All this street style takes me back to college days, when we’d thrift every weekend, take photos of each other on the porch, and blog about our finds. Nowadays, I’m A-OK with sitting back and simply being inspired, and I love that this whole vintage + thrift revival & slow fashion movement is shedding a light on the necessity for sustainable fashion… not to mention THRIFTING IS COOL AGAIN. Totally makes me wanna re-open the ol’ Etsy shop, one day.

Sustainable fashion imposes a restriction on how you create outfits, it shapes your wardrobe differently. So while minimalism and neutrals are totally in and beautiful in their own way, many of our favorite ethical fashion enthusiasts are just so daring with personal style, mixing prints and textures and colors and fits. It sure is fun to see them taking risks, going all out, and just being totally expressive with sustainable style. They pull from many sources, both secondhand and new, supporting the movement in different ways. Here’s just a tiny sample of those favorites, below!

@theflippside

@laviediviore

@thriftsandtangles

@whenthriftersthrift {featured above: @thatgirlkandice}

@gabrielasage

@cityofcanvas

@justjudylemon

@frisky_gatos

@elinorcharlotte

@misspaulapresents

Who are your favorite accounts & bloggers to follow for sustainable fashion inspiration? What do you love about them?

The post 10 Instagram Accounts to Follow for Thrifted + Sustainable Fashion Inspiration appeared first on Eco Club.

Being a mindful thrift shopper means being more conscious about the experience all the way from intention to purchase to how the object is serving you afterward. I think it really starts with this mindset, and you can continue to expand on it with the tips below:

Have a reason for going thrift shopping

I used to thrift on the weekends because it was a fun hobby of mine. I’m grateful for that as it taught me a lot about shopping, fashion, vintage, and consumerism in general, but nowadays I think it’s more important to go when I’m actually on the hunt for something. I know that takes some of the magic out of it, but a good way of going about it is to keep a general list (or mental note) of things you’d like to find at thrift stores, and go every now and then until you find them. Obviously, thrift stores aren’t a place you are guaranteed to find what you need, so this might span a few shopping trips. Which leads us to…

Make a shopping list

It seems counterintuitive because you have no way of knowing what you’ll find at a secondhand shop, but knowing what you want is key. If you don’t go in with an idea of what you’re there for, you’ll probably come out with, oh, a bunch of knick-knacks and colorful dishware (just me?). This list will be helpful after you shop, too, because once you’ve exhausted your secondhand options for something (thrift shop, Craigslist list etc.) you have the list for those leftovers that you may need to buy new.

Add style notes

If shopping for clothing or home decor, add some style notes to your shopping list to keep you in check. Yes, you may already know your own style, but thrift stores can be overwhelming places overflowing with good finds across the board. It’s super tempting to buy something just because you know it’s worth more than the price tag, but is that actually helping you cross off your list?

Keep in mind gifting

I’ve only recently started doing this because, well, not that many people I know appreciate gorgeous secondhand finds! But for an ethical shopper, the holiday season can be really uncomfortable because you want to gift a meaningful object but may not have the budget to buy everyone on your list something new from a responsible source. I like to be conscious of any upcoming gift occasions before I set foot inside a shop, so those people are front of mind while I’m perusing the shelves. Then if something comes up, like a really cool vintage decor piece that totally speaks to a friend, I can snag it and save it for the occasion!

How do you connect mindfulness and thrift shopping? Share your thoughts!

Photo by Azamat Zhanisov via Unsplash

The post How to Become a More Mindful, Efficient Thrift Shopper appeared first on Eco Club.

Just becoming conscious of the difference is a big step. You’re probably willing to pay at least a few dollars more per piece, but you still have a bridge to gap. The next step is figuring out your fashion budget. Here’s how to do it.

How to Budget for Sustainable Fashion

Calculate your current/past budget. Rather than making up an arbitrary budget of what you think you can manage, go over the past year’s bank statements in monthly or quarterly increments and quickly add up how much you’ve spent. You may find that it the money is actually there, and you might even save by switching to sustainable. Use it to land on an update to track going forward.

Get used to the general cost differences between specifics. A basic, solid tee may be $10 when mass produced versus $30 sustainably made. You need change your idea about what prices are “normal prices” to pay for a product. That’s how you make purchasing decisions now, right?

Shift your perspective of “enough”. AKA, stop valuing quantity as a basis for your budget. Since you’ll be working within the same budget as before, you’ll likely buy less. Doing so offsets the budget. Also, it doesn’t mean you eliminate all “for fun” items from your budget. Just prioritize. Put a cap on the amount you can spend on items that aren’t a total necessity—like the latest trends or seasonal.

A note about secondhand. I focused on how much you’ll spend on sustainable fashion rather than what you’ll spend it on because you no longer hold quantity as something valuable to your wardrobe. The budget is the same, then, whether you thrift or not. That just affects whether you prefer to use more of what you have on secondhand (perhaps since it’s the most sustainable), and if so you’ll start coming in under.

Plus, people like to discover, to fall in love with trends, put on something new just for them, to connect freshness with fashion too much to give it up entirely.

It all really depends on your that past budget, and how much you are used to spending on clothing. I know a lot of people tend to buy fast fashion because you can get physically more for less. But not everyone. You might be used to buying clothing at similar prices (and thus don’t need to adjust for #2) so you can just choose an average and commit.

Just like fast fashion, there are enough slow fashion brands to find everything from lower end, mass-appeal to higher end/designer brands. It’s just that the lower ends start off a little higher (and generally, much higher quality!) than the others.

What are your sustainable fashion budget questions?

The post How to Create a Sustainable Fashion Budget appeared first on Eco Club.