With Black Friday and Cyber Monday in the rearview mirror, thousands of articles of unpurchased clothes are wasted. More concerningly, Black Friday alone left a carbon footprint of 1.2 million tonnes, according to a study by Forbes. Brightly-colored ads flood phone and computer screens, encouraging people to buy, buy, and buy some more. But do we even need to keep producing clothes, given that millions go unused each year? We do not. One of the greatest ways to not contribute to consumerism is by thrifting. People donate bags of clothing to thrift stores that either don’t fit anymore, or don’t fit their style. This creates the perfect opportunity to discover a unique item or vintage piece that might not even be sold in stores anymore.
Near B-CC, the two most popular spots to hit are Unique and Goodwill, both of which are in Silver Spring. Thrifting can entail hours of searching through bins, and digging to find a statement piece; it may take longer to find an item that is the perfect size or style, but it lessens one’s carbon, water, and overall environmental impact by 10 percent (The Bark). Just like how shopping is a hobby, thrifting can be a fun activity that charges significantly less. B-CC senior Leo Strauss said, “It’s affordable, and it’s a great way to stay ecologically conscious.” Strauss started thrifting at the young age of six, at first going with his mom and friends. With social media and the age of comparison, many people have grown up with the mindset that they can’t repeat outfits. However, Strauss said, “Until something is unwearable you should use it. Clothes aren’t made to wear once.”
Additionally, fashion always tends to circle back. Take jeans for example: in the 1980s, jeans tended to be high-rise, and came up to just above the naval. Then in the ‘90s and early 2000s jeans shifted to low-rise, and came up to just above the hip bone. In the 2010s high rise came back in fashion, and in 2020 low-rise became trendy again. This fashion cycle is both tiring and pricey to keep up with. Thrift shops provide a time vault or treasure chest of all things fashion. Even for those who don’t want to go in person, there are vintage and thrift stores online. Senior Flannery Northrup said, “Until last year I would thrift primarily online in places like Vinted or ThredUp.”
There are going to be occasions when a shopper is looking for a specific piece of clothing that cannot be found at a secondhand store. However, with pressing climate change concerns, thrifting provides a way to be more ecologically conscious. BCC junior Rayna Kaye said, “By thrifting, we save thousands of articles of clothes from being thrown away.”
