8. Design to replace the need to consume

Many of us buy items we see in magazines on billboards daily because we are subconsciuously convinced that we NEED them. But is NEED the correct word? Personally I know there are items in my wardrobe that have never been worn, I know because the shopping label is still visible. Sometimes I wonder why I bought it in the first place, greed is certainly the case in most circumstances or the fact we see it in a shop and instantly think we need it. We ought to combat this urge to splurge by realising that we are encouraging large companies to mass produce. Does buying consumer goods make us happy? If so, surely that happiness quickly fades? Isn't it more satisfying to buy an item knowing that it is recyclable, that when you do tire of it you can dispose of it and it can be re-made into another item so nothing is lost?


MASLOW'S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
maslow produced a traingle that displayed the hierarchy of needs. He indicated that in order to achieve the 'ideal or desired self' i.e. Self Actualisation

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a theory in psychology proposed by abraham Maslow in 1943. His theory suggests that inorder for us to become our ideal or desired self we must achieve each stage of the pyramid. Thus we must achieve the basic needs like shelter, food, water, health before we can begin to seek self actualisation. however, most of us will never achieve self-actualisation especially in many third world countries where even the literal requirements for human survival like finding water is tough. I think his triangle shows how we can become so attached to material possessions and forget what is truly important in our lives. Some attachments are obvoiusly fleeting whereas others last forever. I feel we need to distinguish what is sacred in our lives. 

in the olden days this usually only applied to the rich as they were the only ones who could afford such pleasantries but nowadays mass production has meant we are able to emulate the rich much more easily. This has however added to slave and child labour. 

We need to savour goods much more and make sure each purchase is long lasting. 

Jonathan Chapman (2006) spoke about emotional durable design and stated 'most products create a small amount of empathy at the point of purchase, from that poit on the ength of the products lifesan dpeends on how well the product can maintain user empathy.' therefore waste is merelt expired emapthy. I think this is true as if something has a personal connotation then we will most likely hang on to it in the future and treat it with respect. If however, the garment is cheap, we will most likely buy and then bin resulting in more waste. 

In order to design empathetically we need to encourage personalisation, customisation and repair. 

KEEP & SHARE - Amy Twigger Holroyd

The Keep&Share Philosophy states that we should buy less, more special pieces and keep them for longer. They aim to create garments that last, as are sick and tired of pieces being thrown away before they have reached their wearability. They aim for versatile pieces that can be worn by different people in different ways and that provide a connection between the customer and the manufacturer. They combine the familiar and the unconventional to create designs that will stand the test of time. 

They emphasise on 'slow fashion'- choosing quality over quantity, where designers are much more aware of the impacts of products on workers, communities and ecosystems.It allows companies to invest in the product in the long term and create more beneficial relationships. It is very much an in house company with all items being made by hand in a small manufacturing room. i feel this makes you more connected to the garment as it has been made in a more loving way rather than been manufactured by a large industrial machine.  

While it isnt possible to source all of their materials organically they have an Eco Edition Collection which uses locally sourced and naturally dyed yarns. There is also an Offset Collection which recycles scrap yarns and waste threads. 

Plus if you are too afraid of washing your items then you can send them back to KeepandShare and they will wash it and return it to you. And any damage, well that can be sent back to the company to be repaired.