How to Avoid Fast Fashion and Micro Trends

Cheap, low quality clothes fill up our landfills. Clothes from fast fashion companies such as Shein, are poorly made
with synthetic materials that are unable to decompose. While these clothes may be in your budget and follow today’s trends, the long term effects of buying from these stores is detrimental to the environment as well as
your wallet. Brands such as Shein have cheaper prices because their clothes are made with inexpensive materials and underpaid workers. The clothes are made from synthetic materials, processed using fossil fuels, rather than organic materials such as cotton. Though clothes made from organic materials are significantly more expensive, they will last longer, meaning you will eventually spend less money and produce less waste.

In the moment, being more sustainable with your clothing can seem overwhelming and expensive. Remember that in the long run you will save money and have timeless pieces that can be styled with any outfit. Although buying clothing made from organic materials is better for the environment, don’t purge your closet and start from scratch! Buying a whole new wardrobe from sustainable materials while also throwing out all of your old clothes (some made from synthetics) is still harmful for the environment. Use your current pieces until they fail you, or if you’re set on buying a new wardrobe, donate clothes to a thrift store or let your friends go through them. Buying used clothes from thrift stores such as Goodwill and Plato’s Closet can keep those clothes out of landfills and give them a second life.

Clothes should be made to last, not made to go out of style in a few months. The detrimental environmental effects
of fast fashion are more important than inexpensive clothes.