How to Have a Sustainable, Eco-Friendly Wardrobe (BUDGET FRIENDLY)

Ciao lovelies! Today I’m going to be talking about fashion – specifically how to have a more sustainable eco-friendly wardrobe through some main points like thrifting and DIY, but much more than that. These tips are going to be reasonable for anyone to do, even those of us on a budget.



A lot of the fashion industry isn’t very ethical, especially the “fast-fashion” industry. Not to mention that lots of old clothing ends up in landfills, adding to our planet’s growing waste problems. How can we have both a fabulous wardrobe and a healthy planet?

#1- Thrifting!

Thrifting for your clothing has many eco and social benefits. For one, instead of giving to the fast-fashion industry (which has many unethical practices including paying people way less than what they could possibly live on and running sweat-shops), you are instead re-using clothing items in your own wardrobe! This has eco-friendly benefits too as those clothes are ending up re-used by you instead of in the landfill. And how do those clothes end up in thrift stores?

#2- Donate your old clothes!

Do not throw away old clothes that don’t fit you anymore- instead donate them to your local thrift store, homeless shelter, women’s shelter, youth home, anything that could use the clothing!
But, I hear you saying, what if the clothing is torn, stained, etc? Well instead of donating clothing you can also…

#3- DIY or Upgrade your old clothes!

If your clothing is torn, stained, too small, too big, or simply not your style anymore, why not try to upgrade it or turn it into something new?

Basic clothing hacks like bleach designs, iron-on transfers, adding iron-on patches, etc are fairly easy to do and can really transform old clothing.

More complex sewing hacks like embroidery or turning an article of clothing into something entirely new can be more challenging but are very worth it in the end. A sewing machine is a FANTASTIC investment for anyone who is into fashion.

OFT has some clothing DIY’s/Hacks including:



 



And what to do with scraps? If you have lots of little fabric scraps, use them for pillow stuffing! You can even make old t-shirts into pillows!


#4- Limit how much you purchase from “Fast Fashion” brands

Chances are, if something seems super “Too good to be true” it often is. Lots of brands that offer cheaper clothing often have unethical practices. (Though not all). Be sure to do your research on what brands are ethical and what brands aren’t. Also do your research on what brands have eco-friendly policies.

But of course, not all of us can afford to purchase from the most ethical brands. If you must purchase from a fast-fashion brand (we’ve all done it), try to limit how many purchases you make from them. And always check to make sure you can’t DIY or find in a thrift store the item you want.


#5- Hand-Me-Downs!

Another thing you can do with old clothing is give it to friends or family! If something doesn’t fit you anymore but you know your friend loves it, give it to them! Then they’ll have a new piece that they’ll love and you’ll feel good knowing that cute t-shirt or dress or jeans didn’t end up in the landfill.


Thank you so much for reading. I know I’ll be trying to incorporate these eco-friendly and sustainable habits into my wardrobe. Will you be doing the same? Let me know in the comments!


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Thanks again for reading, stay awesome, remember to love yourself, and I’ll see you in our next post!
 

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