We all know that fast fashion kills the planet, exploits vulnerable communities, and even steals works from underground fashion designers. Who wants to buy clothes that do that to the world?
But not shopping fast fashion is hard. First of all, how are we supposed to know if a brand is a slow fashion? Second of all, it’s super expensive off the bat. And, third, not everyone wants to buy
second-hand either, especially when shein is taking over the sallies anyway.
Everyone says not to shop fast fashion - and yeah duh. But no-one tells you how to actually do the slow fashion thing. What is it? Why is it important? Is it just an ethical thing? Does Slow Fashion have to break the bank?
Here’s our no-nonsense guide to shopping Slow Fashion - something we wish someone had explained to us when we first started our journey.
WHAT IS SLOW FASHION?
Slow Fashion refers to garments that are made from good quality, ethical material that last a long time, and are more timeless in their style. This means buying a slow fashion garment will last you “season-on-season” i.e it won’t go out of style quickly, and you’ll be able to keep it in your closet for a long, long time.
IS IT JUST FOR RICH PEOPLE?
While the price tag might put people off, there is an investment that goes behind slow fashion. So, you might invest a little bit more money into one piece, but you’ll be saving money in the long run because it will last a very long time.
HOW TF DOES THAT WORK?
Clothes are similar to cars; once they leave the store, they depreciate in value almost immediately. So, while it might seem enticing to buy clothing because the price tag is cheap right now, it can actually be more expensive per wear, because the clothes deteriorate faster.
Most fast fashion items will last 10 wears before they start to rip, pill, and poke holes - making the clothes unwearable, after only a few months.
So...
- If you’re spending $20 on 4 t-shirts every two months, you’re spending $80.00, by the end of the year, you’ll have spent $480.00 on t-shirts.
- If you’re doing that for four years straight, you will have spent $1920.00 ... JUST ON T-SHIRTS, and by the end of those four years, you will have thrown away Every. Single. One.
If you’re going the slow fashion route...
- you might spend $500 on 4-5 T-shirts upfront (which sounds like a lot of money, but those t-shirts, because of timeless style and quality can last up to four years. And you’ll still have them by the four year mark.
WHAT’S ALL THIS COST PER WEAR BS?
The cost per wear helps us to figure out the actual value of an item - we divide the purchase price by the number of times it can be worn. Using our example above, a fast-fashion $20 t-shirt that’s worn only 10 times, means the cost per wear is $2.
That sounds cheap right? Well - the slow fashion $100 t-shirt is worn over 240 times by the end of the four year period, reducing the cost per wear down to 42c per wear.
By these standards, even buying an on-sale $5 t-shirt for a one-time use sounds super cheap, but it’s actually super expensive. If you’re only wearing it once, it’s $5 per wear.
SLOW FASHION IS A MINDSET SHIFT
Slow Fashion shopping is a mindset shift at its core - your clothes carry you through every single day. They walk you to your bus stop, they keep you warm from the cold, and hide you from your ex when you accidentally see them at a restaurant. Why not invest in that? Investing in Slow Fashion isn’t just about not wrecking the planet and other humans (even though that’s important). It’s also about honouring your wallet and your body.
Who knows - maybe you’ll even buy an item you get to pass on to the next generation.
