Throwaway Culture Why Not Repair What You Wear?
This was confirmed when I adopted a minimalist uniform wardrobe to simplify my life. I decided to buy and only wear black pants and a white top (now a blue top), like Steve Jobs’s black pants and white top uniform you always saw him wearing.
The clothing I purchased wore out quickly. I first thought it was because I was wearing it more often than usual, but I then realized that the clothing I bought secondhand from The Salvation Army held up better.
As a new minimalist, I repaired the clothing and got the same results. The latest clothing repairs did not hold and had poor original stitching.
Can You Find Quality In This Throw-Away Culture?
We live in a throwaway culture, but that is nothing new. In August 1955, LIFE magazine published an article in the now-vaguely-sinister, then-celebratory title, “Throwaway Living.”
The article suggests that humans had entered a kind of wanton Golden Age when cleaning up after ourselves was just one more quaint waste of time, and tossing more and more of our used-once items into the trash was another sign of modernity.
I see we throw away almost everything and replace it with new stuff. We don’t even limit it to defective items—we throw away stuff just because it is older or out of style.
We purchase new items just because we are bored, want to be trendy, or the newer model has a new feature that we will not even use or appreciate (i.e., iPhones, Cell Phones).
Our ever-growing consumerism and overconsumption seem to influence throwaway culture, exacerbated by our ability to mass-produce low-quality, short-lived products.
I wonder if we as a society saw the value of quality products and demanded them if this trend would change?
There is quality out there, and we tend to discard it, but sometimes in a different way. We value labels and constant marketing.
We treat those valued items better and sell, trade them in, or relegate them to the back of the closet, cabinet, or garage. This is better for our culture but not Ideal.
Buy Quality Clothing and Repair
To combat our throwaway culture, I suggest you buy quality clothing. In my journey to simplify my life with a minimalist wardrobe, I discovered that quality matters.
I now only buy what I need and ensure it is of high quality. I rarely buy on-sale items because they may influence my judgment, and because I rarely shop anyway, I would not save much.
I want my shopping experience to be in and out. Hence, the minimalist wardrobe.
I am only looking for one color item that has quality when shopping. No decision overload. Simple!
Instead of giving in to the throwaway culture, I now repair my clothing before I buy something new. I am always out and about, walking or taking public transportation, so things get ripped or torn, and I have learned to repair them.
I am getting better at it every day. I have even learned to repair worn items. I also resist the urge to buy new and use the damaged item as an excuse.
I have found that I have become attached to it by repairing quality clothing. When they get damaged, I feel like an old friend has been injured and needs my care.
When I start to have funerals and memorials for clothing that is beyond repair, someone, please call the boys in the white coats to repair my ills. LOL.
The Joy Of Repairing What You Wear
I know it sounds corny, but there is joy in repairing what you wear. When you repair what you wear, you are less likely to replace them and other items just because you can.
You seek out other things to repair, find new value in your possessions, and combat the stigma of the throwaway culture, which is a good thing.
Now that I try to repair before replacing, I feel guilty buying new when I can repair what I already have. I had an excellent computer bag with a broken zipper in the closet for over a year.
The bag I use now is oversized, which was ideal when I worked a 9 to 5, but not now. I passed Wilson’s Leather shop at the mall, where I set up an office a few times a week.
They had quality leather computer bags, just the right size, for 70% off. WOW! I fought the urge to buy and went home to repair the zipper on my old bag, and I am happy with it.
I have been having a lot of fun repairing my pants and shirts as I try only to own 5 of each. There is pride in my ever-growing ability to restore what I wear. There are monetary and ecological savings also.
There is nothing wrong with helping the planet while saving money.
Possessing things increases your responsibility to maintain them. Hence, it is essential to choose your belongings carefully.
The time you save from arranging lesser things can be used to do what you love.
