circular lifestyle; it is important to remember that the most sustainable choices we can make involve not buying new items. This is why clothes swaps are ideal- you can swap clothes with your friends so you both get a new outfit, with no additional cost to the environment! Similarly, by upcycling the clothes you already have, you can create brand new looks whilst getting creative and potentially learning a new skill in the process! Some of the most simple upcycling steps you could take include; removing sleeves off items for an edgy sleeveless fit, cropping t-shirts to wear with your fave high-waisted 90s jeans or even embroidering or decorating your preloved sweatshirts.
We hope you take our advice and give second-hand fashion a chance. Trust us- neither you, or your bank account, will regret it!
Thank you so much for reading,
Lots of Love,
Leeds Rag Fashion Show x
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