#3 “Fast Fashion, Fast Fade: Why We Need to Slow Down”
PODCAST TRANSCRIPT
HOST (Ashley): Welcome back, beloved listeners, to Reclaiming the Threads — a podcast where we stitch together stories of soul, sustainability, and style.
From House of Tikkun, in a small corner of campus at Harvard University, I’m Ashley and today’s episode is for anyone who’s ever stood in front of a closet full of clothes and thought, "Why does it feel like I have nothing to wear?"
It’s for the ones who love fashion—but hate what it’s doing to our planet, our wallets, and, let’s be honest, our spirits.
Because in this episode, we’re slowing it all down. We’re naming what fast fashion is, how it hurts us, and why becoming conscious of what we wear is one of the most stylish things you can possibly do. We are recreating the idea of being “chic” – Our CHIC stands for “conscious habits inspire change” C.H.I.C
PART 1: THE TRUE COST OF FAST FASHION
HOST (Ashley): Fast fashion. It sounds kind of fun, right? Quick, trendy, accessible.
But let’s define it more precisely. Fast fashion is the mass production of cheap, trendy clothing designed to mimic runway styles and push constant consumption with low price tags.
It’s a system built on speed and disposability. According to Elizabeth Cline, author of Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion,
"Fast fashion isn't free. Someone, somewhere is paying the real cost."
And often, that someone is a garment worker earning pennies an hour. Or a community living downstream from a dye facility. Or the Earth herself, straining under the weight of 92 million tons of textile waste a year.
Let that number sink in: 92 million tons. Every single year.
And yet, even with all that, our closets are often emotionally empty, I’ll say it again, emotionally empty. Why? Because speed doesn't nourish us. Volume doesn't satisfy us. And Beauty, true beauty, takes time.
PART 2: A PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION STORY
HOST (Ashley): Let me tell you a story from my journey-
I used to be the queen of Zara hauls. $200 in a weekend and I’d come home with a pile of clothes and still feel... meh. Like I was trying to buy a feeling or state of happiness I couldn’t quite name.
Then, one day, I found a vintage linen dress at a local thrift shop whilst window shopping. The idea of shopping second hand wasn’t really on my radar.. but this beautiful and exquisite creation had Hand-sewn seams. Real shell buttons. The most silky soft cotton linen fabric I had ever touched, like it melted onto my skin. It felt alive in my hands. It felt graceful and royal, something that my other pieces never truly conveyed. And something in my perspective shifted.
As scholar Kate Fletcher writes in Craft of Use:
"Our clothes hold the potential to be more than products; they are practices."
I wanted to be the person that went through the day wearing a dress like that. I wanted to feel the intention of integrity and quality in the simplist acts of my being me.. like the clothing that I put on my body every day. If I can’t be of royal lineage, I could atleast dress like I was waiting on the crown. That doesn’t mean flashy and ostentatious, it means intentional acts of care in all that we do and are. Like I became the things that I wore. I wanted to be something with integrity, something worth saving. Something worth holding in admiration. That was the beginning of my conscious closet. And honestly? That little shift has changed everything.
PART 3: WHY SLOW IS THE NEW COUTURE
HOST (Ashley): Slow fashion isn’t just an antidote to or rejection of fast fashion. It’s an invitation to return to care, creativity, and intention.
Think about this: many of the world’s most celebrated designers — from Coco Chanel to Yohji Yamamoto — built their reputations not on quantity, but on their vision. And some of them? They weren’t sewing wizards. They had help. They had ateliers. Coco Chanel was many things, even a war time spy. When you next put on a pair of pants, you can thank ole Coco, her vision was that women could be more comfortable and empowered by wearing pants in a time when skirts were the mainstream. Time has told her story of vision.
Which means: with a little help and some vision, you can become your own couturier as well.
With a needle and thread, a pair of scissors, and a little bit of curiosity, you can take charge of your style story. You can remix, reinvent, repurpose. And what you create? It will carry your fingerprint. Your voice. Your story for time to tell.
As activist and designer Orsola de Castro says:
"Loved clothes last."
And clothes you love? They become talismans. They hold memory. They hold power. They hold you.
PART 4: PRACTICAL STARTING POINTS
HOST (Ashley): So! Y’all Ready to begin? Here are a few words from the great master of mind Carl Jung, to open this space for sharing some gentle first steps toward a more conscious closet:
“Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens.”
—Collected Works, Vol. 8- C.Jung
So take note of what I am about to share within the Jungian spirit.
Shop your own closet. Start with what you already have, when you really start looking, you have more than you knew.
Learn to mend. Even learning well one basic stitch can extend the life of a garment.
Buy secondhand. Vintage, thrift, consignment—there’s treasure waiting. And with the growth of sites like Therealreal.com and thredup, shopping these items online is easier than ever.
Ask questions. Who made this? What is it made of? How long will it last? Do I want to represent this story? Try and stay focused on natural fabrics and away from collecting more polyester and nylon ghosts
Choose fewer, better. Quality over quantity every time. It took me a long time to adopt this- but just think about the items you wear.. I bet there are a handful that are favorites and get worn way more often than others.. add to that collection. Think about how it would work within your normal frame of dressing, because no matter what you buy, you will usually revert to that habitual style. And that’s ok! Just stay with what you know you love.
And remember: your style doesn’t have to be fast and flashy to be fabulous.
PART 5: CLOSING REFLECTION
HOST (Ashley): In a culture that profits off our insecurities and creating more of them for us (just watch the barrage of pharmaceutical ads on tv these days) the act of slowing down is radical.
So let’s reclaim our closets, not as places of shame, lack or confusion, but as sacred spaces. Shrines to who we are, what we want to be and who we’re becoming.
Let’s consciously clothe ourselves in care. In compassion. In quality. In creativity.
Because we deserve better than fast trends and fads. Take a moment to contemplate that- seasonal trends are designed to create the need for more, to feel we are not something, that without constantly purchasing new we are left behind, outcast from social standing or just not successful. The idea of creating fashion trends was not to help you look your best or feel beautiful, they were created to make you feel marginalized and defunct and not a member of the club… We deserve fashion and style that lasts and isn’t “members only”.
Until next time my sweet friends and dreamers of a better world, I’m Ashley, your cheerleader and comrad in building authentic creative community.. Thank you for time and openness while listening to House of Tikkun’s Reclaiming the Threads. And remember: you already have everything you need to dress like you love yourself, your unique style—and the health of the Earth herself.
HOST (Ashley): If this episode spoke to you or sparked a flame in your heart, please share it with a friend. Tag us with your style stories of reclamation and redo @HouseofTikkun and use the hashtags #ReclaimingTheThreads and #houseoftikkun to share your brilliance with us and other like-minded souls. And if you’ve started your own conscious fashion journey, tell us about it. We are excited to hear about fashion revoluation and want to do whatever we can to cheer you on. We believe in lifting each other up and a new more compassionate business model of support instead of competition. We all are integral parts of the collective. I love you, we love you.
Id be honored to have you here again next time.
Until then and always, Stay stitched in. Stay sovereign. Stay uniquely you.
With deep care and great gratitude,
From the House of Tikkun, I’m your host Ashley and this is Reclaiming the Threads.