Rhoneisms

Do you ever think about them? The people? The ones who make your clothes?

When you see a country of origin on the label, do you ever stop to think about who they were and what their lives are like?

China, Bangladesh, India, Turkey, The Philippines, even the U.S.A.

Do you think about the person who picked the cotton… Or is that machines now? Wait, someone has to drive the machine, right? Did that same person plant the seed? Different machine? Then what? Did it go to a textile factory? How many people does it take? Are they happy?

Someone has to run the machines that make the thread and take the thread and make the fabric that is sewn together with thread that is made there or some other supply chain thread made by someone else who may not be happy and that then is sold to a brand that puts it on sale for a person like me but even that is a thread connecting back to the person who planted that seed and every other seed that came before it and… I think about them.

Did they get paid a fair wage? Enough to feed their kids? What is fair, there? Is that fair there or would it be fair anywhere? How are their kids doing? Are they hungry? Do they go to school? Will they grow up to do the same thing their father or mother does? Is that part of making shirts? Birthing a generation that will replace the shirt makers? Will those kids make shirts for my kids? Will those kids be hungry?

I ask these questions.

It makes me sad.

But, if I get my shirts that are made here in the United States, where is the cotton grown? What is the factory here like? Did they get a fair wage? Are their kids hungry? How much do I have to pay for a shirt to make sure no one is going hungry?

I think about this.

If I buy a t-shirt someone may be going hungry. If I don’t buy a t-shirt someone may be going hungry. Gah! I’ll buy the shirt!

$50? $100? Is that enough?

How much do I have to pay to make sure no one is beaten or abused or paid less that their labor is worth and that their kids are happy and full and going to school and getting a job where they can be paid a fair wage for a fair days work and that “fair” means to them what it means to me which is my kids won’t be hungry.

I don’t have answers. Only questions. Questions about a t-shirt that end up in exploitation and hunger because as a Black man in America I can’t ignore that this is the very reason I am a Black Man in America and not Africa because the thread that binds me to my ancestors can be stitched back to the desire for someone who wanted cheap clothing and a system that exploited humans to give it to them.

I think about this. You should too.

A couple of the ways the minimalist crowd often offers up as a way of owning/buying less clothes is to develop a uniform (a la Steve Jobs) or a capsule wardrobe (a la Project 333). Both are decent ideas and will help you achieve that goal. That said, both also are either a bit extreme (in the case of the Steve Jobs style uniform) or impracticable for most in the long run (in the case of Project 333).

The broader, and I dare say more accessible, idea behind both is the idea of developing a personal style. This is something anyone can do — likely using most if not all of what you already have. Because, in all likelihood, you already have a personal style and have not just identified it.

Identifying and settling non a personal style can be tremendously helpful when making the effort to buy less. Because once one says,”This is my personal style”, one can automatically say, “no” to anything that is not that style.

If your personal style is jeans and a t-shirt, then you can automatically avoid buying anything that is not either jeans or a t-shirt.

If you’re personal style is to dress like a Japanese Hiker, then chinos and button ups are likely something you can dismiss purchasing out of hand.

Another way to go about this is to develop a seasonal “uniform” based on what you already have. This is something I have done for the past few years. I look at what I have enough of to cover most days, how I’m feeling about it, what kinds of things I know I’m likely to do every day, etc. I even make a sketchnote of my choices for the season, thus allowing me a reference should I feel like I’ve lost my way (plus it’s fun to go back and look as what I chose the year previously).

This year, that uniform is a flannel shirt with a workshirt over that and jeans or fatigue pants on the bottom. Now, that doesn’t mean I won’t occasionally wear a sweater instead of the workshirt or a denim shirt instead of the flannel. The main reason for deciding the uniform up front is to remind myself that I already have everything I need for the coming season, have a [sensible default] that I can fall back to when I don’t know what to wear, and box out anything new I find myself wanting by remembering I already have a uniform, have enough of what I need for it, and don’t need to buy anything else.

In the middle of writing this series on not buying new clothes, my sneakers began to fall apart. It actually started at the beginning of the summer, when I began to notice the sole separating from the uppers of my Nike Killshot 2s. But it seems, in the time since I began to ponder this series, like it has become exponentially worse. Almost as if the universe is saying, “No new clothes, huh? We’ll see about that…”

I’ve had them for a couple of years so it does not come as a surprise. As I’ve established, I’m hard on shoes. And it’s not exactly like modern sneakers by major brands are made to last these days. One should know going in, as with many such things in the clothing world, that if you’re paying $90 for a pair of sneakers you should consider them essentially disposable out of the box.

And yet, I find myself faced with an interesting test of my intentions in this area. Here’s some of the places my thoughts are going…

One can purchase, very high quality, hand made, resoleable sneakers. They are out there and have a cost that corresponds to that quality. Like other quality boot and shoe makers, the cost is offset by the idea that these may be the last sneakers one will need to purchase. That one can get them repaired and resoled when time and tear takes its inevitable toll. But, I don’t know if I’d be ready to pull that trigger yet.

I could simply buy a new pair of a major brand now, likely even the same model (I do like them, style wise) knowing what I’m getting in return (see above: knowing I’ll be back here again in two years).

But, here’s the other part of my thinking, I live in Minnesota. I’ll likely only be wearing sneakers for another six weeks or so. The snow will start to fall and I’ll be wearing boots until next spring. Therefore, if I can keep these current shoes going for a while, I can push off any decision until then.

So, last night, I ordered up some Shoe Goo and will use it to repair the ones I have and, hopefully, have them hold together for a few more weeks. I have other casual shoes I can wear if it doesn’t work out (some Merrell Moab hikers). And, I can avoid having to purchase in desperation and take some time to consider how best to move forward.

Another area where my wife is far better than me when it comes to clothing (and SO MANY OTHER THINGS) is how infrequently she buys anything brand new.

For many years, she’s been very active on a couple of groups on Facebook. One is a local Buy/Sell/Trade group and another is a Buy Nothing group. Between these, she often finds clothing items that people are simply giving away free or selling for a very low price. Used items in good condition that they no longer need and would like to see enjoyed by someone else. She’s gotten a number of wonderful items this way that she looks great in.

That said, the primary means she uses to find fresh wardrobe items, and for getting rid of those she’s no longer wearing, is through clothing exchanges. In general, these are organized regularly through a Facebook group of local women she’s a member of. Someone decides to host one at their house and it’s exactly what it sounds like — show up with a bag or two of stuff you’d like to go elsewhere, and find things you like that other’s have brought. Anything left is usually either donated by the host to Goodwill or a women’s shelter or saved for the next clothing exchange elsewhere.

I’d be willing to be that 9 out of 10 days of the week, if you were to ask my wife where she got an outfit she’s wearing, it likely came from one of these two methods and it’s been that way for many years.

I have not really been able to tap into a community of guys (or male identifying) folks to do the same. Part of that may simply be not engaging as much where such things are organized (i.e. I find Facebook inscrutable). That said, occasionally there are men’s clothing items available at these exchanges my wife frequents or up for the taking on the Buy Nothing group and my wife is careful to look out for things I may like. Like I said in a pervious post, I could probably identify a half dozen things in my regular wardrobe that fit this bill.

Perhaps another idea for buying less is to see if there are any such groups around in your area and get involved. I know I hope to make it an intention to host a male/butch oriented clothing exchange myself in the future and see if I can help make it a regular thing for such a group here. Because, I know, for me, that if I am occasionally getting something fun that is “new to me”, I’m less likely to be tempted by something simply new or driven to purchase something to fill a perceived need.

Some of my favorite items in my closet are ones I’ve had for a long time.

I have quite a few sweaters that I purchased in the late 80s and early 90’s that still look great.

I have a J Crew denim shirt from that same period with beautiful fading that I love to wear. Made in the USA with single needle stitching when such things were built that way by default.

I have a number of used and vintage items that my wife has picked up for me over the years from clothing exchanges or the buy/sell/trade/free groups she’s a member of on Facebook (more on this in a future post). Many of these have quickly become regular faves.

The truth of the matter is that, if you were to ask me to choose 10 of my most favorite items from my closet, I’d be willing to bet that 8-10 of theme will be things that I’ve had for decades or were free.

This forces me to face a the very question I keep coming back to year after year — why do I bother buying new clothes? Do I really need to? I already am, just based on the above alone, happy with everything I do own and own enough of each type of clothing one might need (tops, bottoms, underwear, socks, shoes).

Part of the issue is that I fall prey to marketing. I have a gmail account that I use specifically for BACN type promotional email from various clothing brands that I typically shop. I’m interested in fashion and am fascinated by what’s “in” and “out” of style seasonally. Additionally, I more often than not get ideas from these on how to style things I might already have or I see something I have in storage re-elevated, fashion wise (J Crew recently re-issued their classic late 80s rollneck sweater — I have 4 from I bought in that era). That said, too many times I’ve seen a promotional email and given in to a massive sale on a certain item —one for which I then find a genuine need to justify it — without really pausing to examine the reality and depth of that need. Without ever pausing to examine what enough is for me in this area.

The easiest way for me to avoid this in the future is to use the “Unsubscribe” on these email promotions liberally and with prejudice. If I want to stay true to my commitment to buy less,and truly do have everything I need, then I should have no reason going forward to know whatever the latest sale-on-sale is. The truth is that, if there is something I need, I’ll be aware of any sales and promotions the moment I visit any brand’s website to look.

As many who have followed me for a long time know, I strive to be a minimalist while my wife is, well, quite the opposite. That’s OK. We’ve learned to, at the least, honor each other’s preferences. In one particular case, that of not getting rid of clothing one is no longer wearing, I finally have to admit that she was right.

You see, for as long as I’ve known her she’s stored many boxes of clothes that she no longer wore for a variety of reasons. Some things no longer fit, some are sentimental, some are not currently in style, etc. Whenever I pressed a bit on these, she’d explain that the thought of having to buy something that she’d already bought again drove her nuts. That, often times, something that went out of style would come back again and, well, she’d be ready and could dig it out. Some things, like that favorite band shirt or that sweater she picked up at a Taiwanese street market that reminds her of that time in her life were worth holding on to in the same way the memory itself was — it was a talisman for a positive feeling. Perhaps, the one that is just a bit too small or large will one day fit again. She’d rather not have to spend money that she already feels like she spent.

While I pushed back on this for a long time, I’ve come around to her way of thinking. My recent experience with the jeans and chinos is a perfect example. There have also been times going through an old box of clothes of mine that I discover something cool or trendy that I had forgotten I had and it fills me with so much joy to wear it again. There are the “geek t-shirts” that I got during my many years working in the tech industry that flood me with positive memories just like her sentimental ones and I’m grateful I have them stashed away even if I no longer wear them.

The truth is, we have the space. The boxes of these clothes are not taking away anything or weighing on us cognitively. And they often do save us time and money when we do need to engage with them.

So, this is to say that it is OK to take some things and put them away for a bit if you have the space to do so. It is also OK to “shop yourself first” in this way as we do. It avoids the waste of duplication and buying brand new. It saves that garment from its possible destination in a landfill.