It's Time for a New, Green Beginning

Eddie Truong

Blog #1

It's the beginning of the "Be Green" challenge and I'm not particularly concerned about the challenge because I often do not buy merchandise or participate in consumerist culture. I hope that I will be able to learn more about the effects of consumerism and be more conscientious of my purchasing decisions in relation to the global economy. Because it's the middle of Fall and it'll be cold, I'm saddened by the idea that I won't be able to buy more clothes to be warm; I think this is the time for me to be creative about my clothing options and learn to resist consumerist culture on different frameworks.

Whenever I think about fashion, I think about the ways in which symbols and ideas are translated into textiles and clothing. Most people buy clothes in order to represent themselves in a better image, perhaps one of wealth and luxury. In "Creating Identity, Defining Culture, and Making History from an Art Exhibit: An Unfinished Story: A Tribute to my Mothers" in Transnationalizing Viet Nam: Community, Culture and Politics in the Diaspora by Kieu-Linh Caroline Valverde, the artist Chau Huynh uses her imagination and history as the primary motivation in her art creations. In one instance, she uses the flags of North Viet Nam and the former South Viet Nam to stitch together a new creation which represents her own life experiences mixing the two cultures together. In the same manner, I hope to be able to be more creative about my own desires to express my ideas through clothing without needing to buy more goods. I need to learn to be more creative on my own and express my ideals through reusing materials/supplies.

On the other hand, I've been trying to read up on more interesting ways to reuse my clothes so that I don't need to buy any more items. With the internet, there are so many different ways that I can learn about being more self-sustainable and there are plenty of resources that I can depend on to help me get through this process.

Chin up! It's time for the "Be Green" challenge to begin!

Inside Source

Valverde, Caroline KL. "Creating Identity, Defining Culture, and Making History from an Art Exhibit: An Unfinished Story: A Tribute to my Mothers". Transnationalizing Viet Nam: Community, Culture and Politics in the Diaspora. Philadelphia: Temple UP. 2012

Outside Source

How to Reuse or Recycle Old Clothes. http://www.squidoo.com/Reuse-Recycle-Old-Clothes. Accessed December 15, 2012.