“To many people think that a sustainable closet is something boring. People think that it limits you and that you have to say no to all the beauty and fun. But it’s really the other way around.”

Occupation:

Influencer, writer and speaker about Slow Fashion, Co-founder of Klimatklubben

What’s your relationship with clothes?

I always loved clothes. It has been a big interest since I was 15 years old. I really liked to make my own clothes at school, what we in Sweden call “Syslöjd” was actually my favourite topic in school. I have always been interested in fashion and clothes, but also fairness and sustainable development. To combine fashion and sustainable development felt very normal. That’s why I’m working with what I’m doing.

“We need to be able to make more money out of remake, second hand, rental and mending.”

How would you describe your style?

I like to wear clothes for a period of time. I got favourites for different seasons. I easily get tired. But I like high-waisted and skinny jeans. I normally wear basic pants and then I like to play with colours, patterns and materials. Also adding cardigans and so on. I like flower pants! My style is quite basic but normally I add a few pieces that comes with a twist. I don’t have a vintage style, my style it’s quite basic. I like to explore new things. I’m not trendy but curious. I like things to be comfortable too. Too often I think my style is very boring. I would like to find simple pieces, with more of an edge, just not black. That’s my mission for the upcoming future.

How would you describe your closet?

It’s quite big.. I just started to select a few daily pieces that I use on everyday basis and sort it out a little bit into seasons. Put things away that I don’t use the whole year around. The clothes in my closet has a lot of patterns and colours, with a few basics. Almost everything is second hand or from clothes swappings. Some things I bought a very long time ago. The funny stuff is second hand. A few new stuff are basics from more sustainable brands.

“A sustainable closet is about the garments lifespan. We should wear the stuff as much as possible. ”

What is a sustainable closet for you?

A sustainable closet is about the garments lifespan. We should wear the stuff as much as possible. The pieces that I know I will have for a long time, those things can be newly produced from sustainable brands. Those things that I only wear once or twice or just for a month, are second handed. If I feel like to explore, like yellow for a while or something similar, then it’s good to test with clothes from second hand you later on can hand in if you don’t like it. I would like to do more rental of those experimental clothes stuff. That’s my definition of a sustainable closet; look at the lifespan of a garment and combine that with your behaviour. You can buy new if you really going to use and wear it for a very long time. A Sustainable closet doesn’t have to be minimalistic. To only go for one pair of pants… that would kill my passion for clothes. So, I really want to send the message that a sustainable closet has to be based on your own behaviour. I’m that kind of person that like to try new things! And for all of us, second hand is a very good option. Find a way that makes you happy. According to your own behaviour.

“Self-confidence, the more confident you are about your style and your behaviour you will just not follow all the trends.”

Self-confidence, the more confident you are about your style and your behaviour you will just not follow all the trends. A lot of that is built on insecurity and it’s close to consumption. Like my skinny jeans, I always loved it, sometimes I’m trendy and sometimes I’m not. It doesn’t matter. Find your expression and stick to that.

What do you think about the fashion industry?

It’s really about the lifespan. We use stuff to short and we buy too much. There’s just too much fast consumption and we throw away too much. We need to produce less new stuff and we need to use the stuff we already have longer. Then there’s the waste.. There’s too many things but we also have the social problems such as bad working conditions and not fair salaries for textile workers. On so many levels there’s problems.

What do you believe needs to change?

“Fashion is about being creative.”

We need to produce less and we need to use the stuff that is already made. New stuff is too cheap. In general it’s too cheap. To many people can buy too much. It makes it too expensive to mend it or buy second hand. You always compare with prices of newly produced and that makes the problem bigger. We need to find ways to make money while changing business models. We need to be able to make more money out of remake, second hand, rental and mending. To build a better business, to do sustainable business. I’m sure it will happen in the future.

I can see that the big companies has to change their business models. They are seriously discussing about how to make money in a sustainable way. They know they can’t to business as usual, they know legalisation will come and they are seeking new ways. Rental should be an option instead of making new.

What can one do that seeks to create a more sustainable closet?

The easiest way is to buy less new stuff. It’s much easier than you think! We get too stuck thinking about brands, materials and so on when we talk about a sustainable closet. Just go for this one as a starter: buy less new stuff.

Second hand first hand.

Find new paths for your behaviour. Consumption is so much about behaviour. If you have bookmarks of fast fashion brands in your browser, switch to some nice second hand stores online instead. If you are used to throw away broken garments, try to mend it. Change your behaviour step by step, and find new ways of doing fashion and what you love!

People who are interested of fashion are driving the consumption, so for someone who’s less interested they probably don’t buy that much, and their footprint will be lower. Like my dad who doesn’t care how the clothes he buys is produced, but he uses his clothes for a very long time and he doesn’t buy many new things. That’s probably more sustainable. So for all of us that really enjoy fashion: we need to drive the change for sustainability, because now we are driving the consumption!

“People who are interested of fashion are driving the consumption, so for someone who’s less interested they probably don’t buy that much, and their footprint will be lower.”

To many people think that a sustainable closet is something boring. People think that it limits you and that you have to say no to all the beauty and fun. But it’s really the other way around. If you start to explore second hand, remake, clothes swaps, rental and so on, that’s way more creative than buying something new. That’s creative for real. Fashion is about being creative. When you see sustainability that way, it’s way much more fun! It must be fun and inspirational. It’s not less, is more..

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