#1- ‘The True Cost’
Day 1, Month 1, Challenge 1
Documentary: The True Cost
Admittedly, when I declared I was going to do this challenge and try to find a take-away nugget to improve my life from the hours of mindlessly consumed Netflix content I was devouring, it seemed like a win win.
My life will get better and I’ll still get to watch Netflix, Win Win, right?
Fast forward two weeks (I could write a novel about what I think about the ’13 Reasons Why’ and ‘GirlBoss’ that I’ve watched in those two weeks!) and I’ve opened Netflix and am browsing the documentary section.
Browsing, browsing, so many docos. I didn’t remember there being so many.
Let’s start small I say to myself, let’s not start with something too drastic, like changing your diet, throwing out all your stuff, or quitting your job to volunteer in Africa or to save the coral reef. Small.
Thing is, there is no small. Who spends millions of dollars and hours on a “small” issue! You idiot.
So I just picked one I hadn’t watched before, ‘The True Cost’.
‘The True Cost” is a documentary that focuses on the idea of fast fashion and how the fashion industry has evolved, how garments are made and the social and political impacts of the fast moving fashion industry. It touches on sweat shops, the environmental impacts of the fabrics and the production of the fabrics, to GMO’s and the people who are trying to change the money making machine.
Like director Andrew Morgan, I had never really thought twice about the clothes that I buy. With the exception of running clothes (chafe is no ones friend), my general clothing philosophy has always been the blacker and the cheaper the better. Hello teenage emo. It’s true, my “taste” in fashion hasn’t changed much since highschool. T-shirts, skinny jeans and Converse sneakers are pretty much the staples with a few random and not at all co-ordinated jewellery items scattered about.
I wear a Garmin running watch with bands that don’t match, my earrings often aren’t the same in each ear and there is a high probability that I will have yesterdays coffee on my shirt.
Don’t get me wrong, I could rock the latest ‘Fitspo’ outfit like the next Insta girl if I wanted to. My workout clothes, which I get substantial wear out of, comprise more than half of my wardrobe. But hey, unless I’m on a plane or have a marathon that week, I’m not wearing compression tights to the café or the shops. (I truly believe you get a free pass to wear compression the week before a marathon, every little bit helps folks!)
I’m the first to admit that I judge women who love fashion. Not the unique ‘I have my own style that I’m rockin’ women but the ones who buy the magazines and care about what the current style is. I judge the ones I’m sure are judging me for lack of fashion style.
So, what were my first thoughts as I watched ‘The True Cost’?
- Thank god I don’t buy a shit load of that fast fashion
- Where does the clothes I do buy come from?
- What are the options?
- What changes can I make in my own life to make this better for other people, for the environment and how will these changes effect my hip pocket and clothing needs (like no chafe!)?
This month’s goal: re-evaluate the things you buy, where you buy them from and what is the impact of purchasing that item.
This is not a ‘don’t buy anything’ for the month type of challenge.
It’s a ‘be a better global citizen’ challenge. Get educated and vote with your dollar, always.
Stay tuned, this might get interesting.Not only am I an avid consumer of sports wear but I’m also planning a wedding.
The plan:
- Wardrobe audit. What are you buying?
- Research and evaluation. What could you be buying? What are the options?
- Moving forward, what have I learned?
Think a little,
Mel