I have been shopping and bought a new coat and trousers (first clothing purchased since December). The trousers were a carefully planned and desperately needed purchase, but the ooat wasn't (spontaneous, but it is good quality). It got me thinking about the sustainability of this gig - at some stage, you really have to get new clothes - whether they be 'new new' or 'recycled new'. Two of my pairs of trousers were in dire need of replacement - one pair had just come to the end of their natural life and were not really fit for polite society any more, the other pair (I am rather embarrassed to confess) were cheap, and as it turned out, nasty. I should have known better. And I've had my old coat for 5 years and it's looking somewhat tired.
I have been looking diligently in the local op shops. Maybe it is the area I live in, but they just don't stock corporate-suitable clothes. And if I am to be honest, the musty used clothes smell just doesn't do it for me. Tried a recycle shop - but there was nothing that suited that day. How much effort should I put into searching out non-new clothes? Apart from which I am not too excited about paying a reasonable amount of money for clothes that definitely look pre-loved before I get to them. And I don't really like shopping that much anyway.
So, the upshot - a coat that should last 5-10 years and new decent quality trousers. I am pleased. And considering the sales are on, feeling pretty restrained. Or have I been extravagant? Is this good or bad behaviour?
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2 comments:
Hi Alana, With a family of five, buying clothes is an issue I have constant problems with, so I can relate to your struggles. I scour thrift shops and eBay regularly and have never found anything suitable for my husband (in his size) for work. The five of us live of one income at the moment, so buying organic cotton or hemp at the prices they are just isn't an option either. So we buy the best quality clothes that we can afford and ensure that they are versatile enough to get maximum use, the theory being as you have said, that we will get the maximum wear from the investment in materials and resources.
Don't feel at all guilty in your purchases: they were needed and well-thought-out, sensible purchases, and if you can get them at a discount during the stocktake sales, more power to you!
Clothes *should* last 5-10 years, but I'm finding increasingly that they don't. Hence my latest post!
It really sucks, especially when you buy an expensive item (e.g a coat) expecting and hoping to get ten years out of it, and then find that you only get 5 out of it, or not even that.
I think your purchase is valid. The whole point of No More Stuff isn't to not buy at all, but to reduce, reuse and recycle. The first of these is to reduce, but if you are buying something you desperately need, and are wise about the decision, then it worth it and fits with the No More Stuff vow.
However, if you already have another coat that would suffice and meet your needs (even if its daggy, untrendy or whatever) and you're just buying a new one because its nice, then it was unnecessary, and you've been a victim of Affluenza.
You're the only one who can decide what is truly necessary and what's not. And the thing about No More Stuff is no one will judge you in the end except yourself. It's up to you to be honest with yourself.
If you needed the item, wear it proudly and be grateful. If you really, honestly didn't, take it back to the shop,or donate it to charity, to someone who really does need it this winter!
Just my 2c.
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