52 Seasons: How Minimalism Can Help You Find Your Style

I haven’t always loved fashion and if I’m honest, I don’t particularly enjoy shopping. Strange isn’t it, for someone who writes for the Fashion Society’s blog? Don’t get me wrong - I love the initial rush of joy when you find a piece of clothing, especially if it’s a bargain. However, sometimes shopping isn’t particularly freeing. Fashion is meant to be a way for an individual to express themselves, but I have a feeling that many of our ‘identities’ are being controlled and influenced by social media trends that come and go quicker than the seasons change. These trends and aesthetics ultimately cause dissatisfaction with who you are as a person. We aren’t meant to fit into a certain aesthetic nor feel the need to change up our style every other month.

Who are you when social media doesn’t influence your consumer habits?

How can you find your true style?

Minimalism.

Again, a bit of an ironic word when it comes to finding your style through fashion. Surely, you need to become a maximalist and gather as many articles of clothing as possible, trying every trend under the sun to find who you are?

Wrong.

I believe a great way to find your style, and therefore discover who you are, is through a minimalist perspective. Many people hate the idea of minimalism, myself included, before even understanding what it means. To shop like a minimalist actually just means being selective of what you wish to purchase and asking yourself questions, like “Would I feel happy wearing this piece of clothing?” or “Does this piece of clothing accurately reflect how I want to be perceived?”

Without a Tiktok trend or Pinterest aesthetic looming over us while we shop, the pressure can be taken off finding your style, and instead, shopping can become a way to truly express yourself. Through mass consumerism and the change of trends every week, many of us can’t express who we are properly without a trend or aesthetic dictating who we should be that week.

I fundamentally believe that consumerism has the ability to ruin one’s identity. With excessive purchases, consumers are likely to feel overwhelmed and lost as they try to ‘find’ their style through buying. In the past, fashion seasons were in sync with real seasons but recently through the pressure of social media, consumer demand is on the rise. This is a result of the media that is consumed daily, where advertisements and algorithms manage to convince us that buying will heal our insecurities. The demand has caused the invention of micro-seasons: a term used to describe the 52 fast fashion collections each year.

That’s a new micro-season every week in all fast fashion companies!

It is unbearable to think about the individual insecurities this can cause let alone the environmental impact. It is no wonder that fashion is the second biggest polluter in the world.

With a new micro-season emerging every week, it’s understandable that people struggle with their identity and finding their style. It is important to find yourself first without the influence of social media. In order to detach yourself, you must begin to think like a minimalist and ask questions that will allow you to determine your own unique style. It is time to change our shopping habits to make ourselves and the planet healthier.

The planet was only ever supposed to have 4 seasons, never mind 52!

Instead of endorsing micro-seasons, we must instead choose to think in a minimalist way. This will allow you to listen to yourself without external influence and take back control to make your own decisions.

Fashion is meant to be about expressing your true self, no matter the season.

Chiara Sciurba

The Fashion Society