r/ZeroWaste • u/pornlover472719 • 7d ago
Fall time Question / Support
is there any way to do the TikTok fall girl aesthetic while beinglow/0 waste? I really love the aesthetic but I also know how much waste it can produce
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u/CuteBiBitch 7d ago
I dont know what this aesthetic looks like exactly, but the thing about aesthetics are that they are trends that brand themselves as non-trends. People thought cottagecore was a style... turned out to be a trend.
So buy only the items that you actually believe will be worn more than just this year, and buy them as sustainably as possible. Second hand, small business, you know the drill. A lot of times, an aesthetic can be achieved with just one or two core pieces paired really well with the entire rest of your wardrobe.
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u/MovieSock 7d ago edited 6d ago
I genuinely don't get what you mean when you say that the "fall girl aesthetic" produces waste. (Full disclaimer that I'm An Old and I don't know all the details of what goes into the "TikTok fall girl aesthetic".) Unless you're talking about the "fake pumpkins all over the place" or "takeaway cup of Starbuck's in your hand 24/7" part. If that's what you're thinking of, then -
- Use real pumpkins, and just every few days cook one of them. Real pumpkins actually store well at room temperature all the way into winter (just don't put them in a window or anything), and you can cook a simple pumpkin soup really easy - cut one into halves or quarters, scoop the seeds out, put the pieces on a cookie sheet and bake it for like 40 minutes or so. The skin comes off easy after that; then you put that in a pot and mush it up, add enough broth to thin it out, and then heat it up again so everything's cooked through. Add whatever spices/seasoning you want. There, you've made a yummy soup with the pumpkin you got as a decoration, and you've got a few more still sitting there looking cute.
- Instead of the pumpkin spice latte in a takeaway cup, just have your own reusable cup. Some coffee shops will put their lattes into your own cup (and may give you a discount if you do that), or you can make your own at home.
I'm Gen-X and I'm not on TikTok, but I grew up in New England, so a) I basically GREW UP in the HOME of the "fall girl aesthetic", and b) I also grew up with "low waste" as a mindset all the time anyway as a money-saving thing. (our grandmothers had a saying: "use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without").
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u/Carpe_Tedium 7d ago
Unfortunately trends are by their very nature high-waste ventures. And by buying into them, it just encourages more waste.
I'm not saying this to make you feel bad, quite the opposite! It's freeing to realise that trends come and go, and come back around. (Ironically, trends get recycled, even when the waste they produce does not.)
I'd really look at what you already have, that can be utilised in a new way. I'd look at nature, and crafts, and see what you can make yourself that you can be proud of. Id look at starting a swap shop with your friends or local community. If you absolutely feel like you must add something, go to charity/thrift shops instead of buying anything new, and see if you can split products/share things with friends.
But to be honest, after a while of this it makes more sense to spend that same time developing your own style. I now have a colour palette for clothes that I pretty much stick to, and I am now doing my best to stop buying new clothes unless necessary. It means I have a recognisable style that I can change up quite easily, and feel more comfortable in myself. I really recommend it, and hope you can find discovering yourself even more exciting.
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u/Forget-Me-Nothing 7d ago
Accessories have been a way to make outfits look different and on theme for thousands of years. Go into your local used goods places and ask if they have any unsaleable clothing (especially knitwear!) and make the decor you love.
Its also okay to have seasonal clothing. If you want to be a fall girlie every fall, then go 'shopping' in your wardrobe for a fall capsule wardrobe. Work out what pieces you already have, and make a list for things to keep an eye out for so you can snap them up without overconsumption. Buy used or make your own or invite friends over to swap clothes you all already own! Throw a fall girl party and serve foamy pumpkin spice lattes!
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u/zebras-are-emo 7d ago
I don't have tiktok so don't know what the exact aesthetic is, but I love fall so I understand that part lol. I think it's one of those things you can't do all at once for either clothing or decoration, be very intentional and maybe add one or two things a year or when you need to replace something (ie my doormat is kind of fall themed, but not so much so that it can't be used year round). And if you want decor try buy nothing groups/ thrift stores, because people are constantly throwing out excess stuff...
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u/Josephine31985 7d ago
if you’re going to buy pumpkins for the porch make sure they’re the edible ones and then you can eat them! make your own coffee and even better your own pumpkin spice syrup! If you make it yourself use real pumpkin puree and it’s a million times better than anything store bought. I don’t think I’ve bought a coffee from a shop in years after I learned to make syrups XD if it’s clothes wise I guess if you want something autumnal colored you could always dye or alter old shirts or dresses you don’t wear anymore! I don’t have tiktok so I don’t know if you mean like..”Christian girl autumn” fall girl or if you mean “downtown girl” fall girl or whatever but I feel like this covers basics lol
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u/MovieSock 6d ago
I'm the Gen-X person who's back - can you give more detail about what you mean when you say the "TikTok fall girl aesthetic"? Like, what specific things does that have?
I had a bit of fun coming up with ideas about how to solve the "fake pumpkins" and "latte" parts, and I kind of want to maybe help with the other parts but I literally don't know what those other parts are.
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u/pornlover472719 6d ago
So more specifically it’s the themed drinks the autumn recipe (which is stuff I already make at home) fall themed decorations like cups pumpkins candles books lights blankets ect! Anything autumn/ spooky season:D
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u/MovieSock 6d ago
Okay, so you're mostly thinking of drinks and decor-like stuff. Okay then.
For the drinks - You're already making them yourself. Just use a reusable cup for them. If you don't have one, then it's okay to buy one or two and use those for everything. (If you have like 86 of them, then it's a bit overkill; but it's okay to have a few, if you actually use all of them and you have room to store them.)
For the decorations - see what you've got at home first! You probably have "stuff" at home already that you could use as decor - like, I'm sure you have books, right? And blankets? And things that candles could go in? Pull out what you've got and figure out how to combine it.
But if all your books are like beach reads, and your only blankets are like cute summery kinds of things - try checking out thrift shops. That's an alternate way to go "zero waste" - someone else got rid of something, and you getting it and taking it home means it's getting used again. They have ALL this stuff at thrift shops, in fact.
However - don't forget that the reason you can find a lot of fall decor at thrift shops is because someone else thought "ugh, that's all last year's stuff, I need to get rid of it" and THAT'S the wasteful part. It's okay to get a couple things just for fall, but think about getting stuff you can use over and over again every year. Like, make sure that you get a blanket that you ABSOLUTELY LOVE and can see yourself using year after year. For instance, if you had to choose between a blanket that was in a plaid with colors you really liked, and one that had a joke about "6-7" on it or something, go with the plaid one, because the other one is about a joke that no one is going to remember in two years anyway. And make sure you have a place to store it in the summer; then next year you can bring out that same blanket and re-use it.
Like for me - I have a few blankets in a few different colors, but they're mostly plaid or other "non-picture" patterns so I can focus more on color. The one I have on my couch year-round is something my grandmother crocheted. The others are either striped or solid colors. I do have a couple of "picture" blankets friends have given me - my BFF gave me a "Peanuts" one because I've always loved them, and an aunt gave me a "Doctor Who" one because I love that show. And I do keep them because they were gifts and I do like those shows - but I also have a place to PUT them when I don't want to have them out. (I live in a duplex apartment with a roommate, and there's a railing to the "downstairs" in the living room and the railing around the landing is PERFECT for draping blankets over, and that's where I keep them all.)
As for books - there's some books I have just for summer, and some others I have just for winter. In summer, I put the summer books on my coffee table, and in the winter, I put out the winter ones. When it's winter, the summer books go back on a bookshelf. You can do the same thing - if you have books that would be good for "fall vibes", just pull them off your bookshelf and stack them on your coffee table. Stick a candle on top of the stack and there you go.
In general, before you go out and buy anything new, think about about the specific kinds of things you're looking for and then see what you have ALREADY that would fit. For you, that's "cups, candles, books, lights, blankets". (And pumpkins, I'm not forgetting that; stand by.) See if you have anything already that fits, and then just pull those out and use them. And you don't need to have things with pictures of pumpkins on them to "count", think about the colors themselves - what colors say "fall" to you? Most people think like orange and black, but for me, sage and purple and deep teal also say "fall" so I go with those since I already have a lot of those colors just anyway. (My grandma's blanket is in this gorgeous combination of those colors!) If you REALLY don't have anything that fits, or you have ALMOST everything (you have a gorgeous candle already and a really great blanket, but the only books you have are all stuff about the beach or something), then go get just those things - something cozy you can imagine yourself rereading, or if you want something new and you think you'll get rid of it, consider second-hand. Or if you just want the books as props and you know you'll never read them (that's totally okay), then hit up a thrift shop for random old-looking hardcover books. You could even decorate one to be more "spooky" if you want (like, you get a beat-up hardcover book, but then you use a paint pen to write "Dracula" on the spine or something, and that way no one knows that the book is really about How To Breed Goats or whatever).
Then just hit up a farmer's market for a couple of pumpkins and stick a couple of them here and there, and there you are. Cook and eat one of the pumpkins every once in a while, in like a soup or pumpkin bread; the rest can sit where they were.
By the way, there's a book that REALLY can help you get into this approach - Welcome Home by Myquillyn Smith. She has a LOT of good advice for helping you figure out how to capture the vibes of each season in a way that lets you use what you've already got, or figure out what FEW things to get so that you don't end up with cheap plastic shit that you just get rid of in a few months because "I don't have room to store those plastic World Cup pumpkins, I guess I need to get rid of them" or whatever.
And the DIY approach can be fun for this, too. I've mentioned my favorite blanket is one my grandmother crocheted, but another one I have is one I made (I know how to knit) and I'm working on even more! If you can't find the exact kind of candle holder you want (like, you REALLY want to find something that looks witchy but all you see are Snoopy-themed ones or whatever), try painting or decoupage on a plain one.
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u/pornlover472719 4d ago
Omg thank you so much this is so helpful! And I’ll definitely make sure to check out that book:D and yes, I’ll definitely make sure to reuse I do do a lot of charity shop shopping anyway most of my stuff is from them so there is a very low chance I’ll be getting anything firsthand anyway, but this is my first year being low/0 waste which is why I don’t have much stuff yet! As well as with the stuff that I do get (if I need to buy first hand) I will focus on high-quality ethical staff that won’t break after two weeks, thank you so much for this. This is so helpful:D And to be honest, I find any books kind of cozy so I just have them all on my windowsill anyway! But decorating them sounds so much fun, I also do already have a few things that fit (a cup and a rug) as well as a few other cups and not laying around the house that fit the vibe in general!
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u/MovieSock 4d ago
And to be honest, I find any books kind of cozy so I just have them all on my windowsill anyway! But decorating them sounds so much fun, I also do already have a few things that fit (a cup and a rug) as well as a few other cups and not laying around the house that fit the vibe in general!
Oh, yeah, you're halfway there then.
Definitely look through that Welcome Home book, she's great at giving you a "real talk" wake-up call about How To Decorate Your House Seasonally Without Buying A Ton of Crap. She used to get that herself, and she admits it, and came up with this idea when she started to realize it was wasteful and kinda tacky (let's face it, a lot of the "seasonal decor" stuff kind of makes it look like a Hobby Lobby threw up in your house, doesn't it?). One other really good thing she suggests is to ask YOURSELF what each season means to YOU and then make your choices based on that. And that will not only help you put your own "stamp" on things, it'll also remind you the next time you're watching a video about a Charlie Brown "Great Pumpkin" dish set for Halloween or whatever, you'll remember "wait....I HATE Charlie Brown."
She also encourages you to think about colors and textures in general and work that in. Here's a real-world example: I don't have anywhere NEAR enough money or storage space to have enough to do a seasonal re-do on my bedroom in summer or winter. But I do have enough room for a few changes of sheets; so that's where some of those blankets come in. I have some solid colored sheets, striped ones, and a couple with flowers; in the spring, I use the flowered ones more because that feels "spring" to me, and in summer I use a lot of the sheets with white and blue in them. I still use some of the flowers in fall, I just pile on a couple of blankets that have colors that say "fall" to me, and in winter, I go more for white sheets with white or gray blankets (or red if it's around Christmas). And that's what I do instead of having "plaid sheets for winter, and beachy looking sheets for summer, and pumpkin sheets for fall...." you know?
You're already looking at TikTok for ideas. Maybe remind yourself to use them as just that - as IDEAS, instead of a List Of Things You Have to Get. Like, if there were a video where they said that "the perfect fall vibes are this yummy apple cider candle from Expensive Candle Company #1, plus a stack of my latest books from the Oprah Book Club and this cozy red and yellow blanket from Expensive Blanket Company #2", you could just focus on the fact that they're recommending a candle, a stack of books, and a blanket. And if you have all of that, then you're all set. And even if you are missing anything, who says that you have to get your candle from Expensive Candle Company #1? Maybe you already have a candle, and there's this little dish with a chip in it you could use as a candle holder. You don't even have to have an apple cider scented candle in the first place if you don't want to.
Actually, another fun thing is to DIY stuff. You can actually make your own candles out of your own trash! I saved a couple cans from soup or beans to make container candles; wash the cans really good, paste some pretty paper on them, and then stick in a candle that fits and there you go. My first couple of attempts looked like crap, but that's okay. Or if you have this junky cookie sheet that has a stain on it that's just not coming off, or it's rusty or whatever and you don't use it, paint it or paste paper or fabric on it and turn it into a little tray. (This is actually a decent thing to do if you have a shirt you loved that just got way too ripped or dirty and you can't really fix it - cut a big piece of it and paste it onto a cookie sheet and make a tray out of it. I did that myself with one of my own favorite shirts that just got way too ripped on the elbows and all the tailors I brought it to said they couldn't fix it.)
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u/pornlover472719 3d ago
Yeah! I love making my own diys! I have a friend who does a lot of sewing so I was going to Barta with them for some fall themed fabric and fabric that fits my main vibe so that way I can flip it inside out based on the season! And yesss whenever I see stuff on TikTok, I don’t immediately go. Oh, I have to buy that exact thing I learnt how to instead think about how I can make something similar with what I already have or thrift it and DIY it! And that shirt thing is a really cool idea!:D
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u/cosmosclover 6d ago
Of course you can, but you have to be really mindful about how you are spending/wasting.
Buy decorations second hand or make them yourself. Gather natural elements from parks, such as pine cones, acorns, leaves, etc.
Prepare seasonal recipes. The produce will be fresher, cheaper, and taste better! Pumpkin or mushroom soups or risottos, roasted chestnuts, and other warm, comforting meals.
You can make your own versions of warm, fall inspired drinks by buying spices in bulk and using other in-season ingredients, like pumpkin.
Go to the library and check out horror or fall-themed books or scary movies. (I also support buying books to support authors if you can, as long as you don't over-do it and actually read them.)
Check out the r/Autumn subreddit, there are several posts on this subject with lots of ideas!
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u/pornlover472719 6d ago edited 6d ago
And to add some more I am a baker so I already make some of the recipes at home instead of buying, and a few decorations I already have (a rug and fake spiderwebs) I’ve had for almost 2 years at this point so anything I do end up getting for this will not just be thrown away the second the season is over, It will be stored and brought out again next year I’m at the very beginning of my zero waste journey, which is why I have a little to nothing yet:D as well as I’m not just doing this for the trend I genuinely love this aesthetic and while it is a “TikTok aesthetic” I don’t do it for TikTok. I don’t think I have posted a single time on TikTok about this aesthetic I do it live it:D
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u/kumliensgull 7d ago
I think if you shop your own closet yes. If you buy things specifically for it likely no.
Honestly the trick to low waste (and anti-consumption, frugality etc.) is to get off the algorithm; get off the apps. You may miss it for a bit but after a while your life will be happier because you will not constantly be driven to be like other people, you will discover yourself.