The Newest Trend Is Actually… Underconsuming?
For a long time social media was a place for influencers to try and get others to buy more items. But now there’s a new trend: underconsumption. According to GoodNet, underconsumption is the newest trend all over TikTok. Many influencers on the app are encouraging others to actually buy less and use what they already have.
The newest trend
This new trend of underconsumption is likely based off of a minimalism movement that was once incredibly popular. Marie Kondo is a Japanese organizing consultant who popularized the trend of underconsuming in the past. Kondo believes that people would get rid of things that are unneeded and only keeping things that are necessary or really “spark joy.”
Currently, a lot of the videos around underconsumption show using items like soap and lotion until they are completely empty and only buying true necessities. These videos show things like repairing old torn clothing, wearing old sneakers, and washing out glass bottles to reuse them.
If you want to underconsume but you don’t know where to start there’s a few easy steps to begin. One of the best ways to start underconsuming is to be mindful of all of the purchases you make. This means that any purchases are made intentionally and not just on a whim. Another good start is to just make sure you use and value everything you have all the way while also not restricting yourself to a point where it makes you unhappy.
How you can begin underconsuming
Some of the best things to start with when underconsuming is:
1. Using all your clothes and not buying new outfits unless necessary. This includes staying away from fast fashion trends.
2. Using soap, lotion, laundry detergent, and other products all the way until you need more.
3. Trying not to buy things that you’ll never use or things that you wouldn’t actually display in your home.
4. Reusing seasonal items every year instead of throwing them out and buying new ones. Overconsuming is a big problem near the end of the year because home fall/winter decorations can be hard to ignore, but it’s good to be mindful of what you already have and to use these decorations first before you add more.
