Shop Ethically / Why I Shop High End

I love purchasing more expensive clothing and view it as investing in art and collecting, but many people make fun of me for it and just do not understand. A goal of mine is to educate my peers about my shopping habits and why I spend the money I do on clothing, so here is one blog post of many explaining the reasons behind my madness. 

In undergrad, my coursework introduced me to all aspects of the fashion industry, which included sustainability and ethics in fashion production. The fashion industry is a HUGE contributor to Earth’s waste problem, and we must take steps to lower this. Right after the oil industry, the fashion and textile industry is the second largest polluter in the world. It takes 2,700 liters of water to make ONE t-shirt. The average American will throw out nearly 81 pounds of clothing each year.

 On top of being a top contributor to waste, the fashion industry also has a disgusting and dark history of hiring out workers from developing countries to produce cheap fast-fashion garments. Production workers in some countries will earn about $50 a month to live off of. That Forever 21 crop top you’re wearing that is already falling apart at the seams was practically created through slave labor. Pro tip: DO NOT purchase any garment that says it was made in Bangladesh on the label, that is the absolute worst country for working conditions in the industry.

Fast fashion and Capitalism urging consumers to constantly purchase new garments is hurting the world. The internet and social media have brought on a “see now, buy now” attitude for consumers. EVERYONE has to have the latest trends they just viewed on the ‘Gram. Consumers will go out and purchase the cheapest item for that trend just for that item to be tossed once the fad is over and the cheaply-made garment falls apart, meanwhile workers in newly developing countries working in extremely poor conditions will already be creating new cheap garments for them to purchase next week. See how this attitude affects the world in many ways?

Let me try to drill this through y’all’s heads: FAST FASHION IS A CANCER.

So how do we fight this problem?

There are basically two ways to slow down the fast fashion industry to help the environment and our fellow humans; do not be a victim to Capitalism and consumerism. Shop ethically. The first way to do so is to simply thrift. Styles are always recycled and a good way to avoid fashion waste while not contributing to cheap fast fashion is to purchase thrifted clothing. Another way to shop is to purchase high end garments like I do. (To be honest thrifting kind of freaks me out in many ways I will not get into, but everyone has their own shopping preferences and habits). I shop high end because I know the garments are made ethically, my garments will last MUCH longer and I will not be tossing them out, most of the time high end clothing is not a fad and does not go out of style as quickly, and also I have a smaller and more concise wardrobe compared to a cheap pile of fast fashion garments.

To each their own, but I will say: stop buying into quick trends and fast fashion.

Thanks for reading!

Lorraine

Survival Tips for a Creative Millennial

Hello, all!

I thought I’d start a blog tab to add to my portfolio website so anyone who stumbles upon my work can also get to know me as a person, and I will also be blogging about art, fashion, and anything creative.

I might as well write for my first entry about how to survive as a young creative in a world of Capitalism and nine-to-fives.

As many creative artists of any medium know, creative work very rarely is your main income in the beginning. I’ve learned over the years that in order to feel fulfilled and a well-rounded Renaissance person, one must have a day job, and then wear a million other fantastical hats for other creative side projects. My first survival tip to any “creative millennial” reading this is hustle, hustle, hustle. Do not quit your day job too soon, but also do not give up your passions and dreams. Let both of those aspects of your career growth fill up your time.

Another tip of mine that I strongly adhere to and tell my friends to stick with is to remain positive. Life will throw many, many punches but the most important thing to do is to remain positive and keep trekking forward. Especially as a creative who wants to get one’s voice out there, the most important thing to do is to keep going and keep creating, against the odds one is facing. I have encountered many speed bumps on my journey and career growth but as long as I keep telling myself better is out there and I have a good future ahead of me, then I will continue to work towards that and become a better artist every day.

Lastly, a tip that I do not listen to that much myself, is to have fun. Have fun during the process of growing as a person, as a professional, and as an artist. I struggle with this because I am always focused on finishing things in a timely manner and try to reach my goals prematurely without stopping to smell the roses. The beauty of being a creative in this fast-paced millennia is that we have the opportunity to create things to make the world a better place - we have the opportunity to work towards our goals while having fun with it. The general millennial generation is described as enjoying the ride while building a career, and that’s what us creative millennials must do as well. Do not let society pressure you to get things done at a certain time, or achieve certain goals at a certain age. One of my favorite quotes is by the toy restorer in Toy Story 2 who worked on repairing Woody: “You can’t rush art.”

For a recap on being a successful “creative millennial”: Be well-rounded with your hustle, remain positive, and have fun with your journey.

Hopefully this blog post is not that all over the place, I haven’t taken a formal English class in four years and sorely miss college.

Lorraine