One of the best ways to reduce your plastic and carbon footprint is to stop buying new items, avoiding the energy and materials that it takes to produce them, the carbon footprint of transporting them and the impact they will have when they eventually are discarded. In today's consumeristic society it is difficult to resist the urge to buy something new. Especially as often everything is designed for that to be the easiest, cheapest and most convenient option. Here are 8 tips and tricks to help you on your journey to avoid buying new. When I say buying new things, it can mean many different things, one of the big ones is of course clothes, but this also includes other items including tools, vehicles and all sorts of random things.
Scroll to the bottom for a list of questions to ask yourself before buying something.
1. Rules
The best way to succeed in avoiding buying new items is to have strict rules for yourself in terms of what you are allowed to buy and in which instance. Many people try to do this as a NO BUY or LOW BUY year as a way to save money and reduce their environmental impact. These are a set of rules I wrote for myself a few years ago (this was pre-pandemic so priorities slightly shifted during the year which is also OK - It is always a good idea to review your rules regularly). It is also important not to be absolutist. If you set yourself unreasonable targets you are much less likely to slip up and then give up altogether, it is important to start in achievable steps so that you can build on those habits as you get used to them. What is one thing that you could give up buying for a year? or a month?
2. Be organised - Know what you have
One frequent reason for buying something new is not knowing where you put the one you already have. By being organised and having clear systems to find all of your possessions, you will know where to find them when you need them and you'll avoid buying a replacement for something you already have. Having lists or spreadsheets might help with this, especially for those items that you might not need very often but you already bought. Taking good care of your possessions is also important so that they don't need to be replaced. As an example, storing clothes properly for the change of season will keep them fresh until you need them again. Something else that I have been guilty of in the past is not cleaning paintbrushes properly when doing DIY so that we had to buy new ones each time. Being organised when travelling is also a good routine to avoid having to buy replacements for things that you've forgotten at home. How many times have you reached a holiday destination to then realise that you haven't packed something so you resorted to buying another one at the nearest shop? Having a packing list of essentials could help you remember everything and save you some money too.
3. Make a re-purpose box
A great way of avoiding buying new items is reusing or repurposing something you already have. Extending something's life by using it until it can't possibly be used again ensures that the valuable resources that have gone into producing and transporting it are not wasted. I don't suggest starting a hoarding habit and never throwing anything away ever again! That is not a reasonable option. However, when coming across things that you think might come in handy, having a place to store them for when you might need them next is quite useful. See below a picture of my repurpose drawer. I have a specific rule that everything has to fit inside the drawer so if there is something I want to put in but there is no space either I need to get rid of something or use something up. That way I make sure it is kept manageable and every now and then I look in the drawer for inspiration for new crafting projects. Keep an eye out for a post on repurposing coming soon, for now here is a list of the kinds of things that I tend to repurpose:
- old clothes (See Mrs Hempstock's skirt and How to make beeswax wraps)
- boxes and containers (See My Plastic-less Class)
- books and old diaries
- bottles
- tins
- packaging in good condition
- toilet roll tubes (See Decorations)
4. Join a free-cycle / swap group
There are many local Freecycle or clothes swap groups that you can join to find a new home for something or to get some great second hand goods for free. It is also a great idea to set up a group chat with friends who live locally so that you can post pictures of things you no longer want to see if anyone is interested. This has worked very well for me recently and I have managed to keep my wardrobe refreshed without buying any new clothes. It is a great way to make sure that the items already produced that still have some life are used by someone in the community instead of going to landfill. Link to Freecycle network.
5. Repair
This should be fairly intuitive but unfortunately it isn't. In this modern day and age it is often much cheaper and more convenient to buy a new item rather that attempting to or paying someone to repair the old one. However, it can be a fun challenge to try and find a way to breathe some new life into something old. There are many areas where you can try this:
- Learn to sew and repair you clothes until they can no longer be repaired (then place into a repurpose drawer when they can't) - see below my first few attempts at darning worn socks.
- Take your shoes to a cobbler when they start showing signs of wear. Especially when you have shoes you know are comfortable and work for your needs, keeping them from the landfill is sometimes priceless over having to find a good enough replacement. Don't wait until they are completely broken though as you'll struggle to find someone willing to fix them.
- Electronics and appliances sometimes go wrong. Find out who does repairs in your area or by post so that next time you have an emergency you know where to go and you won't be tempted to just get a new one because it is easier. It is also worth keeping track of which items come with a warranty as you might be eligible for a free repair by the company that you purchased it from.
- Furniture can be repaired and refurbished with a bit of DIY which will save you some cash over buying a new item and then having to deal with disposing of the old one. Especially if it is well cared for and in good quality, this can be done almost indefinitely.
6. Borrow
Borrowing is a great way to avoid buying new, especially for items that you don't need very often. This could work for books, tools, vehicles (if you only need a car for the odd weekend away does it make more sense to rent one occasionally rather than own one?) Ask your friends, find somewhere to rent it or go to your local library of things. These have been designed exactly for those items that are not needed very regularly. It doesn't make sense for everyone to own something that they need to use only once every few months or once a year, when there could be one that people can borrow in turn. Se below a book where I keep track of borrowed things so that I make sure I return them to the rightful owner when I am done with them.
7. Buy second hand
Buying second hand is a fantastic tool to minimise the impact of the objects we own and to stop things that are already made going to landfill. The fast fashion industry relies on people swapping out their wardrobe and throwing out clothes at an alarming rate. This business model is not sustainable and we shouldn't support the companies responsible. Buying second hand doesn't only involve clothing, this could be applied to all sorts of things from home décor, appliances, electronics, books, games to bikes, tools or furniture. Charity shops are the first port of call for many second hand buyers but these days there are also many online options for second hand clothing, books and more. Buying refurbished returns is also another option, that is when somebody buys an item that was faulty or not to their liking and it gets returned, the company then services the item and resells it at a discounted price (that's how I got my bike). This encourages companies to not dispose of their returns as many unfortunately do. See below an outfit for a wedding put together with 100% second hand clothes.
8. Buy good quality
When you can't help but to buy something new because you need a complete replacement or it is something that you really need, make sure it is good quality and built to last. This will make sure that it will be a long time before you will need to repair it or replace it again. Things to keep in mind when buying something are how easy it will be to repair, what you might do with it when it is no longer usable or repairable (Can it be recycled/composted/repurposed?) Also keep in consideration what materials it was made with and whether you align with the brand's ethics and business practises.
By making sure we ask ourselves the right questions before buying something, we ensure that we only buy the things we absolutely need and we keep in mind where our items will end up at the end of their life.
I hope this was a helpful guide. As a quick cheat sheet follow the questions below in order when you are thinking of buying something.
- Do I need it?
- Do I already have something that could do the job?
- Do I have something that could be repurposed for this?
- Can I borrow it?
- Can I rent it?
- Can I get it second hand?
- Is it good quality?
- Is it easy to repair?
- What is it made from? Is it easy to recycle?
- Was it made ethically?
Let me know in the comments what you have avoided buying this year and what are your tips and ticks. 🙂