Right before we left campus for spring break, I was confident that we would be coming back. This new virus wasn’t being taken seriously at all. And, besides, it would be warm and sunny by the time we’d be back so all I could really think about were the new outfits that could be put together. Little did I know that these outfits would be sweatpants and old crewnecks in rotation for the next four months.
For the first few weeks, the monotonous feeling of living the same day was very hard, especially after coming back home from the spontaneity of campus life. I tried throwing on a nice top or practicing my make-up skills with hopes of getting a little confidence boost. Feeling fashionable through clothing during quarantine quickly started slipping away.
Even now that state restrictions have been loosened and given us the ability to interact with others under safe social distancing practices, I find myself having trouble with finding sources of inspiration. Social media always ends up getting saturated with the same look, especially with the rise of fast fashion companies in more recent years. Fast fashion has been so lucrative because of these companies’ ability to make trendy looks extremely affordable and accessible to every consumer.
I find myself asking what’s next for fashion after a pandemic? Discussions about how detrimental fast fashion is to the environment as well as its disregard to humane labor conditions has gained a lot of traction, along with counterarguments discussing the class privileges which make it easier for wealthier communities to boycott fast fashion.
There’s no doubt that fast fashion has several pitfalls. However, it’s important to have a comprehensive understanding of fast fashion. In the meantime, I’m trying to identify some of the privileges I might have as well as the ways I have contributed to this system in the past. Hopefully, I'll be able to tell you guys the ways I’m remaining trendy and true to my style while limiting my contributions to the fast fashion industry.