Fashion is full of buzzwords. ‘Oxblood’ (aka burgundy), ‘peplum’ (skirting at the waist), ‘colour blocking’ (wearing one colour), etc etc. Pithy terms like these catch like polyester at a bonfire in the fashion world, and we spend season after season referring to squiggly printed leggings as ‘tribal’. Sigh.
One buzzword that really riles me, however, is ‘recycling’. I can deal with the use of an exotic word to describe the colour of my high school uniform, but ‘recycle’ has a very real meaning. Here it is:
- Re·cy·cle (verb) – convert (waste) into reusable material.
Skirt, Warehouse | Jumper, Cos | Coat, French Connection | Boots, Bertie | Bag, Mulberry | Necklace, Tatty Devine | Belt, Forever 21 | Ring, Primark
Here I am in the Warehouse leather skirt I wore last week. I’ve actually worn it multiple times since I bought it, because I love it so. But am I recycling it? No. I’m just wearing it. Using it for the purpose it was bought for. Isn’t this something everyone, everywhere has been doing since the first neanderthal skinned a sabre tooth and fashioned its fur into a fetching two-piece?

What do you think – am I recycling or just re-wearing?
I think it’s just one of those things – celebrities and people in the public eye are expected to never wear the same thing twice. Very wasteful but when Kate ignores this “rule” everyone seems to make a big fuss of it! Good for her 🙂
I hate the term recycling when referring to wearing an outfit more than once….. it is simply just wearing it again!
Couldn’t agree more!
This isn’t one I’d thought about but I totally agree. I can’t stand only wearing an item once…..that would be a waste xxx
Ah this is something that really irritates me too! Apparently nobody should wear anything more than once these days. My bank balance could not cope if I bought a new outfit for every day.
Thank you! I’ve been bothered by this term for awhile now. Surely we should in the current economic climate normalise wearing clothes repeatedly? Even for royals and celebrities?
Love that skirt and coat.
http://sortlifeoutbuymilk.blogspot.co.uk/
I would hate to be famous and feel pressured into not wearing anything twice! Some clothes are so lovely they deserved to be worn all the time, not just once. That’s just wasteful! I just call it ‘wearing’, not recycling!
How would the media cope if she started to ‘reuse’ – the practice of wearing something for multiple purposes (ie: a scarf, a top, a skirt and a belt!).
Love that quirky moustache!
Oh the media can be so laughable at times. To recycle you’re clothing would insinuate that your clothes were waste, they only become a waste if you don’t get your moneys worth out of them, surely! That skirt is way too nice to only wear once! X
It’s a very annoying term, and I don’t think unless you are wearing actual rubbish it applies to wearing an item more than once.
I like using my own term VPW (value per wear) If I get great VPW from an item then I feel proud if it’s cost slightly more than usual, and I’ve ‘used’ it lots. 🙂
x
Agree, we should just wear our clothes. The term recycling implies that they almost become useless after one wear and it takes some sort of mamouth effort to manage to wear them again. I guess they may be making a big deal as she is royalty, perhaps they don’t think she should have to wear her clothes more than once! I never really got the whole ox blood thing, the name completely put me off the colour when I quite liked it before.
I always feel like you start writing a brilliant post and then stop, just as it is getting good! This was really interesting and then you just tailed off!
Ooooh Anon, interesting point! I try not to go on too long because I’m aware many people don’t like reading very long things online… but also, I don’t want to form a discussion and leave it halfway through!
Will take your points into consideration for my next discussion post. And if you have any thoughts on what else you think should’ve been covered here, I’d love to hear them! 🙂
Jen
I completely agree with you. People take things way out of proportion. It isn’t “recycling” to wear something more then once, it’s actually called being normal.
-Violet
http://rose-et-violet.blogspot.com/
Love this post! As always, your take on the fashion world at large is spot on x
Fully agreed. I do like to find some clothes I haven’t worn in my wardrobe for ages and bring them back out and find a new love for them but not recyling them! Daft!
Also in love with the jacket x
really love your coat! XO
http://chocolatefashioncoffee.blogspot.ro/
Oxblood!! Ugh, it’s burgundy for freak’s sake!! Lol.
I guess other terms make me cringe too, but in the fashion world I can see their appeal. However I completely agree with your anger at their definition of ‘recycling’. It’s completely ridiculous.
One of my favourite things to do is ‘shop’ from my own wardrobe. I have a vast collection of clothes, not because I buy in excess, more because I don’t throw things away. I can easily not wear something for years and then suddenly it feels like new again and it’s my favourite thing. Plus I love my clothes, I love the way they collect memories as I wear them, I love the way I can put them with a different piece of clothing each time and create endless outfits. I couldn’t bear to wear them once and throw them away.
Sophie | onetenzeroseven.com/blog
Totally agree with you on this, clothes are made to be worn several times! x
Yup – totally agree. I’ve heard some bloggers referring it to ‘remixing’, which I feel more comfortable with x
This made me laugh so much, I’ve never heard the word recycling used this way before, it’s so silly! I recycle stuff all the time, the boots I’m wearing have been recycled pretty much everyday since September, sometimes twice a day.
I love the outfit, the coat and jumper are great classics xx
Lucy Loves To Blog
I tend to use ‘recycle’ when I recreate a whole outfit, exactly the same as I have worn before. And it tends to be for a night out or something similar where I’d usually wear something no one else has seen before.
But of course wearing an item twice is not recycling- its just normal wearing right? Hmm I suppose it’s different for celebs with such a massive disposable income!
Lovely outfit, I love your posts like this with a bit of an argument in them!
Love this, it’s definitely a media spin on how Kate is thrifty by recycling! Why shouldn’t she wear beautiful items she loves again and again just like the rest of us?
http://www.cagneyandlace.com
An excellent point Jen! Your article made me laugh
If I could not wear the same piece of clothing more than once, I would be skint! You buy clothes to wear again and again, because we love our clothes, so no it’s not recycling, it’s re-wearing. I totally agree with this post xx
Totally agree.
WorldWideValery
Value per wear kinda girl here too. Makes a bargain even more exciting x x
I LOVE your outfit. Have very simular boots (from RI). I have wanted a skirt like this for a long time (dress/skirt sort of girl) but have a VERY high waiste and big hips so not sure if it would suit????? Would love your thoughts
This is the kind of outfit I could wear too… Basic but with strong pieces ; )What an amazing combination!
I just discovered your blog and I love it ; )
Defo re-wearing! That’d annoy me as well!
She looking so beautiful in this dress. I like it.
http://stylopoint.com