The Siren's Call

Flashback Summer: 1940s Pinafore Skirt and blouse

Flashback Summer: 1940s Pinafore Skirt and blouse

When I was a super cool early high schooler, my best friend and I would go to the mall every Saturday morning and try on clothes.  Luckily, our parents did not spoil us and we often did not have money to buy all the things we tried on, but we enjoyed it nonetheless.  It was fun to try on all the clothes and splurge every once in a while on some random piece.

Since then, I started wearing vintage, sewing, etc., and the mall no longer holds the same appeal for me.  In fact, I rarely go, and when I do it's usually for shoes, menswear for Jacob, or boba tea.  This past week Jacob and I ventured there to upgrade our cell phones, and it had a strange feeling.

Flashback Summer: 1940s Pinafore Skirt and blouse

I suddenly felt a pressure to buy all the things. It was a weird mix of my sewist side saying, "Eeew, this clothing feels like crap and stretches too much," and my instant gratification side saying, "But you don't have to put any work into it!  Just slide the card and you can have new, fun stuff!"

Since I hadn't been to the mall in a while, it was a bit of a shock, but I did recall that being one of the reasons I stopped going to the mall so frequently.  There are so many advertisements and just a general feeling of "Get more now" that I don't particularly like. It's all... too fast, too cheap to me now.  When I was younger I hated how quickly clothing cycled through stores because a piece would be gone before I could save up for it.  The more I learn and look at fast fashion, the less I like it.  There I was walking through the mall in a 1940s skirt, a me-made blouse, and 70s/80s shoes handed down to me by a friend, feeling fly and yet... the fast fashion still called like a siren!

Flashback Summer: 1940s Pinafore Skirt and blouse

Strangely, it still has that tiny bit of appeal of instant reward.  Now I can counter that appeal with the real facts of fashion and prevent myself from buying things impulsively.  I know I don't necessarily need more things to make a good wardrobe; I need the right things.  I'm making/buying things I really love, as proven by the fact that you saw this same blouse in my last post, too!  Despite what the typical blogging world may show... We, too, wear garments more than once, especially ones we love!

Flashback Summer: 1940s Pinafore Skirt and blouse

Flashback Summer: 1940s Pinafore Skirt and blouse

I'm not trying to make a specific point in this post.  I just observed how, even after years of "slow" and vintage fashion and education about clothing production, there's still an allure to the quick, easy, and cheap.

If you are a proponent of slower fashion, have you still felt this "siren's call" of fast fashion?  Has your education about clothing production changed your shopping habits, or perhaps motivated your to start moving toward a different kind of wardrobe?

18 comments

  1. Funny, I was just at the mall for the first time in a bit this week, and I had the exact same feeling! I wasn't really sure what conclusions to draw from the experience, truth be told...Love the suspendered skirt, though! :D

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  2. ha, bloggers wear clothes more than one time :)) not sure why I find this so funny and insightful, good post!

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  3. I feel that "call" often. Like oohh that's a nice dress and a good buy. However, I try hard not to given in to that urge. Mostly because I find the fit and style of the clothes I make are so much better. Recently, I've been snapping shots of clothes in the store, then going home to see if I have fabric/pattern that is close and try to make it myself.

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    1. That's a great idea! Take inspiration, then make a BETTER version! I always have to remind myself that the fit of clothes I see in stores are very, very unlikely to work for me. I'm nearly always disappointed, so I should just skip that and continue making my own!

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  4. I love this suspender skirt of yours! A few years ago I went to West Edmonton Mall for a weekend, two weeks before Christmas. I was just starting on my ethical fashion "journey" at the time, and had become aware of the truth behind fast fashion. Seeing the excess, and rampant consumerism and the advertisements everywhere I looked telling me that we need "more, more, more" was so sickening after a while. That was a few years ago, and I still haven't gone back to that mall. I still feel that "siren's call" sometimes, but then I remember WHY I have chosen to live/dress the way I do, and it helps. The urge is still there, but my reasoning tells me to walk away! Thanks for sharing, as it is encouraging to hear that other people both struggle with, and resist, the urge too :)
    The Artyologist

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    1. Remembering the why is very important! I'm glad you're encouraged.

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  5. I rarely see anything I like in RTW unless it's a t-shirt or sweater but I have to admit, I do like to shop. I haven't been to a mall in years. My mom and I used to love to spend all day at a mall but now they're just sad. The last mall I went to was the Mall of America and even that didn't impress me much. I thought, "It's just 400 stores full of ugly clothes."

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  6. I love when blogger wear the same outfit more than once. It is fun to see how they refashion something or how they can wear the exact same outfit after a year, and seeing how other things have changed (their hair, personal styling of accessories, etc)

    I try and have a slow fashion mentality but I do get suckered with fast fashion. Most it is fueled by price. I get more mad if I spend more money on something that isn't "perfect" than if I bought a $5 shirt on sale that is crummy. Most of the time they get worked into my at home clothing for wearing around the house. I'm trying to get back into sewing because I am pregnant and the clothing selection is.... awful. No structure! And if there is, the price rises REALLY fast, and from reading reviews, quality does not go up. So it should be interesting.

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    1. Well good! I'm glad to hear that. I think being able to re-style something to look different is a skill in and of itself, so it's nice that you think so, too!

      I've heard that about maternity clothes from some other pregnant friends. Hopefully you can sew up some good options for yourself!

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  7. Wonderful post, Emileigh. I very rarely go to the mall either (in part because the one in our town is so small, it's little more than a grocery store, dollar store, and The Bay department store) and when I do, I rarely buy much in the way of fashions, though do get a lot of my earrings from Claire's, as they have nickel-free options that I can safely wear.

    Great outfit! I had to smile over it, because, I swear, I wore a very similar look this past Saturday, which I'll be blogging about in a couple of weeks.

    Thank you for this excellent and insightful post.

    xoxo ♥ Jessica

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  8. It's a really interesting thing to think about. When I first returned to the big shopping centres after getting into ethical fashion, it just made me feel really sick, but recently I went again and was really tempted. What I mostly do to satisfy my desires for the thrill of the quick and cheap buy is go op shopping (thrift). It feeds the beast for a while!

    I love this skirt of yours and I would be happy to see it appear in many more outfits in the future!

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    1. Yep, that's what happened with me too! I think I'm just getting worn down with trying to find/make some items in my wardrobe that haven't been successful ventures... and malls just seem so easy.

      And thank you very much! I think I'll be wearing it more, so that's good to hear!

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  9. This outfit is more then adorable! Love ot from hat ... haha, no, head to toe!

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  10. I'm visiting family at the moment and definitely notice how disappointed my mum and sister seem to be when I don't want to buy (or try on) anything while they peruse the local mall. Somehow when I started dressing more vintage the siren call mostly lost its effect on me. All the dresses seem to be the wrong length and style for me. Somehow scarves and shoes never loose their appeal though!

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    1. So true!!! They just don't seem quite right.

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  11. I can make my own clothes, but I like voluminous skirts on dresses and that works out pricey, cheaper than buying an equivalent, yes, but even so. I recently was treated to eight repro sale dresses and didn't know what to do with myself having ready to wear dresses! So much choice!

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