Robin Greenfield’s recent Facebook post, showing his all-natural, handmade-by-him capsule wardrobe of 18 pieces, drew the expected ooohs and ahhhs from many of us who have been following him for years.
Although my approach is different, I respect Rob’s approach, and admire the well-thought-out background information that he supplies for all of his choices. If you want detailed FAQs about an eco lifestyle, I recommend you bookmark Rob’s website.
An interesting plot-twist happened when someone shared Rob’s post in the Non-Consumer Advocate (a private FB group).
Most of the people commenting on the shared post were not previously familiar with Rob and his work. Accordingly, people were understandably put off by what came across to them as a request for some internet stranger to hand-knit a sweater for him for free.
What he was saying, though, is that he could not afford to pay the $500 that a hand-knit sweater would cost (he already has the yarn), but that he is willing to barter services.
When he posted that on his own page, the audience mostly understood the background. But when it was shared in a group, a bunch of strangers were unfamiliar with the background.
In response to the post on his own page, he actually got several offers to knit a sweater for free. Many people felt that he had contributed greatly to their own well-being as well as to the planet, so for these people, the request did not feel out of line.
In the NCA group, on the other hand, the post came across to many as indicating entitlement and privilege.
I can certainly see both sides of this. $500 is actually a very conservative estimate, given that many experienced knitters said a sweater would take them 60 hours to make. But, given that a lot of us are engaged in an ongoing effort to weave a parallel economy that is independent of the consumers money economy, there is an invitation to consider bartering.
A couple of people provided a live demo of this, when one person says they would be glad to trade some of their fresh eggs and other farm produce for a handmade item that another person produced. The fact that this felt OK and fair to both people is an indicator that we are seeing the inherent value of our work, independent of the monetary prices defined by the capitalist/consumerist financial economy.
I have no doubt that Rob will get his sweater, and that he will provide great value in exchange one way or the other.
My personal preference would be to find a wool sweater at a secondhand shop, or, as so often happens, a sweater that is literally being thrown away. But Rob has his carefully-thought-out reasons for pursuing an all-handmade wardrobe.
My personal wardrobe approach, in general, is to look to the waste stream first. Thrift stores, spoils of decluttering gigs, and so on. Also, for me, clothing made of synthetic fabrics that will not break down as easily in landfill are the top choice. Since clothes made of synthetic fiber will not as easily break down in landfill, I feel that we do the planet a service by wearing these clothes down to rags. (Literally! As I have often mentioned, as my clothing wears out, I down-cycle it into a “cascading hierarchy of household rags”). That said, I fully understand the attraction of natural fibers.
So vast is the waste-stream of clothing, that a person could potentially have a vast wardrobe even just doing waste-stream diversion, possibly embellished with their own sewing and embroidery skills. Thus even the person who craves a lot of variety and novelty in their wardrobe can indulge their craving in a low-footprint way.
Another topic that came up when Rob’s post got shared in the NCA group was the idea that such a wardrobe made a person look homeless, and would never fly in the corporate work culture.
But, it’s easy to tailor and embellish clothing so that it looks appropriate for different settings. And, some rather famous personages been known for basically wearing the same clothes every day — a uniform, in essence.
Many people have pointed out over the years that Rob can afford to live his unusual lifestyle because he doesn’t have a family to support or whatever. Rob makes no bones about that; he has written extensively acknowledging his privilege.
And, as I see it, it’s precisely those of us who can afford to live an alternative life (those of us who don’t have a “job” to lose; who work at the margins; or who might have a little financial leeway etc.) who need to be doing so and showing the way. As more of us outliers are living our our “alternative” lifestyles and sharing our tips and successes, we pave the way to make it easier and more feasible for others to do so.
Right now, many people would suffer financially — and also be socially ostracized — for trying to wear a very limited handmade capsule wardrobe to work. But, norms change over time, and we can help shift the norms.
Here are some ways I’ve noticed, most of which I have tried myself, of making a lower-footprint wardrobe.
• Very limited number of high-end basic pieces. Advantage: looks classy. Disadvantage: expensive.
• Very limited number of basic pieces, bargain-brand version. Advantage: looks classy but for less money. Disadvantage: wears out quickly; also fast fashion is bad for the planet.
• Very limited number of basic pieces, thrift-shop or landfill diversion diversion. Advantage: earth friendly, and inexpensive or free. Disadvantage: harder to serendipitously find pieces that go together.
• This one is for people who really can’t stand to have a limited wardrobe. For these folks I would recommend having as many clothes & shoes as you want, but mostly rescue them from the waste stream, and the rest you get from thrift shops. Advantage: free or cheap, and much more planet friendly than having a huge wardrobe of newly store-bought closed. Disadvantage: having a huge wardrobe is an organizational burden, and you will end up with clothes that are forgotten or damaged or moldy from being crammed in closets and such. One way to mitigate this downfall is to periodically sift through your wardrobe and allow things you’re not using to flow back into the thrift stream/waste stream as treasure for someone else to discover.
• Very limited number of basic pieces, accessorized with (for example) scarves and earrings. This is the approach I am taking for the past few years. Almost all of my wardrobe is now rescued from the waste stream, and I then do aftermarket things with needle and thread. And, I make a variety of scarves and have a good number of earrings. I have necklaces too but not as many necklaces.