3 Reasons To Repurpose Your Wardrobe

We have been long standing advocates of quality over quantity - promoting well thought through and curated buying over trends purchasing - and decided that we could do more to reduce waste while we keep it true to our ‘On Your Own Terms’ motto. We are launching our Upcycling Consultation with a premium service at home in New York! 

That’s right; you can now get Your own Reinvention Squad by Another Garde to help you - independent, modern, waste loathing women - repurpose your own wardrobe for any occasion.

What the heck do we mean by ‘repurpose’? And why should you give a rat’s ass about it?

Repurpose to us means reuse items in your closet by infusing new outfit ideas or by making these styles work for who you are now through quality clothes alteration. Let’s change the ‘barely worn before it hits the trash can’ culture in fashion. It’s the right AND fun thing to do. Here’s why.

 

1- Do our part in preserving our Earth

Ecological disasters, one after the other, are tragic screams into our faces that we cannot and must not continue to act the way we do. Frankly, if our children decided to put us on trial we would not blame them. And let’s face it, the fashion industry bears lots of responsibility for carbon emissions, chemical waste due to dyeing and landfill excesses. More than 15 million tons of used textile waste is generated each year in the United States with 10 ending up in landfills.This amount has doubled over the last 20 years

The other devastating impact of fast fashion consumption is on water resources depletion: every t-shirt in our wardrobe requires nearly 700 gallons of water. 

Prolonging the life and usage of our wardrobe will reduce disposable and excessive buying and thus the impacts of manufacturing on our environment. 

2- Be unique and tell your story

Reuse may sound boring. Wearing the same black blazer 3 days in a row feels a bit like a lackluster. 

Should fashion and style not ultimately be exciting, fun, inspiring, and of course COMFORTABLE? 

To us, reuse is creative fun and makes us stand out. It is the opportunity to reinvent our own style by blending various chapters of our lives. For example, outfit ideas could be pairing a silky bow blouse from three years back when you were a corporate exec. with the bomber jacket you got yesterday thanks to your first paycheck as tech freelancer and completing the look with the first Dr Martens ankle boots of your early twenties. No one will look as you do or feel like you do on that day. We can guarantee this. Because it is yours only story to tell.

3- Optimize our ROI; let’s talk $$$

What is the true cost of having your own style? The truth is it is not cheap between the dollars spent and the amount of time spent thinking or stressing out about what to wear, when and where. The other truth is repurposing your wardrobe via quality alteration will help with the final bill. Take that Stella McCartney gorgeous white pants with extra wide leg pants that are sitting in your closet. You love them and you bought them half price - still ended up to be a chilling $300 on the credit card. BUT you never wear them because: ‘What were you thinking? You don’t even feel great in flare trousers!!!’  You could donate and buy new white trousers from Theory. Your total bill is now circa $600… OR you could get your own pants tailored for a better fit and hemmed at ankle length for about $100. Net gain = $200. Et voila!

Repurposing Jimmy Choo heels: some shoes are so pretty that every guest (male included) of a wedding party tries them on. Those modern Cinderellas broke them...But that was the right opportunity to go from crystal embellishments to more organic feel tassels. 

Of course, repurposing is not the panacea to all the ills of clothes product cycle and yes, we will continue to buy clothes. Maybe, we can buy better though: always thinking about what we already own and what we can transform before we swipe our credit cards. 

Many of us also crave for more minimalism as a lifestyle and declutter is the only option. Yes, often, there is really nothing that can be done to save a garment - soft organic H&M tees with so many holes you really don’t look cool any more and there is literally no one youhate enough to donate to; I am looking at you. For high frequency basics disposal, recycle them to keep them out of landfills. Research your nearest recycle center here https://search.earth911.com/

 

If like us you feel ready to Style, Fit, Reuse, Repeat :), click HERE to book your Upcycling Consultation today!