Hola, it’s been a while! My charity-shop ventures have taken a momentary break whilst uni work overtake in terms of order of importance (Boo! Hiss!). Having arrived home for my last ever (ksjdfks) Easter break yesterday, I decided that today would be the perfect day to sort out my mess of a wardrobe - to a certain extent, at least (and there’s also the fact that I have a whole other wardrobe to sort through…um…). 

Among the high-street stuff that’s been sat collecting dust for a while are these few vintage items that I’ll be selling on ebay (here). 

First is a rather wacky shirt that I found in a charity shop a few years ago and bought on a complete whim. It’s crazy and amazing but I just don’t have the guts to wear the bloody thing out in public, do I. Lesigh. 

Next is a brown vest top with a black rose-and-vine print design. It came as part of a set, of which I’ve kept the brown jacket but am probably going to throw away the trousers/use them as a mop or duster of some kind, because they are just plain ugly. Too ugly, in fact, to be photographed whatsoever. 

I was a little bit torn as to whether to put the next two items on sale. I’ve never worn either of them, despite having bought them both at least a year ago - probably nearer two, actually. But after trying them on and doing all the posey camera business (which fyi I hate with all my being, but I feel like things sell better on ebay if they’re photographed on somebody. C’est la vie), I did question my motives somewhat.

The plain white tee with its subtle floral/striped design would be perfect with denim shorts for summer, while the velvet dress fits me like a glove. Too late now though.  They’re up on ebay along with my other delightful (but mostly not so delightful) rejects. Take a look if you fancy! :)

These are both items that have permanently resided in my wardrobe over the last couple of years, shamefully without ever being worn.

The sequinned top was one of those spontaneous buys where I just knew at point-of-purchase that I wouldn’t actually wear it. I was sold by the effortlessly-cool model (or previous owner, more like - bought it on Ebay) who rocked it like she wore sequins on a daily basis. I, on the otherhand, just look like an oversized Christmas decoration in this kind of get-up. This is definitely the downfall of internet shopping - trying on clothes before buying is pretty essential for me personally. I should really learn from my mistakes, but the lure of shopping online is unavoidable!

The top is nice to look at now and again, though - just like this amazing rabbit fur coat that I found whilst rummaging my Nan’s wardrobe a couple of years ago (It miraculously transported itself into my wardrobe, I had nothing to do with that, honestly…).

I can’t stress how much I love this coat. It’s crazy-soft, as soft as a…well, a rabbit. Which should really put me off it at least slightly, but it doesn’t. I’m not a fan of real fur in general, but when it comes to vintage coats I think it’s slightly more acceptable than if it’s been made recently.

Don’t get me wrong, I would never support any form of animal cruelty - thankfully I think the fashion industry has caught onto the fact that people are a lot more conscious of the ethics of fashion than that of my Nan’s generation, for example. Even so, I feel like I can’t wear this coat out because of the fact it’s real fur, and also seeing as it’s so extravagant and luxurious, and I would be worried about ruining it, especially as it belongs/used to belong to my Nan.

What do you think about wearing real fur - or insane amounts of sequins, for that matter? 

antiformonline:

If you’re resolving to think more about how you dress and where your clothes come from in 2012, but aren’t sure where to start, look no further than this fantastic collaboration between Amisha Ghadiali of elegancerebellion.com and Joana Casaca Lemos.

Making the switch to a more sustainable wardrobe can be a bit overwhelming. It’s true that there a lot of issues to contend with, many of which may never have crossed our minds before!

We try to see all these issues as different challenges; to overcome with innovation, creativity and a playful, fun approach to our clothing.

Amisha’s 12 Rules To Dress By poster does just that by giving you a helping hand in becoming more savvy with your buying and more creative with your style, encouraging re-use and putting a bit more thought into what happens to your clothing through every step of its lifespan. We especially love the idea of the checklist to keep track of things easily!

At the end of 2010, I wrote these 12 resolutions which have since become my 12 Rules To Dress By when I started to realise that even though awareness was rising about the issues in the global fashion industry most of us don’t have a clue how to think about making our wardrobes sustainable. When I speak to friends and colleagues there doesn’t seem to be a great feeling of responsibility about how we shop and how we dress. Many feel that it’s a girl’s fashion issue, yet we all wear clothes no matter our sex, age, or how stylish we consider ourselves.

[…] Clothes are an important part of our daily life. We have the opportunity to affect millions of people’s lives and to protect our environment by how we shop and what we wear. Rules are made to be broken, but by following these you can make a difference.

The poster is available to download in PDF format (& in a number of different languages) here.