Shop Your Wardrobe for Summer 2020
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This post was inspired by a lovely lady on Instagram who I follow because she posts lots of fabulous second-hand clothing. I love shopping for second-hand clothes and I’d say around 80% of my wardrobe now consists of items I’ve purchased either from charity shops or Depop and Vinted. While I’m not usually one for following fashion, shop your own wardrobe to find trendy, catwalk-inspired outfits sounded like a fun way to spend an afternoon. Oh and of course, shopping your own wardrobe is totally free!
Shop Your Wardrobe for Summer 2020
Buying second-hand clothes is something I’ve talked about quite a bit on this on the blog. Last year I took part in second hand September, a pledge to only buy second-hand clothing for 30 days in the hope it would encourage others to do the same. I also wrote a post in February looking at my favourite second-hand buys for that month and I’ve talked about buying second-hand baby clothes and Prom Dresses too.
The fashion industry is one of the worlds biggest polluters. From the fact it takes 2000 gallons of water to dye one pair of jeans to learning a rubbish truck full of textiles being either landfilled or burned every single second, fashion has a huge impact on the environment. And that’s before getting into carbon emissions from the transportation of textiles too.
Big Fashion brands continually encourage us to buy new clothes, changing looks with each season. While high-end fashion labels are trying to be more sustainable, their pieces wouldn’t necessarily be an affordable option for the average person on the street. While I do think saving up for good quality, classic pieces that won’t go out of fashion is a brilliant idea, it doesn’t help when you simply want a few bits to brighten up your summer wardrobe.
So, shopping from what you already have could be the way to go. When taking a browse through the fashion trends for this summer, I was actually surprised how many of them I had lurking in my wardrobe – especially as someone who tends to stick to quite a simple skinny jeans and nice jumper look most of the time.
I think that’s the thing with fashion – it goes around in circles. A great example of this is Thrifty Londoner on Instagram – she often posts pictures of herself wearing items that belonged to her mum in the seventies and eighties and she looks fab. Everything, it seems, comes back into fashion eventually.
Fashions Trends for Summer 2020
I looked at several different websites to come up with a simple round-up of what is considered trendy for summer 2020. These included Vogue, Glamour, Cosmo, and TrendSpotter. I am definitely not a Fashion blogger so just went with the trends that I thought came up most often while browsing.
- Trench Coats
- Puffed Sleeves
- Jungle Prints
- Neon Colours
- Chunky Boots with Floral Dresses
- Double Denim / Denim Jumpsuits
- Power Prints
- Cutouts
- Sheer / See-through
- Floaty white dresses
Shop Your Wardrobe
The first trend on the list I was excited to see was Jungle Prints. I have a jungle print top that I absolutely love and I feel like this gives me the excuse to wear it even more this summer. I bought it from a charity shop two years ago and I think it cost around £4.
Whilst looking through my wardrobe, I also found a second jungle print top I had forgotten about and haven’t actually worn yet. Originally from Primark, it was bought second hand for £2.50.
One summer 2020 trend I was surprised about was denim, in various forms. Denim Jumpsuits, Denim Jeans, Denim Shorts, Double Denim, Bootcut Jeans – the list goes on. It surprised me, not because I don’t like denim but because it’s one of those things most of us already own. This makes it a great fashion trend for shopping from your own wardrobe and finding second-hand pieces on places like Depop and Vinted.
While searching through my own wardrobe I found this lovely denim shirt. I bought it when I was pregnant with my daughter as I had another denim shirt I lived in and I must confess I’ve never worn it. So, it’ double denim for me this summer!
Another trend that came up a few times for this summer is Neons. Now, this is one thing I definitely wouldn’t usually go for. But, I do have this extremely bright yellow jumper which I love. Last time I wore it was paired with my only other neon item, neon pink shoes.
What I learned from Shop Your Wardrobe
While I would always try to avoid buying items just because they are ‘in fashion’ unless it was something I really loved, it was interesting to see what I could ‘shop’ from what I already had in my wardrobe. I’m not someone that would ever go for a capsule wardrobe – I like having a good choice of clothes and with a toddler, there are days I’ve changed both mine and her clothes twice before lunch.
When it comes to fashion I think it’s all about finding a balance – between having clothes that feel trendy and current, teaming them with classic pieces and making sustainable choices when it comes to shopping. Buying second-hand – whether that’s from a charity shop or eBay is a great way to do this. If second-hand isn’t your thing there are brands that are making sustainable choices when it comes to their production methods so it might be worth seeking these out.
In turn, shopping second-hand can also save you lots of cash.
Related Post – Styling Clothes In Autumn – Autumn Fashion Tips
Another way to make your fashion choices more sustainable is by being more aware of what happens to your clothes when you are done with them. Think of the impact we could have on the environment if we all wore each piece of clothing once more. Or twice more. It would be huge.
Responsibly disposing of clothing is important too – here are my go-tos for getting rid of clothes.
- First I’ll try and sell anything in good condition or that’s new with tags that I won’t wear (I’m not immune to regretting some purchases) or that no longer fit.
- Secondly, anything that doesn’t sell is given to friends or the charity shop.
- Next, I’ll repurpose anything I can such as turning old T-shirts (that weren’t in good condition) into duster or dish clothes.
- The final option is to recycle using clothes banks or the local waste collection
I really hope this post has inspired you to shop from your own wardrobe and take a closer look at what you already have. I’m not a particularly nifty seamstress, but I am sure that those who are could also adapt plenty of items they already own to something more fashionable for this season. On average, most women only wear each item in their wardrobe seven times – so anything that encourages more wear, such as ‘shop your own wardrobe is a brilliant idea.
