Fast Fashion and the Habit of Overconsumption by Lulu Bregman
Fast fashion didn’t just change how often we buy clothes. It changed how little we expect from them.
Most things now are designed to be worn a few times and replaced. Not because they are ruined, but because they are no longer current. Trends move fast, and the clothes are built to keep up. Cheaply made and easy to forget.
When everything is replaceable, it is hard to build any real connection to what you own. Clothes stop feeling personal and start feeling temporary. You buy something for a moment, not because it actually fits your life or your taste.
There is also a constant pressure to keep up. New drops, new aesthetics, new must haves. It creates a low level urgency that makes overbuying feel normal instead of excessive.
One way to push back is simply being more aware of what you are consuming. Shopping with intention changes the experience. Asking whether you would wear something more than once, whether it fits into what you already own, and whether you actually like it outside of a trend.
Shopping more efficiently also means rethinking where clothes come from. Buying secondhand, rewearing pieces, or repairing what you already have slows the cycle. It makes clothing feel less disposable and more personal.
Sustainability is often discussed through statistics like waste, labor, and emissions. But there is also a mindset problem. Fast fashion encourages speed over thought. Buying instead of choosing. Replacing instead of caring.
Slowing down changes the relationship. Owning fewer things, wearing them longer, repairing what you can. It makes clothing feel intentional again. Not perfect, not curated, just considered.
The issue is not liking fashion. It is treating it like it has no value.
On Being “Performative” By Lulu Bregman
Posting on social media is performative. Almost everything we share is done knowing someone will see it. The outfits we post, the books we show, the morning routines or memes we share are all little signals about who we are or who we want people to think we are.
Right now, being niche is trendy. People want to seem original, early, or in-the-know. When something gets too popular, it is called “newgen” or “performative,” like only late adopters are faking it. But the truth is, everyone online is performative in some way. Even when someone seems effortless or “authentic,” they are posting with an audience in mind.
Trying to look different or niche is just another kind of performance. Liking a trend early, curating your feed, posting certain aesthetics, these things are choices meant to shape perception. Later adopters get called performative, but really, participating in trends, aesthetics, or memes is part of being online. Everyone is doing it.
Being performative is not bad or fake. Social media just makes it obvious. The important part is enjoying what you do and knowing why you do it. Liking a trend later, posting something popular, or curating your feed does not make it less real. It only becomes a problem if it replaces what you actually enjoy with what you think will look cool to others.
Being aware of it makes posting feel a little freer. You can enjoy social media without letting it define you or your taste completely.