Fashionopolis: how it’s changed my outlook on buying clothes

Hello, so I believe in my last post I said I was going to update this blog more... oops. But here we are so let’s get straight into it.

For Christmas I got the book ‘Fashionopolis, the price of fast fashion and the future of clothes’, and let me tell you this book has changed my life. For a few years now I have been into the topic of sustainable fashion and of course we all know how bad fast fashion is for the planet. But what we don’t know much about is the social side of the fashion industry and the problems within it. When opting for sustainable fashion I have always focused on the damage it has on the planet, which is huge by the way, but have never really considered who makes the clothes I buy. Well, this book does just that.

What I love about Dana Thomas, the author, is the way in which she has written it. Whilst reading this book I could feel her anger through her matter-of-fact language and often sarcastic tone. This to me made it more real and effective. Since reading this book I have had a completely different attitude towards the fast fashion industry. Prior to this I would flick through the Zara and H&M apps daily to search for new things for my wardrobe. I would see products in the sale for £5.99 and not consider who was making those clothes for such low prices. Now I can’t look through Instagram and see influencers promoting fast fashion without feeling angry or guilty. The guilt because I myself in the past have promoted fast fashion through my Instagram and once strived to be one of these bloggers with thousands of followers. And yes, you could say I am still doing that by having this blog and posting outfit posts on my Instagram, but my aim is to do this in the most sustainable way I can. I haven’t bought clothes directly from a fast fashion brand since January and I intend to keep it that way for as long as I can. But as a lover of fashion, I can’t say I’m never going to buy new clothes. I want to work in an industry which revolves around clothes so that is kind of impossible.

However, for a few months now I have been trying to buy my clothes second-hand. For example, last week I saw a sweater vest on Zara and fell in love with it. The issue was, I had just finished this book and couldn’t bring myself to buy it directly from Zara, especially as it was in the sale. So, I searched the product on Depop and Vinted and had no luck but after checking daily I finally found the exact same one on Vinted for the same price as the Zara website and it still had the tags on. Yes, I did end up paying a little more due to postage but at least I wasn’t giving my money to a fast fashion brand. So, there’s an example of how this book has changed my mindset. The many stories and experiences that Dana Thomas shares really stick with you and I couldn’t recommend this book enough. Whether you’re interested in the subject or not, please give it a read. And if you’re not interested in the subject, why not?

Thanks for reading xx

Link to the book:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fashionopolis-Price-Fashion-Future-Clothes/dp/1789546087/ref=sr_1_1?crid=18547VTLXH78X&dchild=1&keywords=fashionopolis&qid=1615050607&sprefix=fashionoplo%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-1