Witchy Vibes

This shirt and skirt combo has become a favourite of mine lately, and I discovered both of them (and the coat!) second hand shopping. I could sing the praises of pre-loved fashion until you’re bored to tears but instead I’m going to talk about a recent obsession of mine: Depop. I scored this Bitching and Junkfood top on Depop a couple of months ago and have been adding plenty of pieces to my wardrobe via late night shopping sprees on my phone. I know I’m pretty late to the game – other bloggers have been using it for years. In case you’re not aware, Depop lets you sell clothes on your phone by uploading a photo and a short description. At first glance it seems super sustainable – like car boot shopping on your phone, the eBay of the future! I think it’s great that it brings second hand shopping to an audience that wouldn’t normally spend their Saturday’s scouring the charity shops. Of course, buying second hand is the best because it preserves resource by keeping them in circulation and out of landfill.

There’s just a weird kind of vibe on there. Girls sell very expensive unworn designer clothes, or often outfits that have “only been worn for photos” which strikes me as the opposite of sustainable. I’ve seen users listing their clothes before they have arrived in the post!  It reminds me of sales shopping and encourages an atmosphere of panic buying – it’s cheap, there’s only one, I don’t want someone else to buy it before me – which leads to over shopping. I notice myself browsing when I’m bored and wanting things that I never would have considered had I not been idly scrolling through the app. On the other hand, I’ve found things that I wanted to buy new from ASOS, which is clearly an improved way of shopping! What do you think about Depop – have you used it before?

Outfit Details: Coat, Charity Shop (Rock N Roll Rescue, Camden) / Shirt, Bitching and Junkfood via Depop / Skirt, Mauerpark Flea Market / Shoes, New Look (Old) / Necklace, Black Moon Shop / Lipstick, LA Splash Venom

I’ve been adding an increasing amount of moody element to my outfits recently and I’m really into it. This coat is one of them – I spotted it on a charity shop rail when I was walking through Camden and decided it should be mine. I need a waterproof coat for life in Edinburgh but I hate wearing rain macs all the time, so this PU coat is the perfect compromise. I like the contrast between having this really 70s boho sense of style and also wearing darker pieces. For me at least, it keeps things interesting and I’m digging the witchy vibes. I know a lot of people find this modern, new age interest in witchcraft really bullshit but I think there’s good reason to be drawn to it. Historically, allegations of witchcraft have been used as a tool of the patriarchy to demonise women of power. I think there’s great importance in women reclaiming this recrimination to turn it into the pop culture symbol that it is today. You can’t go far on Instagram without finding “witch” emblazoned on a shirt or a tote bag, which takes away its potential as an insult. Modern witchcraft – as far as I can tell – revolves around women taking control of their own lives, and there’s nothing hokum about that.