Week 5

Mary Qin
ASA 141
Week 5


I am so glad that this challenge is almost over. Yet, I am glad that it has made me more self-conscious about sustainability. I have also become more aware of the amount of clothing I actually do already own, especially as the school year is ending and I am contemplating moving yet again. This week, I spent a lot of time with friends so I was not able to go on shopping sprees by myself online or at the mall. I have not broken the challenge this week.

Going to a rave this week reminded me again of how easily I like to keep up with the trends. "Race and Beauty: A Comparison of Asian and Western Models in Women's Magazine Advertisements" talks about how women are often sexualized in magazines. Some eastern models like Indian models copy Western poses. This shows me how easily it is to be caught up in the trend and to follow the models that we look up to. I always want to keep up with the trend at raves and look cute, even if it means buying a new outfit every time. This is part of the reason why fast fashion is so popular. According to BBC Earth, 3 out of 5 items end up in landfills within 12 months. I have definitely have bought and wore rave outfits that were completely one time use because of the style or the qualiy. Since the beginning of this course, I have begun to make sure that the outfits that I buy can be multi-use and long lasting even if it is fast fashion. It is not the perfect fix, but for someone on a budget, it is an improvement and a increase in consciousness in what I choose to buy.

 Work Cited:

Earth, BBC, director. YouTube. YouTube, YouTube, 16 Feb. 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoiU8sprXpQ.

Frith, Katherine Toland. Cheng, Hong. Shaw, Ping. "Race and Beauty: A Comparison of Asian and Western Models in Women's Magazine Advertisements" Sex Roles. 2004