* This is a partnered post.
2020 has been quite the ‘reset button’ in terms of how we view the world and how we operate within it. This is, as of the minute, fraught with difficulty, emotional distress and confusion. However, it can also be a grounding point for healthier habits, mindsets and interests to adopt. For instance, having to undergo many months in lockdown and practicing social distancing helps us realize the true value of hugging our friends or relatives, or being close to people we care about.
So, why not use this time to consider a few more healthy perspectives we can adopt if things ‘return to normal?’ But where do we start as far as this is concerned? Well, you don’t have to solve the world’s problems just yet. What you can do, however, is focus on that which gives your life meaning. For us, that may be following fashion and enjoying all of the creative expressions that come with it.
But what forward-thinking viewpoints can affect our fashion considerations when moving back to societal norms? Let’s explore these potential opportunities together:
Sustainable Fashion
There are many excellent sustainable fashion choices, and through sites like Instagram and Depop, small stores are opening up all the time for your perusal. From threads sourced from sustainable cotton alternatives to clothing that keeps in mind water usage and chemical exposure in their manufacturing process, it is possible to celebrate, support and wear apparel emanating from a positive environment such as this.
Furthermore, companies such as this will often have a profound dedication to wider social justice, meaning that supporting these clothes can also help you support movements, or wear clothing surrounding by the ethics you would prefer to see in modern discourse. That certainly beats purchasing clothing crafted in a sweatshop factory abroad. With the ability to research our purchases and push for common transparency, we can demand the change we would most like to see in the future.
Social Media Activities
Fashion is a heavy presence on social media, particularly throughout apps such as Instagram where visual flair is appreciated and rewarded with attention. However, it can be easy to fall victim to the influencer narratives, where your feed may be filled with false influencers selling their merchandise, or YouTubers promoting their lip kits.
Taking the time to go through your social media following list and curating the initiatives you actually wish to see can be an important use of your time. This will help you utilize the algorithms to your benefit, helping you see clothing in your style or gaining inspiration for today’s outfit.
However, social media is not only for browsing. If you’re happy with some outfits you’ve put together, or are having a blast with your vintage thrifting hauls, why not start a profile of your own and upload pictures of you feeling yourself? You’re unlikely to feel put out or bored by this, because it’s nice to see engagement, to meet people who think like you, and join a wider discussion that helps you enjoy the social nature of fashion.
Furthermore, it’s important to surround yourself in positive social circles as far as fashion is concerned. While designers can be some of the nicest people you meet, it’s not uncommon for the ‘unspoken rules of style’ to express themselves as toxic ‘shoulds’ instead of ‘coulds’ in the discourse. So, finding people who are a little more open-minded can be worth your time, and who knows, it may even help you fall in love with celebrating style again.
Body Positivity
Body positivity is a movement that has taken on new life in recent years, and that’s fantastic. People are realizing that you don’t have to be a certain size or shape to look fantastic in fashion, nor do you have to feel bad about yourself as some kind of payment to look good. Instead, clothes retailers are offering a range of sizes in their stores, which are geared towards catering to plus size or underweight people.
Of course, body positivity is also living a healthy life and staying active, but that doesn’t mean you can’t look good as you follow your own life path towards these goals. Nor does it mean you need to think you’re anything other than beautiful. There’s a harmful narrative that only those who fit within certain size categories deserve to have access to the best fashion. With positive plus-size models leading the charge, and new norms being demanded, there’s a case for real optimism as far as this is concerned.
Unlocking Your Style
Closely tied with body positivity is the willingness to challenge yourself as far as style is concerned. Who says you can’t look good in the clothes you’ve been wanting to wear for some time, but have never found the occasion to? Who says you can’t look great wearing dresses, despite telling yourself at sixteen that you would never try again?
The internal impressions we hold about style, and the means in which we should express it, can be long-held believes stretching back decades. Why not question some of those beliefs? You may wish to dye your hair purple but haven’t felt like you can pull it off. Well, there’s one way to find out. You may adore it. Perhaps you’ve wanted a tattoo for two years but are unsure if now is the right time. Speaking to a tattoo artist and considering your options may give you a reason to show off your sleeve at the latter end of the summer. Maybe you wish to find new frames from eyeglasses.com to rock your new prescription with class.
Don’t be afraid to unlock your style by falling in love with it again. Every season gives us new trends to play with, and new items to help express ourselves. Maybe you wish to try a new store, or try only shopping via Depop this season, or maybe you wish to bring out some old clothes from the wardrobe.
Creativity & Inspiration
Remember that fashion is here to have fun with. It’s not uncommon for certain people to look at fashion and think it creates a playground for narcissists. In some areas, that’s true. But really, fashion is a celebration of life. It helps people outfit and express themselves daily, and just like water, it flows back and forth in new shapes and patterns, and is anything but predictable.
If you’re not having fun with fashion, you’re doing it wrong. For some, realizing this can be the first step necessary to becoming fashionistas, or spending more time curating their style. From heading to fashion shows to trying your own hand at creating a dress through several different textiles materials, to simply following artists on Instagram you appreciate and becoming part of a community, creativity and inspiration knows no limits, so why not expose yourself to it?
Learning Important Skills
Taking a healthier approach to fashion is not all about becoming aware of the best designers, or the most passing trends, or trying to look cool on Instagram. Sometimes, it’s simply about learning how to look after the clothes you do enjoy. From understanding how to speak to your dry cleaners to practicing simple sewing in repair, to taking care of boots with boot polish and a little elbow grease, fashion can also teach you the important lesson of caring for your possessions.
This is the wonderful lesson taught to us by vintage clothes coming back into fashion. Who’s to say you’re not going to be proud of your wardrobe in ten or fifteen years? And so the cycle continues.
With this advice, we hope you can take a more sensitive and kind view of fashion, and incorporate it into your life via a healthy spirit.
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