Ethical Fashion, Fair Trade & Ethically Made, Inside Out Challenge

Inside Out Challenge: The Forgotten Black T-Shirt

The Inside Out Ethical Fashion Challenge 2016 | Fairly Southern

Two weeks before Christmas (so three weeks before I kicked off the Inside Out Challenge), I got slapped with a giant reminder of just how horrible my consumerism had become. 

I had purchased a vest for my sister at the outlets in Blowing Rock several months before and stowed the shopping bag in a closet for safe keeping. One night, I was wrapping up Christmas presents and pulled the bag out so I could wrap the vest. Lifting the vest out, I noticed there was something laying under it in the bag. I reached in and pulled out a black t-shirt from Gap that I had purchased for myself and completely forgotten about.

Inside Out Ethical Fashion Challenge: The Forgotten Black T-Shirt | Fairly Southern

I stared at the shirt in a horrific “aha” moment as I began to feel sick to my stomach. I don’t think of myself as a shopaholic or big spender, and yet here I was exemplifying everything that is wrong with our consumeristic, fast fashion culture. With a $5 price tag, it seemed pretty likely that the shirt was made by poorly paid workers in an underdeveloped country (more on whether or not this is true coming to a future blog post near you!). After purchasing said cheap shirt, I proceeded to completely forget that I bought it. Clearly this was not something I needed, as I had not thought about it for months. I had literally forgotten I even owned it, and here it was, never used.

I’m ready to be more responsible with my buying choices. I’m sick of the flippant consumer I’ve become. It’s time for a change.

Who’s with me? Join and/or follow along as I exclusively purchase fair trade fashion in 2016!

xoxo Laura

 

(Jeans photo credit: public domain image)

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