Latest / More Organised Less Clutter / 236. Why shop secondhand clothes and thrifting tips
Transcript
- Narelle King: Welcome to More Organized, Less Clutter, a podcast to empower individuals and neurodivergent families with practical, realistic tools to create a more organized, sensory-friendly, clutter-free, and intentional home that works with your lifestyle and brain, not against it. I'm Narelle King, a professional organizer and neurodivergent mom who understands the unique challenges of family life. I help people just like you simplify your space build sustainable organisational systems and create more breathing room physically and mentally. Every fortnight, you'll hear solo episodes and guest conversations filled with practical strategies on decluttering, home organisation, routines for neurodivergent families, mindful living and how to build a home that feels safe, calm and functional. You'll walk away with actionable takeaways you can implement even if you only have 10 minutes to spare. Have you ever found yourself looking through your wardrobe surrounded by clothes and still feeling like you have nothing to wear? What if instead of buying more new clothes, a lot of which are made from synthetic fibers that irritate the skin and shed microplastics when you wash them, that you shop secondhand? Imagine filling your wardrobe with unique pre-loved pieces that not only look great, a fraction of the cost, and are better for your health and the planet. In today's more organised, clutter episode, I'll be discussing the rise of secondhand shopping, the many benefits of secondhand shopping and some practical steps so that you can start this sustainable journey today of secondhand shopping. Thanks for tuning into today's solar episode on the benefits of secondhand shopping and how you can actually do this with some simple steps. There's so many different benefits from reducing textile waste to saving money. and also helping to conserve our valuable resources. We are seeing a huge impact on our environment from our fashion industry. So helping us to actually embrace secondhand shopping is really, really important. Globally, did you know that there's 92 million tonnes of textiles are discarded every year? So just in Australia, we as consumers buy 1.5 billion new items of clothing that are sold within Australia. 220 tonnes of that textiles in Australia ends up in landfill. Did you know that 60 % of what's donated can't be sold in Australia as secondhand clothing? It's only 10 to 30 % are purchased and the rest ends up in landfill or shipped overseas, which is even worse, to a developing country. and just moving the responsibility to someone else. So apparel here in Australia has helped to divert 3.3 million kilograms last year, which also helped to prevent 11.5 million kilograms of gases. So there is a new scheme in Australia to help reduce textile waste. And the goal is to move from take, make waste model to a circular system by 2030. And some of the things that they're doing to actually help to achieve this goal is that they have an industry stewardship, which is through seamless, and they're aiming to improve design recycling capabilities. There is also support for local recycling infrastructure to turn the old textiles into new fibers, which is what Apparel is one of those businesses that have already been using their technology to divert the 3.3 million kilograms of textiles into another form. There is also funding for repair initiatives and also promoting charitable recycling to keep garments in use longer. There is also a product stewardship levy that they are looking at putting on clothing retailers to fund the recycling and the sorting of garments. And there's also some discussion around implementing taxes like the French have on low quality, fast fashion, just to discourage over consumption. I'm going to go through three of the reasons why we need to think about shopping secondhand for our clothing. Number one is conserving our resources. When it comes to making new clothing, there's a lot of water and energy that's required. So for example, one cotton t-shirt uses up to 2,700 litres of water. That's just one t-shirt. One pair of jeans uses 7,000 litres of water. That was the figure that helped me to look at my purchases of jeans and actually look at purchasing secondhand instead, because that's a really large number that's going into producing one pair of jeans. I feel that the actual culture around shopping has started to evolve, that there's a growing movement around mindful consumption. And when you choose to shop secondhand, you're also looking at that larger conversation around sustainability. So understanding where and how clothes are made is going to help consumers make more informed choices. Like you may not have known about how much water goes into making just one t-shirt or one pair of jeans. So Encouraging a mindset of owning less but choosing wisely may also contribute to taking up secondhand options over purchasing brand new. Number two impact of benefit of shopping secondhand is the environment and health impact. The fashion industry is responsible for 2 to 10 % globally of carbon emissions, which is more than all the international flights. and also shipping combined. That is huge. Many new clothing items made up of 65 to 70 % of synthetic fibres. So they're not natural. It's like a polyester and they trap heat and can also irritate your skin. They take thousands of years to break down and washing these fabrics we're found now release microplastics into the oceans. which is increasing pollution to our marine life, which then we're eating because they've been swimming around in the ocean with the microplastics, they're consuming it, and then we're consuming the marine life. So 35 % of all microplastics, so those tiny pieces of non-biodegradable plastic is found in the ocean and come from the actual laundering of synthetic textiles like polyester. So many older clothing made from natural fibres or less processed fibres can be purchased from a secondhand shop or secondhand online. Now the third benefit of actually shopping secondhand is the cost saving. So you can often find really high quality pieces for a fraction of the original price online or in an actual store that is selling secondhand clothing. This means that you have more freedom to spend on other things that you need in your life or experiences that you might like to do with family or with friends as well, rather than having to spend it on fast fashion. So practical steps to help you start shopping secondhand, especially if you haven't done it before, is number one is explore your local shops. So secondhand shops, opportunity shops, thrift shops, they have different names in different parts of the world. Or it could be a consignment shop. So that's when people take their items and the shop keeps part of the money and the rest will go back to you once the item has actually been sold. It might even be garage sales in your local area. Some of the items you might like to look for are things like a graphic tee that's worn in, maybe pairs of jeans. That was where I started. I started with jeans. I knew the brands that I liked. I knew my size. So then I just started to Look for them online and also in stores. Maybe it's like a bag or a purse and that's really small item that you could start by looking at. Especially if you've got an idea of something that you really like and you've seen it in store, you may be able to find it then secondhand, especially if you've got a brand in mind. There is also so many beautiful leather bags that you will find in a thrift shop or opportunity shop. that are at a fraction of the price. Another one is a coat or a blazer. And you can then also look at what it's made from and you may be able to find something that's more of a natural fibre that's also going to last a lot longer. And another thing that I find is really easy to find is jewellery and scarves. You can find some really unique, beautiful pieces that you may not find anywhere else. Another practical step to help you start shopping secondhand is to use online platforms. So some of my favorites is Depop and Facebook Marketplace, which most people have heard of, maybe haven't actually explored it. Poshmark is another one and eBay. So it's going on and having a look and you can then find lots of options of things that you can buy secondhand, but you can also then sell things secondhand. So you can join groups, obviously in Facebook marketplace, and that way then you'll be able to post or look for certain items. So if you're looking for a particular brand of clothing, you may be able to find a Facebook group that is selling that particular brand of clothing. One of the benefits of online platforms is that you can shop from anywhere in the world. So you could be anywhere in a really, really isolated part of the world. but you can still purchase anything from anywhere in the world and have it shipped to you. Whereas maybe Facebook marketplace could be more your local area. So if you're willing to actually drive and pick it up or organize for them to drop it to you, that may be a better way of buying for you. Another way to start shopping secondhand is to organize a swap event. Now I organized this for my 50th birthday last year and I asked everyone who was coming to bring five items. that they had purchased they haven't worn or maybe it doesn't suit them anymore or it was the incorrect size. I was surprised how many items had still their tags on it. Everyone bought them along and then we swapped our clothes and people took home new clothes without even spending any money. But it also was great because it was like a sense of community and sustainability and everyone really enjoyed their time. Now the other two points. that you need to be aware of when you're shopping secondhand is to be patient and open-minded. So you need to keep in mind that secondhand shops can require time and also effort because you need to go with an open mind and not be discouraged if you don't find anything at all. It takes a little bit of experience to also find those unique discoveries. And that's why I gave you that list of things to look for. I would just select one thing that maybe you're looking for and then just focus on that when you're going into the stores. I have a list on my phone of things that I'm looking for and that way I can refer back to it when I'm in an actual store as well as when I'm online. And the last point is to check the quality carefully. When you're selecting items, inspect like the wear and tear of it. Or maybe it's even if it's missing a button or whether you think you could possibly get the stain out of it, you could easily look up what the actual fabric is and you may be able to then look up what steps you need to actually remove that stain. It might be also looking at the quality of the fabric and how it sits on you. And some of these brands really stand the test of time. I hope you're feeling inspired to start your secondhand shopping journey. Remember, every purchase you make can contribute to a healthier planet, more sustainable lifestyle, and also intentional life for yourself. As you go about shopping this year, maybe consider making at least one choice and then share them with me on social media. I love seeing what people have purchased secondhand and the really interesting things that they've found. Let's work together to create a future where our shopping habits are aligned with sustainability and looking after the planet. Thank you so much for joining me for this episode for more organized less clutter. Sick of wasting time looking for your keys, wallet or that one charger that always disappears? Your space needs visual anchors. Grab the ADHD friendly organisation checklist, a 10 minute set up, a weekly reset and troubleshooting map to adapt your space. Create an environment that works with your brain so that you can stop losing or forgetting things and start living on time with your sanity. Head to simplyhappy.com.au and click on the Resource tab to get instant access today. I'd like to acknowledge the Wathauron people of the Kulin Nation on which this podcast is recorded as the traditional custodians of the land. pay my respects to their elders, past, present and emerging.