Search for Recycling

A Passion For Fashion Needn’t Cost The Earth

If the credit crunch is curbing your passion for fashion as you try to resist the lure of this summer’s sales, don’t despair. Waste Awareness Wales has the perfect solution for guilt-free shopping – the clothes swapping party.

Gwenan Davies, development officer for Waste Awareness Wales, said, "Every year in the UK, it is estimated that over 1 million tonnes of textiles are thrown out - however much of this can be reused or recycled.  As many of us are starting to count the cost of the ongoing credit crunch, clothes swapping parties are a great way to save money and the environment without compromising on style."

The concept of clothes swapping is simple.  Get a group of your favourite friends together.  Brief everyone to bring a selection of clothing they no longer want and get swapping!  Not only does it make for a great evening in, it’s the cheapest shopping spree you’ll ever take part in!  What could be more satisfying than arriving with an armful of your least favourite clothes, going home with a whole new wardrobe AND doing your bit to reduce, reuse and recycle?

There are other ways to shop smarter too.  Donating unwanted clothing to a local charity shop is a great way to weed out your wardrobe.  As is logging onto www.freecycle.org – the online community network dedicated to helping people get rid of unwanted items through swapping and reusing with others.

If you simply can’t resist the urge to snap up a summer sale bargain, you could still do your bit for the environment by shopping ethically.  It has been estimated that a single t-shirt could have taken 150g of pesticides to produce.  However organic textiles use no pesticides, making them a more sustainable source.  And as organic clothes are now more readily available at a reasonable a price, this is up-to-date fashion that won’t cost the earth.

Also make sure you take your purchases home in a cloth bag or reused bag rather than a new plastic carrier and you’ll have your finger firmly on that eco-friendly fashion pulse.