How much do your clothes weigh?  I’m estimating three pounds for the jeans and tee I routinely put on in the morning.  But lately, I’ve been obsessed with the pounds and pounds of clothes that are out there.  Thrift shops and yard sales are brimming with coats, jeans, sweaters and tops.  However, of the 35 pounds of clothing and textiles the average person disposes of each year, only 10 pounds are recycled.

A Costa Rican family asked a friend who recently studied there, “Why do people in the U.S. buy clothes every year?  What do they do with last year’s?”

I’m wrestling with that, too.  At the mall Saturday, I was seduced by the sale + coupon + use your charge card deal on a great winter coat, though I can’t remember wearing the one I already have even once last year.  On the other hand, I love fashion as a form of self-expression, and since we’re always tweaking our identity, shouldn’t we do the same for our appearance?

This week, I’ll be using some old sweaters as the materials for new items.  I admire the artists who’ve found ways to spin old tee shirts in new ways, such as this sphere pillow by Talking Squid and the other playful examples in the post on HomeWorkshop.

As I work on a reinvention, I’ll be thinking about my own Less is More attitude.  Do I really mean it?  I didn’t buy the coat at the mall, but I did buy new cereal bowls to replace the chipped and mismatched ones.  These fit in the dishwasher much better, saving space and water.  Does this count?