It’s a season of celebration and we ourselves are excited to welcome in the Lunar New Year at the end of this month that invites us all to take advantage of a new cycle, set fresh goals, and look forward to making better changes.

And so, today, we want to guide you on how you can do that through fashion and the clothes you choose to introduce to your wardrobe, specifically how being more thoughtful of what looks you choose to wear during this festive time can positively impact our planet.

It’s the Year of the Snake

Before we get into our tips, let’s begin with what this Lunar New Year represents and how it encourages embracing better.

The snake itself is a symbol of transformation. Within its natural life cycle, snakes shed their old skin making way for something new, not only once but over and over again throughout their lifetimes as they grow and age. It’s an important lesson for us to always embrace change, to never shy away from taking on a new mindset or introducing new practices into our lives no matter where you might be in your journey, because there’s no such thing as starting too late!

The snake is also a symbol of wisdom, an encouragement to educate ourselves and constantly learn. In our world where we have become more and more aware of how human action affects our planet, specifically how fast fashion brands operate versus sustainable clothing brands, it’s become obvious that we need to change the way we approach our clothing, and invest in sustainable initiatives and businesses.

And with both these things in mind, this LNY lends an opportunity for us to shed old, unsustainable fashion habits and, instead, bring green heart to our wardrobes.

What does timeless style have to do with it?

With every festive celebration, there’s the urge to buy a new look to mark the occasion. So, of course, this season, you may be on the lookout for Chinese New Year clothes, and though our first tip will always be to look to the closet you already have for an outfit, there are definitely ways to ensure buying new means also choosing sustainably.

The main way to do so is to choose timeless styles and silhouettes because timeless equals season-less and classic - so how does this benefit you and support a conscious lifestyle?

1.A classic silhouette won’t be adhering to current trends/micro-trends which means it’ll, most likely, always be in style - and we don’t just mean in terms of what others may deem fashionable, but also fit in seamlessly with your own wardrobe.

2.Since a timeless style is more likely to be compatible with your current wardrobe, there would also be more chances you can mix-and-match it to give it a fresh look whenever you put it on - while also keeping to your unique style!

3.Timeless silhouettes are more versatile than specific Chinese New Year attire so, they are more likely to be easily styled for your everyday - again, giving it more chances to be worn throughout every season and be styled for your workwear outfits, daily errand outfits, dinner date outfits and more.

4.We also urge that when you’re looking for your LNY look, to choose from sustainable or organic clothes brands as they will often prioritise timeless designs due to the above reasons. They will also opt to craft with durable fabrics made to last so that your pieces stay with you for years to come.

How does choosing timeless positively impact our planet?

Buying new for every celebration or occasion quickly becomes an unsustainable habit, especially if the styles you’re buying are a product of the specific trends of the season.

What this ultimately results in is more waste as many quickly realise their specific celebratory look no longer seems suitable to wear for any other occasion, or is even that suitable for everyday wear.

To put this into perspective, each year, the average US consumer throws away about 82 pounds (approx. 37 kgs) of clothing annually, adding up to about 11 million tonnes of textile waste being generated out of the U.S. alone - it’s estimated that about 92 million tonnes of waste is created worldwide!

When it comes to holiday specific clothing, a study by Oxfam found that in the UK, sequinned items and jumpers bought for the Christmas season are large culprits in creating holiday waste, often worn only a handful of times, before being thrown away – the UK discards approx. 1.7 million sequinned items annually.

Moreover, clothing designed to fit a specific micro-trend and occasion will often be crafted as quickly and cheaply as possible resulting in more synthetic fabrics being utilised as well as faster production methods that rely on heavy machinery.

Why are these practices a concern? Firstly, synthetic fabrics release microplastics that often end up in our oceans, negatively affecting marine ecosystems:

“Around 50% of our clothing is made from plastic and up to 700,000 fibres can come off our synthetic clothes in a typical wash. As a result, if the fashion industry continues as it is, between the years 2015 and 2050, 22 million tonnes of microfibres will enter our oceans.” - Source

Secondly, fast fashion is responsible for around 1.2 billion tonnes of carbon emissions every year, and is known as one of the highest polluting industries on our planet - and much of the cause is due to the rapid rate fast fashion creates clothing.

With all this in mind, by choosing timeless, classic, season-less clothing from slow, thoughtful fashion brands, we give ourselves a chance to lessen all these negative impacts.

So, this Lunar New Year, while you prepare to celebrate a new cycle and a new you, choose the greener way and live more sustainably through your fashion!