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Seeing yourself for the first time
The good, the bad and the self love “and I said to my body. softly. ‘I want to be your friend.’ It took a long breath. and replied, ‘I have been waiting my whole life for this” For as long as I can remember there has been a timeline of my life where I have hated my body and not seen myself properly. In primary school I felt too tall I would tower over the boys in my class then in high school this was not longer a problem, great right? No, you develop new issues for yourself. Now I felt like the bigger one in the group, I had…
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My Lockdown Transformation: Shopaholic to Conscious Consumer
My shopaholic realisation: Forty-three days ago, when all of this madness began, I, like most girls my age, was a self-confessed shopaholic. My daily hobbies consisted of scrolling through online shops for hours at a time and eagerly waiting for those glorious parcels to arrive at my door. So, as you can imagine, when news of lockdown broke out, I was delighted to have all the time in the world to be doing my favourite pastime completely guilt-free. Before long, I had overloading baskets sprawled across different sites ready for me to buy. “But what was I actually buying these clothes for?” I thought to myself. I had ‘going out…
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5 ways to become a more conscious fashion consumer
It is common knowledge that the fashion industry is now of the leading waste producers and contributing to the ongoing climate crisis. While industry professionals and designers are taking their stance on this debate, we as consumers need to make our own contributions. So here are 5 small steps that you can take to become a conscious yet fashionable citizen. Buy less, Consume more Data suggests that the value of unused clothing in wardrobes has been estimated at around £30 billion. It is also estimated £140 million worth of clothing goes into landfill each year. While there is definitely an opportunity for local authorities to take action, individual initiative is…
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Fashion Influencers: the good, the bad and the never ugly
86% of marketers have spent on ‘Influencer Marketing’ in the last twelve months according to the Digital Marketing Institute. Influencers are big business, but are they using their power of influence for good? In this article, Praba Ellawalla, a Fashion Media & Marketing student at Mode D’Art university in Paris, explores her thoughts. What is a fashion influencer? A few years ago, if you’d asked me about “Fashion Influencers” I would have given you a sarcastic smile and a lecture about being naïve and not respecting the English language. Today, however, I can give you a long list of fashion influencers and plenty of information about what they do. The…
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Who wants to be a fashion influencer?
According to a recent survey by Morning Consult the US, being an influencer is an appealing career to 86% of people between the age of 13 to 38. In this article, India Metson takes a closer look at what today’s hottest dream job really looks like…. Fashion Influencers Fashion influencers. Those people we don’t actually know but through Instagram we somehow pretty much know their life story. The daily pictures we are obsessed with that always manage to spark a little jealousy as we think, “Why is that not my life?”. But when you look to the future, how secure are these dream jobs? How many more influencers are going…
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Sustainable fashion is not just a hashtag
We are exposed to around 4,000 marketing messages daily both on and offline. We see sales, discount codes, swipe up features and influencer look-books with descriptions that include “must have to complete your wardrobe or impress on that special occasion”. Psychologically, this fills us with guilt and disappointment about what’s currently in our wardrobes. It makes us feel that getting our hands-on new garments would satisfy this problem. A sense of urgency is created and we purchase things without thinking about whether or not we truly need or want them. The Power of Influencer Marketing According to a Mintel report, 45% of respondents aged 16+ have purchased an item due…
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Fashion Influencers: Money Over Morals?
Love Island, I’m a Celebrity and other reality TV shows are pairing up with fashion brands to turn contestants into influencers. These people become stylish social media superstars overnight, but are they choosing money over morals? Let me set the scene… it’s summer, its 9pm and you’re settling yourself down for the next instalment of that hit match making show. Yep, its Love Island. Whilst the show is predominantly about finding love, it’s millions of viewers make it a MEGA marketing opportunity for fast fashion brands. Love Island’s official partner I Saw it First experienced their month on month sales soar by 67% due to their collaboration with the show. …
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Fast fashion’s identity crisis
Fast fashion has created an identity crisis; we're trying so hard to keep up with trends that we've forgotten who we are and what we really matters. Exploring the dynamics of supply and demand, brands and consumers, Vidya Giridharan shares her story of conscious fashion.
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The Supply and Demand Of Vintage Fashion
While online-only brands like ASOS, Boohoo and Missguided chip away at our formerly fashionable high streets, is the same true when it comes to second-hand? Do charity shops, vintage boutiques and thrift stores suffer at the hands of online marketplaces such as eBay and Depop? In December 2011, Mary ‘Queen of Shops’ Portas launched an independent review – recommended by the government – into the future of British high streets, researching the decline she believed to have ‘reached a crisis point’. Adamant at the time that business was the bottom line of the decision-making process, with sentimentality playing no part in her desire to turn the failing high street around,…
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Fashion Victims
When we consider the euphoric highs and ever-increasing lows associated with addiction, is intoxicating ourselves with fashion really as harmless as we think? Shopping for clothes is more a form of entertainment than it is a necessity these days. It’s a form of escapism, relaxation and pleasure. That’s why the term ‘retail therapy’ has become everyday language. Let’s be honest, most of us have enough clothes in our wardrobe. In fact, most of us probably have more clothes than we need. So, when we go shopping, it’s largely for fun. From High To Low It feels so good to come out of the shopping centre with bags full of our…
