The need for change when it comes to the sheer volume of textile waste produced both by industry and consumers is imminent. I remember working with the London Sustainability Exchange back in 2017 and learning that as an individual we produce 3.1kg of textile waste - translating into 21 t-shirts - on average, each year! And with each year since I have witnessed industry make new nonsense promises and focus has diverted to slow fashion being the way forward; and while slow fashion is critical it is a longterm solution and the need for a considered industry is urgent. As consumers we can be that faster solution by practicing mindfulness through thoughtful shopping and slow consumerism. 

We have already acknowledged that transitioning to a sustainable lifestyle isn't as simple in reality as it is to say - or read - but transitioning to mindful shopping is one of the simplest things we can all practice. It doesn’t mean transitioning to solely mindful outlets - such as sustainable brands or second hand shops - it means stopping and questioning your intentions. If we all stopped and questioned the longevity of a garment within our personal wardrobe and evaluated the durability in relation to personal need, our individual level of textile waste accrued each year would be drastically diminished. 

We can all remember being a teenager and our major influencers were our friends and we would intentionally acquire the same clothing as them, only to find we never wore them because, lo and behold, garments didn't fit us the same or their style didn't really fit in with our developing sense of self. My sister and I growing up were the definition of opposites and yet we aspired to be one another - the cover photo being an exaggerated example of this. I wanted her effortlessly sleek, monochrome aesthetic and she desired to intersperse her wardrobe with colour and not hesitate to leave the house in a floral dress in the middle of October. We’d go shopping together and acquire something more in keeping with the other’s wardrobe and eventually the item would naturally work its way into the other’s wardrobe - where it most probably belonged all along. 

With age our influence has diverted away from our friends to the pressures of society. We no longer hesitate in complimenting our friends fashion choices while simultaneously recognising it wouldn't look the same on us - due to naturally different body shapes as well as personal ‘style’ - so we no longer actively seek to follow our peers. However what we haven't come to recognise is that this conformity to influence has just been redirected and we instead follow trends. We see what is ‘in’ on someone totally different to ourselves on social media or through the glossy sheen of a magazine, but the recognition of self is no longer relevant. So in summer we fill our wardrobes with  floral motifs and the latest shades of pink, when in reality you might gravitate towards black; hence the common dilemma, nothing goes or even if it does, now in the backdrop of our natural environment it looks absurd. My sister and I  still dress very differently - with the occasional item overlapping, which is great as its like doing ‘rent your wardrobe’ without the fee. We still appreciate the other’s wardrobe but have a sense of pride when it comes to the differences that form our personal style. But how do we attain this personal pride when we come face to face with trends pushed by society?