Goblins and goblins aren’t the only scary things about Halloween—the spooky holiday is a wicked waste, too. Every year, Americans buy costumes, often made from environmentally harmful materials, that they will wear for one night.
This year, the National Retail Federation (NRF) projects Halloween participation and spending to return to pre-pandemic levels; almost 70% of consumers plan to celebrate, according to the organization. The NRF also estimates that US consumers will spend $3.6 billion on costumes alone.
That’s a lot of polyester vamp capes and nylon ensembles potentially ending up in landfills.
Thrift stores offer bargain seekers the chance to avoid single-use costumes, often at lower prices than name-brand items, and provide a place to donate an outfit that might otherwise have ended up in the trash. the bottom of the closet or closet. garbage on November 1st.
Donna Powers, who has worked at the Salvation Army Family Store on Providence’s East Side for nearly 12 years, said she loves seeing the amazing creations that have been created from the items on her shelves.
Powers called it “recycling at its finest,” seeing local youth create something new with donated clothing and accessories and without spending too much money.
She said she often watches Rhode Island School of Design students put together the wildest and most wonderful outfits, even outside of the Halloween season.
But that’s the nice part about living in Providence, he said, “people can get away with wearing just about anything.”
This October, the best costume she’s seen so far was a little girl dressed up as a doll. She found an apron and a bow, and she looked “china,” Powers said.
Second-hand clothing offers many options for Halloween costumes. (Colleen Cronin/ecoRI News)
Powers herself has created some costumes from the store’s inventory.
“The witches are my favorite because we have crazy shoes,” she said.
Picking up a pair of shiny black stilettos with little bows at the back, she added, “Wouldn’t that be great for a witch costume?”
Some thrift stores have picked up on some people’s desire to avoid a single-use outfit for Halloween and have started marketing campaigns for the spooky season. At Savers in Providence, a large banner outside went up ahead of the holidays, alerting customers to potential costumes inside. A large shelf contained some donated costumes and regular clothing that would be transformed into Halloween classics like vampires, witches, and ghouls.
Saver’s corporate site also suggested visiting the store to create a “one-of-a-kind costume,” and anyone who joins its rewards program can earn bonus points during “Hallo weekend.”
The Nest, a thrift collective that sells clothing, home decor, furniture and art in Providence, has also shaped its entire October media push by taking a step back from the splurge culture of Halloween.
The store has published infographics with information from studies in the United Kingdom that estimate that 7 million costumes are thrown there every year – the United States has five times the population. Videos with costume ideas using second-hand items from the store are also shared.
The store is also donating a portion of its pre-Halloween proceeds to Remake Our World, an organization that fights for fair wages and climate-friendly practices in the fashion industry.
Danielle Sturm, one of The Nest’s co-founders, said the co-op felt it was a good opportunity to shine a light on “capitalist parties,” which she noted are not sustainable at either end of the process. The “fast fashion” clothes that people buy online for Halloween are not sustainable at first and then not reused.
Charlotte von Meister, the shop’s other co-founder, said some customers have been looking for something to wear on the 31st, including someone who found a white tank top with a bedazzled heart for a Paris Hilton T-shirt, and another who put together a pink outfit for an Elle Woods costume.
With the Y2K look trending right now, Sturm said she thought the lucky pieces will be things customers can reuse after the holidays.
The Nest has a rack with staff picks for Halloween costumes. Through her cleaning business, von Meister said they’ve been able to find some great pieces, especially from a client who used to be a pageant queen, that go well with people’s costume ideas and things they already have in their closet. wardrobe.
For them, von Meister said she found a pair of elf ears to match a second-hand dress she owns that she doesn’t always get the chance to wear, so she can be an elf queen for Halloween. Sturm will take something from her closet that she hasn’t worn in a while and add some fake blood to make it “scary”.
When Halloween is over, The Nest will also be offering a 10% store discount in exchange for a costume, which they will donate to local charities for the next year.
Colleen Cronin is a Report for America staff member and writes about environmental issues in rural Rhode Island for ecoRI News.
Source: news.google.com