Earlier this summer, as 35,000 people crowded into the Outside Festival in Civic Center Park in Denver to hear outdoor industry icon Emily Harrington talk about being a Girl Climber, to fast-freeze the ache out of a muscle group with targeted icing, or to try to figure out what musical category Lord Huron falls in while the indie folk-rock-country-surf band jammed in front of the Capitol building, freelance photographer Alyte Katilius was roaming around taking pictures of festivalgoers’ outfits and learning where they sourced them.
Katilius had a hunch: People like her, a Gen Zer in her 20s, a gig worker headed for medical school (on loans), and not exactly flush with spending money, turn to fast fashion for one-off festival outfits — or all their outfits. She wasn’t wrong: A recent report by ThredUp, the publicly traded online thrift and consignment store around $900 million, shows 1 in 3 Gen Zers “feel addicted” to buying fast fashion even though they say they know they are feeding a $1.7 trillion industry that uses forced labor and toxic materials to crank out cheaply made knockoffs of the latest styles.
And environmentally scary it is, say countless people studying the fast fashion phenomenon, including Patrik Frisk, CEO of a company called Reju that wants to take mixed-material, post-consumer textile waste and extract the polyester for use in high-grade polyester, minus microplastics and other nasty junk, for reintroduction into the textile supply chain.
The polyester used in around 70% of all clothing has problems — it’s made from fossil fuels, doesn’t biodegrade and releases microplastics when washed. But so does some of the 25% of conventionally grown cotton used in textiles globally, due to intensive pesticide use when growing it and the toxic chemicals used to finish it — it also sheds fibers. And textile waste in general is expected to jump from the 100 million tons produced annually now to 160 million tons by 2030, in part because of factory-to-consumer fast fashion purchases, Frisk says.
But at the Outside Festival, Katilius discovered something hopeful. She found that while, yes, most people are low-budget shoppers, not many were wearing fast-fashion pieces. Of the 11 people she spoke with, only two were wearing what would be considered fast fashion, while five were wearing almost entirely thrifted/secondhand clothing. “It could be that thrifting isn’t just a ‘cool’ or ‘trendy’ thing to do, but an actual solution to ethical, sustainable and economical fashion,” she said.
All photos by Alyte Katilius.
Ross Kullman, 30, of Westchester, Pennsylvania, poses for a portrait at the Outside Festival on May 31 in Denver. Kullman is wearing a Marine Layer set, green Adidas socks, borrowed green Adidas shoes and a borrowed Howler Brothers hat.
Although Kullman spent around $250 for the Marine Layer shorts and shirt, he denies being brand loyal or even particularly fashion-conscious. “Last year we went to Walmart to pick our outfits. We had rubber boots and a vest. It turned out to be awesome.”
When asked what goes into his decision-making as a fashion consumer, he said, “I’m kind of impulsive. If I see something I’m like ‘Oh, I would definitely wear that to a festival.’”
Lee Knight, left, and Leslie Herod pose for a portrait May 31, at the Outside Festival in Civic Center Park in Denver. Knight is wearing waterproof combat boots from Naglev, Darn Tough hunting socks, a belt from Arcade, chore shorts from Ripton, a basic black tank, a thrifted denim jacket, a rough stock straw hat from Tyler Harr, and a crystal from an artist in Austin, Texas. Herod is wearing an Urban Outfitters farmers market button-up, a canvas skirt from The Black Dog, a basic white shirt, gifted jewelry and Jeffrey Campbell boots.
While Herod looks for “wearable, breathable” clothing, Knight prioritizes “function and performance, comfort, budget and durability. I avoid anything trending.” Instead, Knight derives confidence from their own sense of style. “When you buy what you like, articles in your wardrobe often fit together in unique ways, and then you feel good.”
Although Knight wouldn’t describe themself as brand loyal, they do seem brand aware. “I care about brands in terms of how they treat BIPOC folks and the queer community,” Knight said.
Carly Nixon, 32, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, poses for a portrait in an REI hammock bubble in Civic Center Park. Nixon is wearing a green and white plaid set from Princess Polly, a hat she borrowed from her friend Josh, white Converse sneakers, silver necklaces from Cali Tiger and a stone necklace she bought from a small shop in Bend, Oregon, while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. Nixon is carrying a purple, plush totem named Bubbles. Its purpose is to be waved above her head so that her friends may more easily find her in a crowd.
Nixon practices dopamine dressing. “It means dressing in clothes that boost your dopamine. That give you joy,” she said with a bright smile.
“Princess Polly is probably a fast fashion brand,” Nixon admitted. “But I’m getting a lot of use out of it. I bought the set four years ago, before I knew what fast fashion was.” Since then, Nixon’s shopping habits have shifted. She now prefers to invest in higher quality pieces that will last, especially when selecting jewelry. “Consumption is a thing to be conscious of,” she says.
Skaiste Stundziaite, 30, of Chicago, Illinois, poses for a portrait in front of the entrance to the Outside Festival in Denver.
Stundziaite wears a flower corset and shorts from Club Exx, sunglasses from Whole Foods, Dr. Martens sandals (not shown) and a gifted necklace purchased on 16th Street in Denver.
“I’m going to a lot of concerts this year, so I bought a lot of tops. I figured, ‘Oh, Outdoor Fest,’ so I picked the floral top and curated the rest around that piece,” says Stundziaite.
Stundziaite is a budget-conscious shopper. “I’d love to (buy sustainable) but I just can’t. Especially trying to live alone. Paying rent is expensive,” she said.
“It’s definitely easy to get something you’re only going to wear for one show and then throw it away,” Stundziaite added, commenting on the prevalence of fast fashion in rave culture. “I try to recycle some clothes for shows.”
Paola Silva, 20, left, of Kansas City, Kansas, poses for a portrait with her partner, Daniel Garcia, 26, of Kansas City, Missouri, between vendors’ tents outside the Denver Public Library. Silva is wearing Daniel’s father’s shirt, a gifted shawl, a thrifted tank top, a hat from Adelante Thrift, a community thrift store, pants from Mexico, shoes from Viva Fashion and necklaces made of bones and crystals. “I like to say they’re the collected teeth of my enemies,” Silva jokes.
Garcia is wearing pants and a shirt from Troost39, a thrift store in Kansas City committed to supporting their community, a shawl from Roots Oasis in St. Louis that belongs to Paola, a hat and cross necklace from New Mexico, a found-glass necklace, beaded jewelry from Zacatecas, Mexico, and a clay necklace made for him by Paola.
Silva and Garcia are artists. They collect individual pieces over time with an added regard for budget. “What motivates me? Clothes that make me feel authentic and comfortable with my physical and emotional body,” Garcia said. “I do like looking for small, golden nuggets in thrift stores. It’s economical and has that old, vintage look.”
“Being conscious of the marketplace and where we seek out the way we express ourselves and present ourselves is important,” Silva explained. She hopes to move forward with more natural fibers instead of polyester and acrylics and, one day, make her own clothes.
Angie Dekruif, 29, of Denver, poses for a portrait on the balustrades overlooking Civic Center Park.
Dekruif is wearing a red set from ThredUp, red Converse shoes and red sunglasses from a store in Boulder.
As a fashion consumer, Dekruif prioritizes budget and sustainability while bringing her vision to life. “It’s my first festival of the season and I thought the red was bright and vibrant for (bands Khruangbin and Sylvan Esso),” she explained. Although she had to “really dig on the website” to find the outfit she wanted, she was able to purchase the set for $9.
“There’s so much fast fashion that’s going around now. I mean, I get it, people can’t really afford anything else,” she said. But in her experience, online thrift stores like ThredUp and Poshmark are an economical, sustainable alternative. The tradeoff is that it takes longer to find cute pieces to fulfill her vision.
Reva Green, 30, of Denver, moves to show the detail of her metal and fringe top near Voorheis Memorial in Civic Center park. Green is wearing a handmade overlay purchased second-hand from Poshmark, a tank top from Urban Outfitters, vintage pants purchased in Wisconsin 10 years ago, llama pins purchased from a vendor at Outside Festival, Yesglasses and a necklace from For Good and Mad, a jewelry artist she found on Instagram.
“I try my best to buy second hand or vintage. I love vintage stores and Goodwill shopping and sidewalk sales. I found one on the way here and bought a really cool leather jacket,” she said. “I try not to get much from Shein or anything like that. … I actually made a pact for myself when I turned 30 that I would only buy second hand.” Green claims she has done well maintaining her pledge.
Sophie Goodwin, 25, left, of Sarasota, Florida, poses for a portrait with her best friend, Elise Trankina, 25, of Atlanta, Georgia, in front of the Outside Festival concert stage. Goodwin wears Birkenstock shoes, flowy pants from Ordinary Selenophile, a basic tank, a shrug she crocheted herself, a wooden third eye pinecone necklace purchased at Okeechobee Music Festival, a choker necklace from Sayulita, Mexico, and mismatched earrings that were gifted and bought from Etsy. Trankina is wearing Birkenstock shoes, a thrifted dragonfly skirt, a bandeau she borrowed from her roommate, a shawl she crocheted herself the previous night, a similar wooden third eye pinecone necklace, also purchased at Okeechobee Music Festival, and mismatched earrings from a farmers market.
“We like to dress like hippies and fairies. We like to wear flowy and comfy things,” Goodwin said of her and Trankina’s style. “We thrift, we crochet a lot, we support individual sellers on Instagram, or Etsy, or sellers at festivals.”
The pair have been best friends since college and recently moved to Denver together. The night before the festival, they both crocheted their own shawls. “We made the shrugs, then we made the outfits around the shrugs,” explained Goodwin.
“It’s fun to make art and get to wear it and feel like a cute little fairy,” Trankina added. When she’s not making her own clothing, Trankina likes to support small businesses. “As a fashion consumer I like to thrift, I find the best pieces when I’m doing that, or the most unique pieces. I don’t go to the mall too much.” She said she also finds clothing by following designers on Instagram.
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