Every closet has far too many clothes. Yet we are all guilty of buying more—for a special occasion or on a whim as it looked nice on the mannequin. My father himself has way too many shirts. We know because we counted and joked about how he might soon have enough to wear a new one every day of the year. But he hasn’t worn more than half of them in a long time. He has a handful of favorites that he sticks to. 

That possibly is true for all of us. We often buy more than we need or use—it’s the bane of our existence. There’s always something better out there, something we must absolutely have to elevate our dress game. 

But our obsession with fast fashion can be costly, for our wallets and the environment too. It’s not unusual for Nepali households to throw old clothes in the trash, which ultimately end up in the landfill. There’s a lot we can do to prevent this—from investing in quality clothes that last long to donating what we don’t need so that someone else can use them. There are also companies that upcycle old fabrics to give them a new lease of life. While investing in ethical, sustainable brands might be the only long-term solution, becoming a little more conscious of what we buy, wear, and throw can also go a long way in negating the effects of fast-fashion. 

Meena Gurung, founder of Bora Studio, a slow fashion, environmentally responsible clothing brand that uses natural dyes and materials, says fast fashion brands come out with 20 to 30 new designs a month. The clothes are mass produced and the  labor- and resource-intensive process does a lot of harm to the environment. Most people, she says, either don’t know this or choose to ignore it. But understanding fashion and changing our relationship to clothes are essential to leaving behind a lighter carbon footprint. “We tend to be driven by our wants and needs. Not by the results of our actions,” she says.

Rajan Chakradhar of Upcycle Nepal, a company that reuses and recycles old fabrics to make new products, adds that most clothes are purchased for single-use. Many clothes donated at Upcycle Nepal are in perfectly good condition, but they still get tossed out as new designs replace them. “You could simply style an outfit differently or mix and match items to create a new look instead of wearing an ensemble just once,” he says. And even when a clothing item is at the end of its life, it needn’t be thrown away. There are plenty of ways to reuse and recycle fabrics. 

“We have, so far, saved 200,000 kgs of clothes from going to the landfill by repurposing them as laptop sleeves, side bags, and other small accessories like card holders and scrunchies,” says Chakradhar. Upcycle Nepal is trying to raise awareness to cut down on fabric trash but admits it’s a rather steep climb. 

Kishan Shrestha of Kashyapi Nepal, a slow fashion brand, says you can’t preach about the importance of sustainability, especially not in the fashion industry where trends rule the runway. But brands like theirs can push the concept through natural materials and timeless designs. The onus, he says, lies on those working in the fashion industry to make clothes in an environment-friendly way. 

One reason clothes are thrown away, Shrestha says, is that people don’t know how to take care of them, and they look old after a couple of wears. Even quality clothes won’t last if you don’t handle them properly, he says. The biggest blunder people apparently make is not reading the wash label. Every piece of clothing comes with specific care instructions but we rarely follow them. “We are washing and drying our clothes all wrong. Some people wring and hang clothes that should be allowed to dry naturally by laying them flat. Others machine-wash items that should be hand-washed,” says Shrestha.

Gurung of Bora Studio agrees that people don’t read tags or bother to learn about the clothes they are buying. Nepalis, she says, also tend to soak clothes overnight before washing them, resulting in shrinkage and fading. Most of us also dry our clothes in the sun but clothes made of natural fabrics need to be kept in the shade. 

Apart from caring for the clothes we have, Gurung says we must choose our clothes with the same caution—be wary of what we bring into our homes and put on our bodies. “A great way to start doing that is by inquiring while shopping about the materials and where and how the clothes were made,” she says. Over time, this habit will make you conscious of your actions, and the seller or designer mindful of theirs.

But apart from small, everyday actions, Anuja Rajbhandari Shrestha, cofounder of Ekadeshma, a sustainable lifestyle brand, says better government policies on textiles and manufacturing are needed to curb people’s dependence on fast fashion. It would also help our economy if more clothes were made in Nepal rather than importing them from India or China. Sarita Tamang, production manager at Dinadi Nepal, an ethical knitwear brand, says our market doesn’t value sustainable products as they are often on the pricier side. But you are getting your money’s worth as the items are of good quality and will last several years. 

Chitra Dahal of Sukhawati Store, a thrift store, says there’s no concept of repairing and reusing clothes as everything is easily replaceable. From 2016 to 2021, Sukhawati Store collected almost 38,000 kg of unwanted clothes, those that would otherwise have ended up at Sisdol. Many of them were reconditioned and sold second hand at their store in Samakushi, Kathmandu, some for as low as Rs 10. Dahal says of the Rs 6.4m generated in the past five years, 30 to 40 percent has been operation cost while  the rest has been used on social work. 

“There needs to be more awareness about recycling or donating clothes you don’t want. But the primary focus should definitely be on reducing consumption—only buy what you need and use with care to ensure it lasts,” he says.