Is It Possible to be Sustainable and Have a Wardrobe with the Latest Trends?
By Rhianydd Sword
A question that I always used to ask myself: how is it possible to be in touch with the latest trends of the season without constantly buying new clothes? Updating our wardrobes every season is not only an expensive task but an unsustainable one, and whilst it may seem that we can’t do everything, I’m here to tell you that you really can get the best of both worlds. Changing our wardrobes around doesn’t mean spending our money and buying new clothes but simply revitalising the items that we do have. Fortunately, upcycling is also shown to be a trend of this season and I’m here to tell you how to take your old items and turn them into something new.
One of the biggest trends that came out of this season was the colour lilac. Shown to be an unexpected addition to the Autumn catwalks, the colour was modernised and shown to be a fresh way to add to any outfit. If your wardrobe is lacking in lilac, don’t worry as you can use dye to create the pale violet tone that you’re looking for and dye a pre-existing garment. You can buy lilac dye from a shop – a good place to look is a craft store. Or, if you’re looking to be especially eco-friendly then you can use homemade natural dye. Red onion skins, raspberries and blackberries are known to be used as a homemade purple dye. Whilst purple may be too deep for your lilac ambitions, you are that one step closer to wearing the shade of the season.
Having an established sleeve is also shown to be popular this season, whether that be through puffed sleeves or shoulder pads. If you’re wondering which sleeve is best, whilst both sleeves are trends that I love, a sleeve with a shoulder pad is seemingly a lot easier to make than a puffed sleeve. Simply take any top and sew a pad underneath the fabric of where your shoulder would lie. If you’re a girl then you can even take the padding from a bikini top, if it allows you to, and use that as a shoulder pad. As for a puffed sleeve if you want to make your own then sewing skills will be needed. Firstly, if you’re updating an item that already has sleeves then remove the arms by unpicking the threads. I’d then recommend using a sleeve pattern which you can find online to create a new sleeve. To get the puffed sleeve look when sewing, you’ll want to create a few gathers. Once this has been done, sew the sleeve to your top and you have a top that screams high fashion!
Sometimes, changing an item that we have isn’t so drastic as changing its colour or creating new sleeves. Putting a scarf on your bag or adding a brooch to a jacket can update an outfit without needing to heavily alter it.
As for the rest of this season’s trends, they also include wearing metallic clothes, tassels and revisiting the little black dress. If you’re too busy to upcycle your current wardrobe then a good idea is to see if you’ve any clothes that you’ve previously put in storage. I know my attic is filled with clothes that I didn’t think I’d ever wear again, and they might just contain garments that work perfectly for this Autumn.
