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My Issues with Being a Fashionista
I want to be fashionable. Ever since I saw Hannah Montana's revolving closet on Disney Channel, I knew I would be a material girl for life. But every time I try to get into fashion, there are so many different obstacles that prevent me from living my Hannah Montana dream.
Firstly, there's too many different options and trends. Everyday, some influencer comes out with the next best thing. And the issue is that I end up loving all of the trends. Why am I so tragically basic? There will be twenty new things that I need to buy in a given week, and it's so overwhelming. The way this came to be is through social media. While trends have been around for ages, social media has been extremely toxic to the fashion industry. There's this new thing called a microtrend. It's when something goes in and out of fashion so fast that it barely has time to catch on. We're talking maybe the lifespan of a year. Social media allows microtrends to exist. Their lifespan gets shorter and shorter. While before, microtrends lasted 3-5 years, now it could be as short as a few months.
These trends simply feed into capitalism and an insatiable desire to purchase more. This is good for companies, of course, but for the average person, it leaves them with a feeling of never being enough. It is issues like these that leave me so conflicted. If I had the money, I would love to get the next best thing whenever I could. But do I feel this way because of who I am or because of the toxic environment that I was raised in? Probably the latter. Still, given that I only have a finite amount of resources (money) to obtain clothes with, I have to pick and choose which trends to feed into. It is very hard to judge which trends will be around for a while and are worth the money. If a trend has been around for a while, does that mean it's going to end soon? I could buy something just for it to go out of style in a few months.
There's no right answer to these issues. Given the amount of fast fashion that we consume and how harmful the fashion industry is to the environment, something has got to change. One solution I have found is just by thrifting. You can get some really good finds for cheap, and you don't have to support a sweat shop. While there are some good sustainable fashion brands, they can be pretty pricey.
At the end of the day, I don't have the money or time to invest in my sense of style the way I want to. However, I still come up with some pretty good fits every once in a while. While I like fashion as a personal hobby, I realize at the end of the day it really doesn't matter. I'm thinking about working in the sustainable fashion industry one day, so hopefully I can make good clothes accessible to everyone.
Hi Brooke,
ReplyDeleteDefinitely feel you on wanting to buy more clothes to increase your options fashion-wise but not wanting to drop the big dollars on clothes! I feel like a recent trend (not sure if it's more of a trend or something that's been a thing forever) is thrifting. Recently people I talk to will talk about going thrifting on the weekends and finding solid deals, even finding enjoyment over bagging a good find at one of these thrift shops in our area. Also feel like fast fashion and the audience it targets feeds into its own cycle of toxic capitalism, since most people buying from fast fashion brands are younger people who probably wouldn't be able to as easily afford more expensive, sustainable brands, and also have much more quickly changing clothing preferences. Anyway, thanks for sharing and it's a lot to think about!
-Leon
Hi Brooke,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you wrote about this, because I've also been thinking about this pretty often. You are so right that fast fashion today literally only lasts a few months. I agree that social media is to blame too, especially due to TikTok. The grip that TikTok has on fashion and music is absolutely crazy. For example, once an influencer announces a product, it sells out almost immediately. I hope something can be done to reduce the negative impact of fast fashion on the environment.
Angelica
Hi Brooke!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that fast fashion is a really big problem that has only grown because of Tiktok. The consumption of clothings from these cheap companies like Shein really contribute to a lot of exploitation and waste. Thrifting is a really good alternative, but I've also seen a trend of people thrifting for the sole purpose of reselling, which kind of defeats its purpose. I'm glad that you're passionate in sustainable fashion, because I think it'll play a large role in the future!
Bryan
Hey Brooke,
ReplyDeleteAlthough having an absolutely nonexistent sense of style, I definitely went through a phase where I wanted to be fashionable. I relate to your dilemma about fast fashion and buying clothes. Thrifting is a great alternative and a fun hobby too. One time I learned that Steve Jobs and Bill Gates would dress so simply because they didn't want to have to think of the extra decision that fashion brought into their life, I always thought that was a great excuse if you didn't wanna worry about a look that day!
Kevin
Hi Brooke,
ReplyDeleteAfter your first paragraph, I thought your post was going in a completely different direction but I like the path that you took. I definitely relate to everything you say and experience the same pain as you do--too little money, too many clothes I want. A couple of years ago I was addicted to shopping (which has no led to my lack of closet space both in my dorm in LA and room in Chico). But once I realized the toxic culture I as a part of, I decided to stop. If you ever want to go thrifting sometime, let me know!
- Ellie