Slowing Down — Micro-Closet

And we’re back! Did you miss me? Did you miss my posts? I’d say that I missed blogging but I really didn’t. In November I hit a slump, and then the holidays hit, followed by a snowstorm that barred any photo shoots, and suddenly it was late January. While I didn’t blog during that time, I did have a sartorial epiphany sometime between Christmas and New Years—I need to reevaluate my relationship with fashion.

Second hand Banana Republic coat (purchased at Beau Monde Luxe in Coeur d’Alene) and second hand Sorel boots (purchased on ebay)

Excuse me, what? Yes, you heard me correctly, I have to reevaluate my relationship with fashion, specifically my clothes consumption. During the holidays, I was distracted by the bush fires blazing through Australia. As some of you know, during law I spent a semester in practice at an environmental advocacy group in Sydney. It was the best international experience I’ve ever had: I loved the people, the food, and their ecosystem. I felt sick thinking Australia was on fire. Around the same time as the fires, I started to see a lot of articles regarding the environmental impact of fashion.

I’ve always considered myself environmentally conscience: I asked my parents to start recycling their newspaper when I was kindergarten because of a plea my teacher had made about trees, I didn’t have a car until I was 25 and even then walked everywhere, I only use reusable bags when shopping, and I recently gave up single use plastic. Even so, the fires forced me to look at something I hold very dear: my closet.

These Sorel Farrah Mid-Calf Boots have garnered more compliments than any other footwear I own.

I immediately checked out a couple of books from the library: Zero Waste Home, Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Fast Fashion, and The Conscience Closet. I’m still working my way through these books, but I’ve already taken away two major ideas: buy less and buy second hand. I first told my husband, Brian, about my resolution to buy less and buy second hand when needed. He nodded along, although I’m not sure how much he listens when I talk about shopping, but when he snapped these photos last week and complimented my outfit, I cried out, “The coat and boots are second hand, but nothing in this outfit is new!”

Making resolutions is easier in the heat of the moment, particularly an environmental crisis like the Australian bush fires, but tends to cool off as time passes, so I decided to arm myself but declaring my resolutions to you, my readers. It will be a lot harder to fall off the wagon or go back to my old ways when my entire audience knows about my decision to move away from fast fashion.