The Great American Apparel Diet

no buying for one year

Hey guys, I just read this research article on mindless consumption and thought of all of you.  Read it here.   A snippet below…

The era of mindless consumption is over. Consumers now want a simple, sustainable, and self-sufficient life.

Conspicuous consumption. Shop till you drop. All-you-can-eat buffets and supersized meals. The post–World War II era has been marked by a voracious hunger for more. In affluent countries, people bought too much, ate too much, used up too much, and owed too much. Yet, for many, it still wasn’t enough. There was something missing—lots of things, really. Among them, a sense of control and self-sufficiency, personal responsibility, and feelings of community and authenticity. Replacing the constant accumulation of “stuff” with these more substantive intangibles lies at the heart of the current shift toward mindfulness—a movement in which heedless excess is exchanged for a more conscious and considered approach to living.  red more.

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Check out this article I ran into on Yahoo!

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/110971/why-you-buy-on-impulse?mod=bb-budgeting

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Although I have completed my year of the diet, it has still continued to influence my purchasing. In the last year I have purchased only 3 new items, all after I completed my diet. I have since purchased a pair of running shorts and a top for my upcoming Komen Maryland Race for the Cure. I had been running in cotton shorts and a tshirt, and in the muggy Baltimore, MD it left me soaked and uncomfortable. The only other purchase that I made was a comfortable pair of foldover waistband lounge pants. They were half price and fit like a glove; I couldn’t resist.

Some of the permanent life changes as a result of the “The Diet” are that I continue to read “look books” and fashion articles to discover the trend items and then use what I have in my closet to restyle what I already have. Over the last year I have purchased a a few accessories including this gorgeous belt and a brand new purse. A few pieces of jewelry like this leather cuff, tattoo necklace, and some very chic recycled mixed media pendants. The final and most important purchases were these great brooches that I use to accent my staple pieces like cardigans and jackets. It allows me to wear the same items each week, but feel like I’m wearing something new. I never had enough in the budget to buy clothing and accessories, even back when I purchased cheap clothing on clearance. I have two more planned purchases this year, a black cardigan and one in brown, to replace the ones that I wore so often and for so long that I wore out the elbows and then through the patches. 

What I will continue to do is to always buy vintage, refashioned or recycled clothing first and whenever possible. Etsy, Ebay and local thrift stores are great ways to shop for eco-friendly, inexpensive clothing. If that isn’t possible then I’ll buy handmade to support artisans and crafters who still value quality and creativity. I do love a good one of a kind piece that I know I can wear for many, many years to come.  

The most important lesson that I learned though, is that you can be really stylish without constantly updating your wardrobe with throw-away fashion. Don’t be a fashion victim caught in the cycle of constantly having to buy the newest, trendiest clothes. Buy a few well-made, perfectly fitted items and keep them. Maintaining a healthy diet and  exercise can help you fit into those pieces longer and you’ll be happier and healthier in the end. I spend so little time shopping now that I’m free to pursue all of the interests that I always wanted, but couldn’t find the time, money or energy to devote before. I’ve taken up cooking, running, knitting, crocheting, sewing, downhill mountain bike racing and spending much more time with my family and friends and I couldn’t be happier.

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The Great American Apparel Diet got some good news coverage in Colorado this week.  Our very own Birdie Carpenter was front and center.   See the article below and video here.

Go On A Clothes Shopping Diet To Save Money

 Got A Colorado News Tip For CBS4 Denver? Share It Here

Reporting
Suzanne McCarroll

DENVER (CBS4) ― Coloradans are taking a stand and finding solutions in their effort to Beat the Recession. Visit our Beating the Recession section. 

A new campaign to save money is spreading, not only in the U.S., but in other countries as well. It’s called the Great American Apparel Diet.

It’s free to join and people pledge not to buy any new clothes for an entire year. Those on the diet say it’s good for the environment, good for the wallet, and promotes a healthier lifestyle.

There is a growing trend to resist temptation to squelch the urge to shop.

“You remove the temptation, you don’t think about it, you don’t expose yourself to that environment,” Birdie Carpenter said.

Carpenter has not been in a mall for months after going on the diet.

“It really appealed to me because I have a lot of clothes,” she said. “I’m always getting rid of clothes and then replacing them.”

Now she finds herself with more money and more time.

“I can actually do something fun, active and outdoors,” she said. “That seems like it makes more sense.”

While the diet has followers throughout the U.S., Europe and South Africa, CBS4 found many shoppers who are appalled by the idea.

“It sounds pretty silly to me,” a shopper told CBS4.

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Hey guys, sorry to have been out of communication.  I was in Southeast Alaska for the past week cavorting with the humpback whales, Grizzly bears and sea lions.  As you would expect, I was well dressed in waterproof jackets and sweat wicking, high-tech fleece sweaters that I have collected over the last ten years.  All still in style of course.   At one point, after wearing the sixth of the seven jackets I had packed, my sister said, “What is this…a fashion show for Gortex?”  There was a time, many years ago when I was in the outdoor industry and collected every fleece, down and Gortex techno-jacket available.   The only problem—that stuff never wears out.  It will take 1,000 years before I have an excuse to buy another.  

Anyway, I was in Elfin Cove on September 1st, the day when I could safely and freely shop with abandon.  A little background for context, Elfin Cove is a fishing village, winter population: twelve people.  Summer population: a hundred.   It’s a nature lover’s dream and an ex-shopping diva’s worst nightmare.  I went into their seasonal gift shop with such high hopes for a stellar something or other but could only find Elfin Cove embroidered and screened sweat shirts and t-shirts.  Needless to say, I walked away empty handed.  I have since ordered a few things from www.hautelook.com  (Splendid and Vince) and my favorite retailer www.shopolivine.com.  But truthfully I’m not itchin’ to go shoppin’.  Seems like a waste of time to me.  Perhaps I just need to warm up to it slowly.

Congratulations to all of you who made it through the year.  My hope is that you will stay in touch and blog often (the blog will continue until next year, Sept. 1st).  It’s been a great year, one that I couldn’t have done without all of you in lock step.  What a great social experiment.  Someday people will look back on this time and ask…”What was the mindset of women during the great recession?”  and we will have an answer.

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While I was already committed to buying used or refashioning to help with the environment before participating in GAAD, I have found that I ofteen used GAAD as a reminder not even think about buying anything new. After all, I’d made a promise. As time passed I realized that I was less and less concerned with purchasing new clothes and really enjoyed reworking what I had. I rarely, if ever, felt like I was constrained or missing something. As I move forward beyond the GAAD I’ll try to remember what I’ve learned. I’ll continue to host clothing swaps and will always shop for second hand or refashioned clothing first. But, I also know that a good cardigan is hard to find and I’ll save the shopping for my most essential items that need to be replaced. I look forward to continuing my commitment to the environment and to my budget and buying only whats essential, but to continue to  have fun with what I already own. If there are any ladies in the Baltimore area who are interested in future clothing swaps, please do contact me.  Thanks for the great learning opportunity Sally, and for giving me a reason to stay disciplined and to really practice what I preach.

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I’m sure I’m not the first person to link to this article in the NYTimes, but I wholeheartedly agree with it! One reason I decided to do the Great American Apparel Diet was so that I could “step off the consumer treadmill” and re-evaluate what I really want to spend my money on. There are certainly possessions, even articles of clothing, that have brought me great joy in the past, but there are many other intangible experiences that have been a delight. I’d like to make more room in my wallet, and my life, for those.

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Twenty-five years ago I lived in San Francisco with my childhood friend, we will call her Jay.  We had parted ways in high school due to my father’s relocation for his job and reconnected after I had graduated from college.  “Come live with me in the city,” I begged.  She did. 

Jay was the consummate ugly duckling turned swan.  She was always dressed impecilby.  Though I was the one with the big corporate job she managed to out spend and out dress me–it was competitive.  Even her nightgowns were gorgeous. 

Immediately I found our living situation less than bliss.  Jay was distanced and not as fun as she had been when we were in junior high.  She worked two jobs, administrative assistant by day and record store clerk by night while I found my way as a sales person for Eastman Kodak.  We didn’t’ see much of each other.  I would occasionally see her in the mornings or in the evenings when she came home from her job at the mall-bags of clothes on her arms.  I just couldn’t figure out how she could afford all that stuff while I was stuck in the same preppy skirts I wore post college.  About six months into our living situation the phone started to ring at all hours of the day. I worked from home so I was the one taking the calls.   The voice on the other end always asked that Jay return the call offering up an 800#.  When I passed these messages along to Jay she replied annoyingly, “Those calls are magazines trying to sell me something.  Just hang up on them.” 

One morning after a run in the park I was making coffee in the kitchen of our flat when I heard our front door open.  I walked down the long hallway toward the door to face two very scary looking men asking for my roommate.  She was still in bed at the time.  I was frightened.  It was 7am and I had two very large, and very sketchy looking men in my house—think Mikey Rourke in a mob film.   I woke Jay.  What ensued was a discussion about the repossession of Jay’s car.  She broke down crying and begged that they give her some time to get her act together.  They were empathetic in their mobster way and gave her 24 hours.  Jay would not speak to me, she simply went to her bedroom and shut her door.  The next morning her parents drove up from Orange to San Francisco and moved her out, leaving me with the rent and a giant question…what happened?  I never spoke to Jay again.  The moral of the story…It’s never just about shopping!

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Tonight I was with my friend Portia who has been contemplating going on this diet for 11 months now.  I told her that I have decided to extend the diet for one more year, in light of the fact that there have been so many people interested in joining the effort in the past few weeks (here we go again).  When I told Portia it wasn’t too late to realize the benefits of clothing deprivation she hooped and hollered “That’s what I need, a closet colonic.”  The visual made me gag.  She went on to claim, “Deep within my big, fat, bloated walk-in closet there is a skinny one begging to be free.”  Portia, warming to the idea, is going to “think about it,” before she commits.  Let me be clear…I am not doing this for another year myself but I will moderate, facilitate, contemplate and write about life post diet.   

Alright already Portia—stop the squawkin’ and start walkin’ give your closet the future it deserves with a purge, a cleanse a regular down home colonic.  We’re here my dear and waiting to hear how it all “flushes out.”

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I’ve been pretty successful on this diet, though I have had a few “cheats”. I will catalogue them now for full disclosure: 1 pair boots this winter (I actually did not have a pair of boots that were waterproof, and now that I am commuting a few blocks in the snow, they were necessary), a new t-shirt from a state park and a new shirt from a local artisan. I think this is pretty darn good! It’s way better than I’ve ever done on a food diet anyway! Besides the practicality of the boots, the two shirts were supporting things that I want to support. I could have just given the park money, but I like advertising for it. And the artisan was at a local craft fair, so it was a one-time chance.
What’s been the most interesting to me throughout this diet though is how I’ve found a new value system.

When I first started, every day that I walked past Anne Taylor was torture. And I walk past this store every week day. I would stare in and LONG for the outfits in the window. A couple of months ago, I went into the store. I was nervous, and I found I wanted things. But then I looked at the price tags. Suddenly dropping $180 on a new dress “just because” seemed appauling! I used to do this weekly without batting an eye, now it just seems frivolous, despicable even. I saw these cute t-shirts with ribbons and pearls on them, and thought about how much I wanted one. It wasn’t very expensive either. But I realized that I could actually take a pink t-shirt I already own and turn it into this cute be-dazzled shirt. This was especially a good idea because the shirt has a small coffee stain on it, and I have therefore not worn it. But I could turn it into something I want to wear again by attaching decorative items to it!

I now find myself exploring store windows, not with lust and envy, but with a curious eye turned towards “how did they make that”? I am re-discovering my once artistic and creative self, and finding fulfillment. I am also discovering that I have managed to save a lot of money for things that matter more to me, and feeling less stressed out.  It’s nice to be able to walk to work without feeling completely depressed that you “can’t have” that cute dress in the window.  Now I realize that I can have whatever I want, but my “wants” are changing.

Who knew that deprivation would lead to so much gain!?

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