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Year
Without New Clothes, Month 3/
Team Leader Raedia Sikkema,
Cruising in Ex-Consumerdom
I've gotta say, this just seems to
keep getting easier! I find that I've
become much less aware of "clothes
shopping" as an activity that
I would want to participate in. I'm
amazed to think back on how I used
to go to the mall once or twice a
week, when now I have no desire to
do that at all. I've definitely learned
to live without that "thrill
of discovery" of finding some
great new item or amazing bargain,
but also avoiding the frustration
of buying some silly thing that loses
its appeal once I get it home. The
one area where new clothing tempts
me is probably biking attire –
on my first long ride of the season
yesterday, I was quite aware that
I was wearing ill- fitting yoga pants,
rather than leggings designed for
the sport I was actually doing. But
I will persevere without fancy bike-wear,
knowing that after 20 miles around
Boston, I would be uncomfortable no
matter how much I'd spent on pants.
Read
Raedia's last Dispatches >>
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Level
2 Team Leader Raedia Sikkema:
thrifty AND stylish. |
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ExConsumer
Level 3: Level
three members resolve not to
buy or otherwise acquire any
new clothes for the entirety
of 2006. This is the PsyOps
level of the ExConsumer Project,
where members who participate
protest the fashion industry’s
ongoing campaign to make us
feel that we are inadequate.
By opting out of the purchase
of clothes (and related accessories),
Level 3 ExConsumers liberate
themselves from the psychological
and fiscal bind the clothes
industry puts on producers and
consumers.
Interested
in signing up? Post a note and
tell us about it on the Forum! |
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Why
stop buying clothes? For starters,
if you're like most Americans,
you already have enough of them.
Look in your closet.
Beyond
that obvious reason, consider
the gripes people seem to have
with the fashion industry...
maybe you dislike the way it
exploits low-wage workers overseas?
or the way its advertising and
journalism consistently dumb
down women’s publications?
maybe you have a beef with the
way the industry seems to exacerbate
the first-world eating-disorder
pandemic? Whatever your reason,
why not stop buying fashion
magazines, and take your name
off the clothes catalogs you
receive. If the fashion world
makes you feel inadequate, don't
try to make yourself thinner
or richer... just opt out. |
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Year
Without New Clothes:
Month One Report by Team Leader Raedia Sikkema
The
first month of my no-new-clothes commitment went
pretty well - sure, I had the occasional twinge
when I saw a neat outfit in a shop window, or
a sign for a sale at a favorite secondhand store
- but for the most part my cravings were few.
Avoiding fashion magazines, malls, and trendy
people helped. Actually, I loved getting back
the free time that I might have otherwise spent
at the mall - I've had a lot more time for activities
I actually enjoy. I'll confess that I did get
some new running shoes with a Christmas gift certificate
from my parents. However, my previous pair was
endangering my health, and I didn't actually spend
any of my own money, so hopefully that doesn't
count as a violation! Hope I'll do as well in
month two...
Team
Leader Raedia Sikkema Bundles up for February
Not buying clothes for the past
month has been fairly painless for me. It's been
COLD most of the time,
so I've been wrapped up in bulky sweaters and
corduroys. Winter weather definitely stifles the
urge for cute outfits and impractical shoes! Some
of my wardrobe is starting to look a little rough
around the edges, though... I may need to learn
to darn socks before the year is over.
The temptation is frequently there to replace
clothing-vanity with some other kind; haircuts,
for example. I've spent several days planning
my next haircut, and collecting example photos
for the stylist. I was even considering highlights,
but backed down when I realized what a time and
money commitment that would be, for something
that's not that important in the scheme of things.
I still want to look good, of course, but I can't
quit being a fashion industry consumer just to
replace it with an equivalent habit.
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Raedia's
Bio:
(Although
Raedia works from home as a computer animator,
she still manages to spend an impressive amount
of money (and time) shopping for clothes.
As
the representative for Level 3 ExConsumers, she
hopes to halt the expansion of her wardrobe for
the next year. At home, no one can see what she’s
wearing. However, Raedia also has several important
clients in the corporate financial world, so she’ll
need to look respectable for meetings without
a trip to the mall.) |
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