The fashion industry’s carbon footprint is enormous and has grown even more apparent with the rapid rise of fast fashion over the past few years. It now accounts for more carbon emissions globally than those emitted by all international flights and maritime shipping combined. In addition, approximately 10 million tons of clothes are sent to landfills every year. Second Hand September, a campaign introduced by Oxfam in 2019, has inspired thousands of people in the UK to begin thinking more sustainably by buying only second-hand clothes during the month of September. 

This year, I’ve decided to try taking Second Hand September one step further. I’m challenging myself to wear only second-hand clothing for the entire month! 

I’m going to follow the same rules as I did for last November’s “six Items or less challenge”. Underwear, socks, and pyjamas will not be included. I always purchase those items new. Outerwear, footwear, and accessories will also be exempt. Though I do have second-hand items in each of those categories and will try to make good use of them throughout the month, I won’t restrict myself only to those. 

Though my closet contains many more than six second-hand items, I suspect that this challenge might actually be the more difficult of the two. In selecting six items to wear for 30 days, I was able to be very intentional about choosing a colour palette that could easily be mixed and matched to create many different looks, pieces that could be dressed up or down, and pieces that worked well for layering. This time, I find myself working with a much more random mix of items. Most of those are quite casual and I have at least two events this month, including a concert tomorrow evening, that might require a bit of polish. I’ll also have church every Sunday. September is a shoulder season here in Canada and the weather throughout the month will likely range from hot and dry to chilly and wet. To make this work, I’ll likely be pulling second-hand pieces from both my summer and winter wardrobes.   

Have I bitten off more than I can chew? Only time will tell. Throughout the month, I’ll be sharing my experience and showing you some of the outfits that I create with my Second Hand September wardrobe, so stay tuned! 

To start things off, here’s what I wore yesterday for the first day of the challenge. I think it has a coastal grandmother feel to it. 

I’ve had the white frayed hem jeans for three years. They first appeared on the blog here. Thankfully, the archaic “don’t wear white after Labour Day” rule has long been abandoned and while I don’t wear these jeans in the depth of our Canadian winter, I’ll certainly continue wearing them throughout September. The Clarks sandals were a lucky find earlier this summer and the loose and comfortable light grey animal print tee is a new-to-me acquisition. Thanks to regular sales at our local thrift stores, the entire outfit, cost me less than $10!

In closing, I would be remiss not to acknowledge those of you who responded to last week’s post asking for your input about what you’d like to see on the blog. I will be working at incorporating some of your ideas into future posts.