Navigating Slow Fashion While Changing Sizes
One question that people have with sustainable clothing is “what happens when my body changes?”
Everyone’s body will change in life, for many different reasons. We all know that choosing sustainable clothing can be quite a bit more expensive than simply replacing everything with more accessible fast fashion. So what is the best way to navigate these changes? I have a couple tips for this:
- When you’re ready to start pulling your wardrobe back together again, take all of your clothes from the closet, put them on the bed, and then try everything on. You might be surprised what fits and what doesn’t. The size listed in the garment doesn’t always tell the story of how it’s going to fit you. You might be a different size in multiple different brands.
- Once you’ve tried everything on, set aside the stuff that simply doesn’t fit, you don’t have to get rid of anything, just put it somewhere not inside your closet, so you’re not staring at a bunch of stuff that doesn’t fit right when you open your closet.
- Go through some of the stuff that doesn’t fit you, can you alter it to fit you? Do you even want to do that? It's ok if you don’t, but alterations are a great way to keep an item of clothing that might have sentimental value, so it's always something to keep in mind.
- Once you have your wardrobe paired down to only what you’re absolutely wearing, you can start to see some of the holes in your wardrobe more clearly. Do you need a good trouser? Do you need more easy tees? Don’t forget to also go through your undergarments, tight undies are a quick path to self loathing.
- To rebuild your wardrobe, of course I’m going to suggest shopping secondhand here. Hosting clothing swaps is also a great way to find new clothes for less expensive. It is also not really imperative that you replenish your wardrobe immediately. Find your good staple items slowly and thoughtfully. This will ensure that they actually belong in your new wardrobe, don’t just buy something because you think you need it.
- While you rebuild your wardrobe don't worry about what is trendy, when you paired down your wardrobe to begin with, you really narrowed down your personal style. Run with that, choose pieces that speak to you and how you want to present yourself to the world. Pepper in your absolute favorite trends as you go, remember that trends aren’t actually suitable for everyone, you don’t need to chase them to have good style.
- Cleaning out your wardrobe in this way can be such a cathartic experience, when your clothes fit right it is so much easier to feel confident and comfortable.
One of my favorite guidelines for wardrobe cleanout is actually a minimalist challenge: Project 333. It gives you really good guidelines for what categories you should have in your wardrobe, and it's such an excellent jumping off point for building up something new and more attuned to you and your body, where it is right now.
Project 333
https://bemorewithless.com/project-333-challenge/
