I completed the RTW fast of 2014. This was great, though in many ways not much of an achievement since I did not need any new clothes! Really most gals could go a year or two without buying clothes as long as they didn’t dramatically change size or move to a different climate etc. The major advantage for me was that I had plenty of time (and money) clawed back form not going shopping to spend sewing instead and enjoy a slower pace of life.
I learned the effort that goes into making clothes. Sure many RTW clothes use poor quality fabrics and maybe off grain, but it takes a lot of skill and hard work to get clothes assembled so quickly and well. Consumerism has gone a little crazy. Sadly, people buy too many clothes in a rush for a specific occasion or a cheap thrill and because it’s not really to taste, doesn’t fit and it’s cheap to buy more, all too often garments get tossed.* I don’t know what the answer is and I’ve not updated my knowledge of the current state of the garment industry in any detail since reading No Logo by Naomi Klein over a decade ago, so I won’t comment further. Other than to say, I plan on carrying on sewing and hopefully if/when my clothes are well fitted and of high quality, people I meet will be inspired to choose their own clothing more carefully. That’s my contribution for the moment.
*It’s easy to buy unwisely in sewing too and I have tried to learn from my experimental eighteen months.
I also learned that I don’t need as many outfits as I thought and don’t need to wash most things very often.
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