Yes, I do love jeans! You can find them in countless shades of blue and sizes. And yes, they are all beautiful. And they are the quintessential American garment.
What most people do not know is that jeans are also part of the “fast fashion” culture with many violations: water usage, production chemicals, labor rights, supply chain management, pricing, disposibilty, sustainability, pollution, and more.
Recently I went to purchase jeans and got a frustrating lesson in “maddening mathematics.” This is shown and explained by way of the 2 following graphic images.
The first image shows a pair of jeans that were for sale in Kmart. Originally they were priced at $24.99. Instore they had 2 price reductions, to $7.00 and then to $2.50.
The price after being shipped abroad to a developing country again plummeted to .57 and then lowered to $.07. What this means is that a new pair of quality jeans were sold at just .3 % of their original price! While some might say “Wow! What a bargain,” does not reflect the reality that these jeans were one day away from being sent to a landfill. Indeed, what a bargain.
This second image again shows the tricky mathematics behind the dumping of clothing. Some jeans were new and unsold, with others being used and preloved. Upon trying to pay for just 6 pairs, I was told that the special that day was to buy 8 pairs for one price, or I would have to pay that same price for each of the 6. The salesperson could not explain such odd pricing logic, but then I realized that they were just moving inventory along. Soon it would all be in a landfill anyway.
I love to save denim from landfills in a creative way by upcycling them, but also feel that I am contributing in a very minuscule way to fast fashion. Raising awareness about the many related evils is a consolation for me.