Wardrobe Ethnography
What do our clothes say about us?
It has come to my attention that I have close to 1000 articles of clothing, excluding shoes and bags. Which came as a shock to me. I mean I know I have a lot. But not this MUCH.
This surprising discovery was borne out of a class I’m taking on sustainability in fashion and part of our homework was a wardrobe ethnography.
A wardrobe what?
Well, ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures1. Based on the homework brief, “Wardrobe ethnography is the study of people’s accumulated clothing in their wardrobe which sheds light on their identity, personality, customs, ideas and habits.”
The goal was to help us look deeper into our own consumption habits, to unpack our own experience in shopping for clothes.
Let’s unpack
Let me tell you, this simple exercise was such an eye opener, I recommend doing the same in your spare time. Note the guide questions to help in your own reflection.
Count the number of items in your wardrobe.
I have close to 1000 pieces in my wardrobe. I was horrified at the number when I started counting. Didn't realize I accumulated this much stuff considering I have given away a lot of pieces.
Can you identify which items you wear the most?I wear jeans the most, they're the staples that I often go back to. I tend to update my denim regularly, so I have about 30 pairs on rotation.
How many items per year do you add and remove?I probably add about 2 items a month to my wardrobe - either clothes or shoes. So that’s about 24 items a year. Except for underwear, I don’t really dispose of anything. My daughter wears stuff from my closet so while these have been technically handed down to her, these items are still within the household.
What is the most expensive item in your wardrobe?An Hermès Kelly
Which items hold the most emotional value and why?I am not attached to my stuff I would say I feel emotional about them, but I have decluttered to a point that all of them spark joy. So I do not have any plans of letting go of any one piece at this point. But I do intend to wear all of them forever, so there's that.
Another class I am taking tasked me to look at the oldest and newest items in my closet and to reflect on them in the context of circularity:
Oldest: This is a vintage Dolce & Gabbana piece from the late 90s/early 2000s. It is made in Italy out of cotton poplin with an almost garish print that has grown on me. I suppose back in the 1990s, designer shirts weren’t made in sweatshops, so my guess is this is ethically made. My Mom’s friend bought it in Maui, hence the tropical baroque feel. An avid thrifter, she must have purchased this from a thrift shop. It is on the repair and maintenance phase of the Circular Product Life Cycle and because it was made well and of such good quality fabric, it hardly needs any maintenance. Knowing what I know now about the D&G designers though, and their values, it’s not a brand I would support now.
But since I’ve had this top for decades, and it still sparks joy, I’m keeping it. In terms of sustainability and circularity, this top seems to tick all the boxes. Except I am not sure if the cotton that made the fabric was ethically sourced. Hopefully they were.
Newest: I recently bought these 90s comfy shorts online from shopbop.com. It is by RE/DONE, a brand with a commitment to mindful production, sustainability and circular fashion.
The materials come from old denims or from factories that have certifications and consciously try to minimize their strain on the environment. More than 50% of their sales volume are from upcycled or recycled materials.
RE/DONE offers FREE REPAIRS for life in Levi’s products and replacements for original items within 1 year of purchase date if damaged. They also have a Re/Sell program - a rehoming program for preowned RE/DONEs. Sellers get 80% of their selling price in store credit. 5% of Re/Done sales are donated to Sheltersuit, a non-profit using upcycling to create shelters, outerwear and sleeping bags for those displaced from their homes. The brand is still in its growth phase and I would like to see them grow further and revolutionize the way denim is made. From a sustainability and circularity perspective, this piece ticks all the boxes.
I came across all of the above just a few minutes of looking up the brand’s sustainability practices. In fact, if we really want to learn how our stuff are designed and manufactured, it’s really just a few clicks away. If the brand you are interested in is not as transparent with their practices, it will also show up, because you can’t find anything about their processes.
The purpose of these exercises is to take the time to expose ourselves to the truths of our consumerism, and hopefully spur us to make changes, not only for a better wardrobe but also a better world.
What did I discover about myself?
On identity, personality, customs, ideas and habits:
Obviously, I shop too much. Since this exercise, I have not bought anything. I realized I can go three years without repeating anything. There is truth to the statistic that most women wear only 20% of their wardrobe. Even in our closets, the Pareto principle holds.
Most of my clothes I accumulated in the last 15 years. Around the time I moved to the US. The sample sales in Manhattan and the constant exposure to what’s new each market season definitely jumpstarted the process. My behavior exhibits a craving for newness and boredom from older styles. But that also stems from the fact that I have always enjoyed dressing up and expressing myself through clothes. Wearing what’s new before everyone else catches on has always been a thrill. So I do get a kick out of that. Now it’s kicking me in the ass.
To be fair, I did choose a lot of classic pieces, and they do tend to go back in fashion, so the stuff I did end up keeping after my KonMari purge are still bringing joy to this day. But still, 1000 pieces are a lot. Subconsciously, I would say I am practical with a frivolous streak. Or is the other way around?
When I am planning for a trip, I always plan my outfits and I am not kidding when I tell you that when I see an outfit I love on Pinterest or Instagram, 99% of the time, I already have it in my closet. Which reinforces the fact that I really have no excuse to add more items to my closet.
Most of my clothes, I bought online, from our store, or during trips abroad. This awareness made me unsubscribe to a lot of emails. It also made me (and my partners too!) be mindful of what we order for the store. Because sometimes, we end up feeling sorry for what’s left behind from a season’s collection, we bring them home. Haha. When traveling, I go to stores I do not have access to back home, and look for things to buy. Which opens me up to too many possibilities. Basically, whatever catches my eye is fair game. Dangerous!
Let’s go deeper
Next on my to-do list is to go deeper:
“Note which year you purchased each item, then group them by date order and write down a timeline of how many pieces you bought each year. This will give you a picture of how your fashion purchasing habits have changed over time.”
With close to 1000 pieces to work with, wish me luck!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnography