SHOPPING AT FOREVER 21 (DO THE HOTPANTS)

Ugh you guys,

This post consists of an outfit that is basically all Forever 21, right after I bitched about them all over social media.

If you follow me on Instagram, you know I got pretty pissed off the other day when I saw these shirts on the rack in sizes XS!

If at first these shirts don’t upset you, it’s because as a society we’ve become so numb to the fact that the beauty/diet/advertising/patriarchal industries have made women focus so much on their weight and their food intake, that it’s now a normal thing for TEENAGERS to be planning their meals the next day to stay within caloric restrictions so they can get that unattainable body image every woman is supposed to have.

Seriously, when I first saw these shirts, I was holding a dress about to go to the dressing room,

I didn’t end up trying it on.

Instead I put it back and walked out of the store in disgust.

So what do I do now? What options does that leave me with?

Do I boycott Forever 21 and all other “Fast Fashion” stores because they sell clothing that doesn’t align with my values?

Or do I keep shopping there because they have super cute stuff for hella cheap!

(Am I just really shallow that this is even a question???)

I just feel like I’m already fighting for so many things, that conquering everything wrong in the world gets so overwhelming.

The thing I like about Forever 21 (and in reality what actually makes it a TERRIBLE company)

Is the fact that they carry designer ripoffs for extremely cheap.

I don’t have the money to buy Philip Lim or Stella McCartney.

My wardrobe consists of H&M, Forever 21, American Apparel, and the occasional vintage or second-hand designer pieces that I got at a really great price.

I guess I’m starting to realize that “Fast Fashion” is terrible, but with the way our society is structured, it’s difficult to avoid it.

The marketing and advertising that makes women believe they always need to be “on-trend” is difficult to keep up with unless you have a lot of money…OR you shop at cheap stores.

The problem is that there’s hardly any places left where affordable = good.

(and by good I mean: sustainable, workers are paid fair wages, they don’t rip-off someone else’s art, no child labor, labor laws are actually abided by, no greenhouse gases are produced, no deforestation, the list goes on…)