#SustainableLiving"

[keepingitneutral]

N'arrow House, Heraklion, Crete, Greece,

Design by Mykonos Architects

[clotheshorsepodcast]

The next episode of the podcast will be all about what YOU can do right now to stay sane, feel okay, help others, and know you are making an impact.

But this post I created last year about the things that you can do to spread the gospel of slow fashion is also a part of that conversation.

ALL of us an important part of the slow fashion community, no matter how old we are, the size of our bodies, our gender, where we live, how much money we have, or what our personal aesthetic is. And while we have our work cut out for us, we CAN (and will) make a major impact by working together. We all matter here in the slow fashion movement, even if we feel like we don't matter or fit in somewhere else.

And the things you do every day that might seem minor are actually a really IMPORTANT way of driving huge positive changes. These things are both radical and revolutionary in a world of consumerism and individualism.

Yes, you can start a whole podcast about it or throw a clothing swap or start your own local mending group (these are all great)…but you can also just be more careful when you do your laundry. Buy less new stuff. Be a proud outfit repeater. Repair your stuff.

Yes, individual action DOES matter, despite what you will might be told elsewhere. Can one person change the world on their own? Probably not. But when working alongside thousands and millions of other people, change is inevitable.

I'm so excited about all of the things we can accomplish TOGETHER! Progress is slow, but I can look back and see the results in the world. Let's keep talking, listening, learning, thinking, and inviting others to join us.

[moodboardmix]

"Rhoēs" villa, Serifos island, Greece,

Sinas Architects

[mensministry]

Red Riding Wood, Nam Phrae, Hang Dong, Chiang Mai, Thailand,

Courtesy: Sher Maker

[healthilyathome]

[auntiebillionaire]

Turn boycott into sustainable changes! Support local, find a community garden or co op. Bring money back into the communities.

Spend your money ethically.

[saddayfordemocracy]

Here's how climate change is redrawing Europe’s wine map !

'Ten years ago, you would never see a Danish wine on the list,' says Paul Robineau, executive head sommelier for the Taillevent group. 'But, with the climate changing, Denmark is on its way to make great wines.'⁠

Courtesy: Financial Times

[writingwitch92]

Hey so, if you are looking to make that Apple Tea for period pain (aka liquid midol), but cant find or afford gogi berries or chinese black/brown sugar... Use cranberries and blackstrap or just dark molasses with honey instead. Those are the closest comparisons we have here.

[cuteoff]

Vintage Russian Hand-Painted Mushroom Stash Box – Folk Art Beauty From CuteOFF.

[interior-decor-form]

IG

Raw Edge Gallery

[fernhoney]

Hey!! It’s EXHAUSTING to run a small business — but YOU can help!! Yes, YOU!! YOU have the power to make a difference in other people’s lives. In your own community.

Literally the biggest thing to help us small businesses continue to exist is by giving us money. Shop with us.

BUT THAT’S NOT THE ONLY WAY!!

If you can’t afford to do so, tell your friends to shop there. Help us advertise because advertising is a huge amount of labor and requires tons of money. It’s hundreds of dollars, sometimes thousands, just to appear on the radio for a few minutes. We do what we can with the free advertising and promotion through our social media pages, but often that’s not enough. you can still help.

Also, make it a point to STOP shopping through places like Amazon, Walmart, TJ Maxx, the Dollar Store, Etc. I promise, it’s not as hard as it might sound. If you know the name of a business that feels like it exists everywhere (Starbucks, McDonalds, Barnes & Noble, The Home Depot to name a few) that means the money you give to that business is being sent directly away from the community you live in. Sure, some of it is used to pay the employees in the store, but the location exists because it *profits*. Those profits are not being kept in your community, and unless billionaires regularly visit your neighborhood and spend their money, it’s NOT coming back.

By shopping at these businesses, You are mailing money to people who already have more than they could ever need, and in turn, devastating your local economy and breaking the hearts of your friends, family, and neighbors that work tirelessly to offer you their businesses.

One of the smallest things you can do to help is just to VISIT the businesses in your community. My shop has existed for more than two years, on a Main Street, and still there are people that live less than two miles away discovering we exist for the first time. It makes me smile every time. Stop in and say hi!!

When you shop small, you’re building a stronger community and giving more value to your neighborhood. When you shop at the small local business, you’re paying your neighbors— this will allow them to fix that broken down car in their driveway, replace their roof after 12 years, reseal their windows, buy a new weed whacker, replace that refrigerator they’ve had for 28 years to reduce their energy bills, and give their children better lives. We’re not asking for much. We’re not trying to hire people to build rockets for us so we can go to space. We’re asking for food and shelter. We’re asking to replace the heat lamp in the chicken coop and to have just a little more time to sit by the fire in the wood stove and knit a blanket for our loved ones so there can be some sort of long lasting sign that we existed in this world and we actually made something.

I’m in a small town so this might sound a little rural, but the same goes for cities. The destruction of the small town is also true for the small city neighborhood and contributes to urban sprawl. If the city doesn’t have it, the suburbs do, and people commute to find their “big box stores” as we say, which contributes to the traffic that EVERYONE hates. Shop at the places in your neighborhood — the places that are run by your neighbors.

If you want sources: There are books, articles, studies, that you can read on how this impacts local economies. There are documentaries, podcasts, and lectures on how small businesses create our community cultures and how large corporations are the primary cause of wealth inequality across the world. The information is out there. Please go seek it.

I see and hear so often people describing how they feel a lack of community, they feel alone, they feel like they’re losing their culture and sense of self. This is how culture, tradition, community, art, sustainability, TOGETHERNESS, is built. Shop local. Shop small. Make a difference.

[clotheshorsepodcast]

Tomorrow is the first day of REDUCE REFUSE RESIST. We are getting started with tomorrow's economic blackout.  Let's do this!  If you're like "WTF is REDUCE REFUSE RESIST," go check out the pinned post on my profile.  

And while we're talking about totally changing our relationship with shopping and consumerism (and using it as a political force), let's talk about clothes.

On average, Americans buy about 70 new articles of clothing each year.

If you’re shocked by that or you haven’t bought new clothes in years...remember that this is an average. That means if you bought no new clothes this year, someone else bought 140 garments. Over the past 15 years, the amount of clothing produced each year has doubled, while the amount of time we actually wear a new item has dropped by 40%. Most garments are only worn about 7 times!!! 😖

And the thing is....it's a lot easier to buy 70 new items of clothing in a year than you might think, thanks to online shopping, free shipping thresholds ("free shipping over $50," etc), and super duper cheap ultra fast fashion like SHEIN and Temu.

There is already too much clothing on this planet. And no, we aren't running out of secondhand clothing (so please stop telling people that they shouldn't thrift). All of us must make a shift into a more ethical and sustainable wardrobe.

While plenty of brands and retailers are happy to offer us brand new "sustainable" collections, the reality is the most sustainable and ethical clothing is...clothing that already exists! Some experts believe that we need to buy 75% less brand new clothing. And it's a lot easier than you think!

A sustainable wardrobe isn't JUST shopping secondhand (although that's a part of it), it's also rewearing the things you already own, extending the life of your clothing via repair and care, and sharing/swapping/rehoming things you no longer wear.

As we REDUCE REFUSE RESIST, it's a great time to reevaluate the clothes we already have and get comfortable with buying a lot less new clothes long after March is ever. It's a great time to learn new habits! So let's do this!!!

[image-research-thinking]

IG

[artnew8]

A ribbon decorated with colorful flowers to add an aesthetic touch of roses to your sewing project

[mensministry]

Hortus Hermitage, Hortus Haren, Groningen, The Netherlands,

Developed by Sjaak Langenberg and Rosé de Beer, in collaboration with Refunc.