fast fashion isn’t *actually* more affordable… here’s why 

Sewing is a very good path to knowing what good quality clothing is, and to wholeheartedly understand how much garment workers must be exploited in order to produce such cheap clothes!

Some tips from someone who knows how to sew when looking for better quality clothing: - Look at the materials. Avoid synthetic fibres like polyester, polyacryl, nylon (basically anything that starts with poly-) in anything that isn't meant to be waterproof. Your skin can't breath in those and if you're like me with sensitive skin, sweating in those can cause rashes. Clothes with up to 5% elastane/spandex are fine. - Look at how thick (see-through) the fabrics are. If you can see pretty well through, you might need to check out things out first, before deciding whether it's good quality or not. Do a stretch test: How does the fabric act (about to rip?) when you pull it. With knitted garments it's always better to do a strecht test first and look how big the loops are. Usually bigger and looser loops will cause the garment to lose its form quicker. - Look at the seams! Are there a lot of loose threads? Are there any other threads that can be pulled easily? If yes, it's not worth buying it! If you're interested in sustainable clothing brand, there are lists online with all kinds of online shops listed. Most of them are very transparent with their supply chains as well. I saved a list after looking for European sustainable clothing brands. Sometimes they have sales too! Not often, but occasionally you can get discounts too. (Just be prepared that a T-shirt will usually cost about 40€. Also: Learn how to take care of your clothes. How to med them, how to wash them properly, how to dry them. I hope this is somewhat useful.

Another awesome video! I think this highlights so well how the argument that fast fashion is affordable for people in clothing poverty is truly a disingenuous one. Let’s face it the vast majority of the people shopping fast fashion are not truly in clothing poverty, and the fast fashion brands profit off of our financial anxiety!

Historical fashion youtubers are slept on. Especially the sewists, since they show garments that are meant to last. I understand wearing historical clothes isn't for everyone (not for me either) but it shows what good quality clothes could look like. I recommend Bernadette Banner, Abby Cox, and Caroline Zebrowski

I don’t think it’s just that we have to buy more to keep up with trends or that the clothing falls apart. I think we end up buying more just because we’re advertised to so much. I bet we’re all actually rejecting clothing we want significantly more than people did 20 years ago. After rejecting so many items, people break and end up buying. It’s a fatigue with resisting.

I feel like FF vs thrifting vs couture quality debate is missing an important element, which is tailoring and repairing. Having a seamstress is the difference between liking your clothes and not liking them, fabric notwithstanding. Sure, you can do more with quality fabrics and good patterns, but you can improve almost everything

Factory outlets and vintage shops are amazing solutions... i found a site that sells any kind of clothes and you can choose the material and the price. Cotton, linen and viscose are the best to choose

I'm in the middle of sewing a few new pieces for my wardrobe. I'm in a bit of a time crunch to get a skirt done so I can wear it tomorrow. My boyfriend said that we could just buy me a few new pieces (I'm pregnant and don't have a lot that fits). It made me realize, I haven't been happy with almost anything I've bought. But when I wear a piece that I've made (out of second-hand fabrics), I feel like me. Fast fashion has never given me that feeling.

Fantastic video and call for actual discussion. Until recently and thanks to a gym membership, I was a plus-size senior, Affordable plus-size is very difficult to find for all ages. I shopped Lane Bryant and Torrid, and sometimes I could find XL or XXL that fit in "regular' stores. Plus-size ladies want stylish quality clothing but, it can be tough to find. In short, sometimes the alternatives to "fast fashion" simply aren't readily available. The fashion industry does not work well for plus-size women, although the average American woman is a US size 12/14, which is considered "plus" by the industry. Quality too often caters to women up to size 10 or a "small" size 12.

I love your videos! I shop mostly thrift and I buy with the intention of wearing for life. When I buy new (which is rare) and no matter the source I make sure I am getting something that I can see myself wearing for years, and no matter thrift or new I treat every item carefully and repair as needed. If as a planet we started wearing what we had, buying mostly existing items from thrift or resellers as needed (emphasis on needed), bought for life, and took care of all our items like they were all worth hundreds of dollars, we could enact real change.

I love Hannah Louise Postons fashion videos. Most of her content is more beauty focused but so he does a series on fashion that is actually grounded in reality. She talks about buying clothes that for your lifestyle and will be long lasting. The focus of her channel in general is less "look at this thing i bought" and more "this is how i made the decision to buy/not buy a thing" which i feel makes it more broadly applicable.

There is a great quote by terry pratchett that encapsulates this problem really well: „The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles. But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that’d still be keeping his feet dry in ten years’ time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.“ ~Men at Arms

The thing about fast fashion is there's always some awkward design feature like a weird print or cut out that I would convince myself to wear once then never again

You see, people who are not anywhere close to poor will justify their consumption behavior, ie buying loads of cheaply made clothing, by saying that poor people rely on these brands to have any clothes. 1) That excuse doesn't apply to most of the people using it, and 2) people actually living near, at, or below the poverty line do not buy from these brands because they literally cannot afford to waste their dollars on items that may be unwearable upon delivery; they shop at thrift stores (now becoming too expensive for actual poor people) and Walmart (still fast fashion, but nobody is buying hundreds of $$$ in Walmart clothes because it isn't cool to shop at Walmart), where they can see the clothes in person and budget out what those clothes are worth versus the dollar cost of them. It's people who are NOT poor who can afford to potentially throw money away on items so poorly made that they might not be wearable or that have to be replaced after 1 wear. It's people who are NOT poor who think "affordability" means "I can afford to buy a lot more cheap items, and I wouldn't be able to do such large hauls if I bought clothes that aren't cheaply made." They aren't considering cost-per-wear because the intention from the outset is to buy as much as possible so they don't have to repeat outfits. The entire mindset is backwards; a generation brought up watching Disney characters brag about never re-wearing clothes and watching people on the Internet do the same has taught young people that you should think of "affordability" in terms of buying as much as you can so re-wearing doesn't have to be a consideration. "Capsule wardrobes" used to just be called "wardrobes"; now it's seen as some sort of niche high effort to buy items you know will go with other things you own so you can wear your clothes more often and buy less.

People not even liking what they buy reminds me of this Oscar Wilde quote : “Fashion is ephemeral. Art is eternal. Indeed what is a fashion really? A fashion is merely a form of ugliness so absolutely unbearable that we have to alter it every six months!"

Yes, it's the old 'a wardrobe full of clothes, but nothing to wear' problem. I mean, a large part of the clothes that are being discarded aren't even worn out or damaged, because of inferior quality. They are hardly even worn. Possibly not at all. They probably never fit quite right, weren't as flattering as hoped for or weren't actually suitable for the person's lifestyle (been there, done that). And if the incentive to send them back isn't very high, or they were shipped straight from China... Doesn't help, that many people's weight tend to go up slowly but steadily at a concerningly young age already, so size changes are an issue. And for women, of course, having kids usually means their figure changes at least somewhat. In the sewing community, size adjustable clothes are currently *the* big theme. How to best construct clothes, that allow for going up or down at least one size, without fit issues. Whereas fast fashion is usually impossible to alter, at least if your size goes up. As for recommendations...Justine Leconte comes to mind. She hasn't been very active lately, but she has made quite a few in depth videos about fast fashion vs sustainable fashion and she has actual insight into the fashion industry. Maybe a bit tangential, but I would also recommend Tanner Leatherstein. He's a leather specialist and takes apart and critiques designer handbags. Now handbags isn't something I'm usually interested in, but it's worthwhile watching a few in regards to the whole 'recognizing quality and craftsmanship' and what something is worth debate. I dearly wish, there was a similar channel for women's footwear. I also feel, taking a deep dive into body types and coloring systems is worthwhile, to be able to shop with a higher success rate. For that I would recommend AlyArt and StyleMeJen. There are loads others, of course. But those two have especially impressed me with their insights and ability to explain these concepts.

A”haul” is really a big problem. Too much consumption. And here “hauls” that earn commission, just crazy.

All these reasons are why i started getting into hobbies like sewing, crochet, and even embroidery. I'm so tired of the only clothes that fit my body being cheap trash from Shein. I'm tired of never being able to find my style besides from fast fashion (occasionally i find something good thrifting and it makes my day but my town has few thrift stores). A basic sewing machine is $75 you start practicing and learning on one of the cheap $3 rolls of precut fabric, and I'm not great at sewing but at least i can choose to put in the extra care (or cut corners i am comfortable with that won't hurt structural integrity) and i know it's not for everyone but i think people should try it out. It's very liberating to have not just control over how your clothes fit but also over the creative direction and design, Plus if it looks or fits like trash i know who to blame (ME) and i can try and fix it with much more ease because i have all the tools to do so. It may not be for you but give it a try or if you're worried about cost see if your city has classes and sign up for one to try it out or try crochet it's cheaper to start getting into and you can still make awesome custom clothing.

It is absolutely bonkers that the general concept of “I’ll keep this for a long time” or “it’s lasted so long” is 5 years or less. That’s not a long time y’all. Also, “lasting” now means it hasn’t disintegrated, not that it’s maintained its shape or the fabric hasn’t frayed or pilled beyond recognition

tbf "buy less" is for either first-world countries average and above consumer and for richer people in other contries. it's always almost groundbreaking to see how many items of clothing average consumer in first-world countries buy and how sustainability pages say the magic "buy less", when the last item of clothing i bought was 4 months ago, plus replacing my 4yo sneakers. i guess it's a important reminder for actual middle class. but the middle to lower middle class in post-soviet contries, for example, almost exists in a different world. not a critic! as always, love your videos, they're very informative. it's just a viewpoint i haven't seen being brought up

i am a black woman in canada in my 30s. i still fit a lot of my clothing from high school. I got a lot of hand-me-downs. I also got into thrifting as a teenager and in my early 20s. A lot of my clothing is fast fashion with some vintage items. I have a hard time visualizing the kind of consumer that is constantly shopping or constantly buying trends. That person is in a different category than me. My clothes last a long time because I don't want to be back in the stores replacing things and I don't see items as disposable. However shopping "sustainable" is time consuming to research and can be a gamble in terms of liking how everything fits. I will say that I am really good at spotting quality. I can spot the quality leather item in a thrift store just as I can find the best quality jacket in a "fast fashion" store. (in person not online). I think getting acquainted with materials is a great start for people to reign in on what is quality. I'm also now at the stage of life where I am willing to tailor more. I also find leaning into pieces that give you joy or get you the most compliments. For example I'm known for a light blue jacket that wear with many things which isn't the "beige and grey" trend but is personable to me and my personality and the fact that I'm a graphic designer/artist.

The legislation bit makes me so hopeful!! It's good that there are pathways to better outcomes I thrift most of my stuff and it takes much more work to find good pieces, but I love everything I wear and I wear the same few pieces on rotation, changing it up with layering.

Honestly learning to knit changed the game for me when it comes to knowing what's good quality clothing or not. Sure it's not always 1 to 1 between what makes a knit garment high quality and other types, but it gave me enough of a base knowledge to know a few things to check on a garment, usually the hemming because just a completely unfished hem is suspicious and very common, but if there's effort put into the hem then that tells me there was at least SOME care put into the garment

Justine Leconte helped me to look at what cuts and fabrics I always leant towards. It really stopped me from picking things up because they were cute or quirky... ultimately if they weren't my style I was never going to wear them.

New fav channel!!!!!!

i think most arguments made on the topic are very global north minded. for those of us in the global south not stricken with poverty fast fashion becomes a cheap alternative, but we arent as mindless to throw stuff away either. a lot of people i have met and been friends with run down the ""cheap"" clothes until they cant be worn anymore.

The proposed legislation is interesting but it will be a hell of a fight. Here in the US, many grocery stores ACTIVELY fight having to give away produce or other foods that they’re not going to shelve. I keep hearing motions for them to have to do so, and every time I’m just like “That STILL hasn’t passed??” It’s unbelievable.

Great video! I just want to add on to what you said about price not being equal to good quality. Many of the major high-end luxury brands have terrible quality too; sadly, no better than fast fashion... When I transitioned out of buying fast fashion a couple of years ago, I made the mistake of purchasing what would be considered luxury brands, in the hope to acquire product that will be long-lasting. I've had Gucci patent-leather boots disintegrate within a season and handbags (Prada, Marine Serre) whose colour would run off at the hardware, handles or at any area it would have prolonged contact with the fabric from my coat or blouse. The bags could be salvaged by bringing it to a spa (though at a steep cost), but the boots had to be thrown away. Regarding the shoes in particular, I remember finding many comments online afterwards complaining about the poor quality of shoes by the likes of Gucci, Chanel, etc.

I have one Shein graphic tee I got in a $4 bag sale in Vermont. It was a quarter and I still overpaid😂😂 I got some Ray Bans in the same sale. Thrift in rich places!

currently writing an essay about why we shouldn't buy fast fashion and using this video as a source!!!

Shein is becoming expensive for me... i live in brazil and try to save money but the stores here just resell shein, and even the own website is expensive and have a looot of taxes to pay so i can get a tshirt

I really like the ‘sustain this podcast’ (:

Jennifer Wang here on YT makes great videos on how to spot quality in a garment. She mostly does shorts, so the info is very accessible.

I will say, that aside from pilling (that I just take a de-piller to periodically), my fast fashion garments usually still last me years. I never understood how someone’s garment can fall apart after only a couple wears. Shrinking I get. Clothes might shrink if you accidentally wash it wrong, but straight up falling apart I have never experienced. I do actually think that we don’t take care of our things and that’s played a role as well. Not saying the quality of clothing is great to start with (not by a long shot), but those of us in the West can so easily replace things that we just don’t value and care for the things that we do have. Edit: I watch a lot of Alyssa Beltempo for my slow fashion inspo. She really advocates for shopping your closet (including the fast fashion pieces you might already have since it’s actually more wasteful to just purge all fast fashion from your closet and rebuy “sustainable” pieces to replace what you really already had). I just love her outlook on it!

The only issue I can see with the policy is that brands will exploit any and all loopholes available to them BEFORE doing the right thing. I wouldn't be surprised if they decide to just start burning everything, throwing it in the sea or "donating" so that they continue to end up in another country polluting the environment and harming the lives of the people there. To force such people to do the right thing would require iron clad laws and the proposed one is already very open and most current political systems/climates wouldn't allow for such a thing. Changing who makes the law is probably the most important first step.

I really love watching Alyssa Beltempo on RU-vid. She recently published a video about creative ways to shop your own closet that I felt was insightful and discouraged running out to buy new items to keep up with trends. Give it a watch if you have time! And thanks for all the great content you create!

chinashop clothing is the most unsatisfying shit ever, even if it's quick and easy. oh hey, almost like we've discovered the problem here in the west lmao...

Most people generally lacking clothes literacy in terms of knowing what "good quality" is, is a really good point. I've learned a surprising amount of info about clothing quality from workwear focused youtubers like @TheIronSnail and @CarlMurawski.

Hey! If you haven't already heard of her, Toronto-based Jennifer Wang does educational RU-vid videos where she tours mall brands and points out good and bad quality clothing. Super educational and accessible :) @wangjennifferr

Yes, it's the old 'a wardrobe full of clothes, but nothing to wear' problem. I mean, a large part of the clothes that are being discarded aren't even worn out or damaged, because of inferior quality. They are hardly even worn. Possibly not at all. They probably never fit quite right, weren't as flattering as hoped for or weren't actually suitable for the person's lifestyle (been there, done that). And if the incentive to send them back isn't very high, or they were shipped straight from China... Doesn't help, that many people's weight tends to go up slowly but steadily at a concerningly young age already, so size changes are an issue. And for women, of course, having kids usually means their figure changes at least somewhat. In the sewing community, size adjustable clothes are currently *the* big theme. How to best construct clothes, that allow for going up or down at least one size, without fit issues. Whereas fast fashion is usually impossible to alter, at least if your size goes up. There just are no seam allowances to speak off and not lacing or other adjustable parts, most of the time. As for recommendations...Justine Leconte comes to mind. She hasn't been very active lately, but she has made quite a few in depth videos about fast fashion vs sustainable fashion and she has actual insight into the fashion industry. Maybe a bit tangential, but I would also recommend Tanner Leatherstein. He's a leather specialist and takes apart and critiques designer handbags. Now handbags isn't something I'm usually interested in, but it's worthwhile watching a few in regards to the whole 'recognizing quality and craftsmanship' and what something is worth debate. I dearly wish, there was a similar channel for women's footwear. I also feel, taking a deep dive into body types and coloring systems is worthwhile, to be able to shop with a higher success rate. For that I would recommend AlyArt and StyleMeJen. There are loads others, of course but those two I've found to be immensely insightful and good at explaining these concepts.