Pros & Cons to the Rise of The "Fashion Haul"
Can this teach us anything about personal style?
I’ve posted a couple of times about being overwhelmed by the idea of boxes and bags of clothing constantly being opened to us on social media as if it’s normal to “unbox 10 new things with me” not just once a season or once a year but once a week, often more. It’s overconsumption core and it’s getting a little hard to keep up with. I watch some of these videos and am in awe of how many comments there are with the word “link” in it. I get it. We’re overwhelmed with the amount of choices there are out there and are just looking for direction, maybe inspiration.
But at what point does the word “link” actually take us off course? Just the ease of typing that one word creates this frictionless, thinkless transaction. Often, we’re doing it because the pieces are so cheap, or so cute or so…lacking of our own personal decision making. Then we wind up with a closet full of someone else’s clothes. Therein lies the dilemma. Do we sacrifice our own personal style for the sake of ease?
One thing that a lot of us don’t have is time. Time to devote to thinking about the elements of personal style, time to dig in deep to extract all the meaning that comes from wearing what we choose, how we choose. A lot of us are moms, working in some form or another, with a to-do list of tasks a mile long that never seem to shrink. The hauls have become a useful tool for some to click and buy without having to do the dirty work of shopping. But when we look at it for what it is, break it down to its core, it’s a level of marketing and sales that’s hidden behind a facade of cute clothes. Each click, tap, or purchase is supporting an influencer (oh goodie!) but at a big loss for us if the pieces go to waste, go unworn, or get tossed out the following season (oh, bummer.) Now we’ve just wasted money and time. When we don’t have a strong sense of our personal style, we can succumb to the pitfalls of constant buying, trying, which results in confusion and overconsumption. And because most these hauls focus on fast fashion finds, pieces under $20, $50, you name it, this actually devalues the clothing and the goals behind strengthening our personal style.
And you know what I hear A LOT now? Like, a lot, a lot?? “I feel lost with my style and don’t know what looks good on me or my body.” Working with women regularly as a wardrobe stylist I am driven to educate by asking my clients to think about the “why”. Why does it work? Why do we want it? Will it increase the value in my closet? Why? I can tell you that the simple act of asking “why” puts a stop to a lot of the random purchases. Why? Because it asks you to think. Think twice, take a beat, stop and think. That’s what’s really missing in all of this. The deeper thinking that allows us to filter in/out the noise that gets us to a better place with our personal style.
So when can these “hauls” be used for good? Here are a list of pros…(proceed with caution)
When you are so strong in your own personal style that you can discern between attainable and aspirational (using the “oh that looks good on her but I don’t need it” phrase more often than “that’s cute, maybe I’ll buy it”)
When you can use the hauls as inspiration for styling pieces you already have (thus negating the need to buy more.)
When you’re buying because the item was actually on your gap list and you’re not just making the purchase because of the low cost
When you can imagine styling it a few ways for some things you’re doing in your everyday life
So how can we pull back from the haul mentality? Simply unfollowing or not purchasing for a while is a great first step. Or consider investing your $$ elsewhere in a style course or style community that will help you start to reframe your thinking. It might take a little more of your time, but it will be time well spent.
If you find yourself nodding along, maybe this has been a good gut check for you. If you’re someone who feels like they’d love to join in the conversation, to start asking why more often, or to shop with more intention, consider joining Intentional Style, a style membership that meets monthly (virtually) to explore topics to deepen our personal style. There’s no time commitment and you can opt in or out at any time.