Danielle Cosentino used to give bags of unwanted clothes to her cousin every year.
While her cousin loved the free stuff, Cosentino grew tired of buying so much and wearing so little. She had become caught up in acquiring trends through fast fashion retailers only to realize she was locked in a loop of buying cheap clothes, having them degrade quickly, then having to buy more.
鈥淚鈥檝e always been told if you haven鈥檛 worn it in two years, then it should go,鈥� says Cosentino, a massage therapist and nutritionist. 鈥淎nd I felt like that would be half my closet.鈥�
A variety of studies and sources go even further than that, estimating that most of us don鈥檛 wear 70 to 80 per cent of our clothes.
Averaging out census data over several years, Canadian households spend roughly $300 a month on clothing, according to Statistics sa国际传媒. If most of that will be barely worn, our closets are essentially graveyards of disposable income.
Cosentino wanted to change. She hired Jaclyn Patterson, a personal wardrobe stylist and founder of鈥� Shopwise, an online sustainable fashion retailer that focuses on 鈥渟low fashion.鈥�
Cosentino began evolving her shopping habits and treating her wardrobe like a long-term investment, which she describes as a 鈥減sychological shift.鈥� Even packing for vacations is easier now, as she鈥檚 learned how to build outfits and re-wear classic pieces in different ways.
鈥淵es, you will spend more on sustainable brands, for obvious reasons, but they鈥檙e timeless pieces and they really take you the distance,鈥� Cosentino says. 鈥淚n the long run, you actually spend less. Now I see the value in spending on quality, well-made pieces that aren鈥檛 going to make it into a garbage bag.鈥�
As a stylist seeing clients in Toronto and remotely, Patterson has worked with celebrities, Olympians and executives, analyzing wardrobes and shifting shopping habits. She鈥檚 focused on helping people break out of the fast fashion cycle.
鈥淎nyone that鈥檚 considering going on this journey is making such an admirable act,鈥� Patterson says. 鈥淚n the world of social media nowadays, it can be really hard to be more intentional about our wardrobe.鈥�
For an exciting date, a one-time event, or life changes such as a new job, it鈥檚 鈥渘atural for us to want to wear something [new] that will give that dopamine hit,鈥� Patterson says.
鈥淏ut in my own research and experience as a stylist, I know that same feeling of dopamine also comes from when you recreate an outfit in your wardrobe that鈥檚 new, but using what you already have. So there鈥檚 an opportunity for all of us to 鈥榮hop our closet鈥� 鈥� rather than going to the store.鈥�
Ysabelle Mercier started her quality-over-quantity style at just 20 years old. Today, she鈥檚 known as YSHA Personal Stylist, a Montreal-based service for Quebec celebrities, TV production sets and high-profile personalities.
鈥淓ven when I was very young and didn鈥檛 have the means, being fascinated by fashion, I was determined to acquire this level of clothing,鈥� Mercier says. 鈥淪o, at a young age, I refrained from buying clothes for several months and waited for end-of-season sales. Ultimately, at the age of 46, I still have pieces that I bought at the age of 20.鈥�
Seasonal sales and high-quality thrift retailers such as Poshmark or Vinted are great opportunities to scale up your collection, Mercier says.
鈥淲hen you invest in quality clothing, you seldom part with them,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he pieces from fashion designers always stand the test of time because, in addition to having excellent craftsmanship, the style has been carefully considered.鈥�
For menswear, Patterson recommends 18 Waits and Outclass, while Mercier likes RW&CO and Robert Barakett 鈥� all offer dress shirts between $100 to $200.
For women鈥檚 professional attire, Mercier likes Iris Setlakwe and Judith & Charles, with blouses starting around $300-$400. Patterson favours Anne Mulaire, Ang Hill, Encircled, Devlyn Van Loon, Eve Gravel and Power of My People, all with pieces starting around $200.
For women鈥檚 evening wear, Patterson likes Birds of North America and Kaela Kay, with dresses starting around $300. For a glitzy event, she recommends The鈥疐itzroy, a dress rental service 鈥� gorgeous red-carpet gowns can be worn for less than $150.
鈥淎s we live in North America, coats are our specialty,鈥� Mercier points out. She likes Soia & Kyo, Mackage, Rudsak, Quartz Co., sa国际传媒 Goose, Adroit Atelier and Sentaler.
Patterson also likes Sentaler, but adds Wuxly, Bano eeMee, BEDI and SteMargScot to her favourites.
While these brands' brick-and-mortar stores are concentrated in sa国际传媒's biggest cities, they all offer products online.
Budgeting recommendations from Ratehub.ca suggests shoppers calculate the cost-per-wear for new purchases and aim to keep that below $3 per wear.
The intention here is not to justify buying a five-dollar T-shirt and wearing it twice before sending it to a landfill 鈥� environmental impact is among the leading arguments against fast fashion 鈥� but instead to calculate reasonable spending when committing to clothing long-term.
So if you find the perfect dress shirt or blouse that you鈥檒l wear to work once a week, but the shirt is $200, does it make sense?
At $3 per wear, you would need to wear the shirt 67 times to stay budget-friendly; wearing it once a week means committing to the shirt for less than a year and a half. If you truly love the piece and can wear it for years beyond that, it鈥檚 a great investment.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2023.
Nina Dragicevic, The Canadian Press
