By Ella Karoline Hendricks
Sustainability, ironically, seems to be the newest trend, spanning generations. Students and adults of all ages are flocking to thrift, second-hand, and vintage stores, finding staples and unique pieces alike.
Second-hand and vintage stores aim to decrease the incessant waste of clothing within the fashion industry. According to the Boston University School of Public Health, each year the United States discards more than 34 billion pounds of used textiles. These second-hand stores work at revitalizing and reworking these textiles into usable clothing, thus eliminating potential waste.
The dangers of climate change are becoming more well-known, and rising interests in sustainability have resulted in a trend toward shopping second-hand. For those who shop with sustainability in mind, fast fashion has become taboo with the rising concerns surrounding climate change and dangerous levels of clothing waste, and in its place, sustainable fashion has begun to reign supreme in both mainstream and counterculture.
Yet, these second-hand stores have become more than just a place to shop – they have become the very lifeline of our community.
One such store is Signora Solare – a cute, kitschy vintage shop located off the Fayetteville square in its iconic forest green building. Italian for “sunny lady,” Signora Solare is classy, cute and fun, offering a variety of clothing and accessories for everyone. Audra Unruh, the owner of the shop, has always had a love for vintage and thrifting.
Thrifting since 13, she said she views sourcing her clothing as one of her favorite parts of the job, finding it therapeutic as she takes the item from the throes of an overcrowded thrift store to having a full transformation of the piece – from washing, mending, to styling and seeing it on a beautiful model in kitten heels. For Unruh, the process of imagining and visualizing the items in her store is the most magical part and one of the reasons Signora Solare has such creativity and uniqueness.
Unruh was an apparel merchandising major with a minor in sustainability at the University of Arkansas. She worked at Darcy Apparel, a local sustainable slow fashion store, before deciding to start her own business.
“My big motivator was the climate crisis and how bad fast fashion is for the planet,” Unruh said. “I feel like when I was in college, not that many girls knew about that kind of thing, and it was so needed in Fayetteville.”
On her thoughtfully designed website, Unruh describes her store as using circular fashion, meaning her clothes are all about recycling and reusing.
“Everything in my store is second-hand, so technically, I have no fast fashion or slow fashion because I don’t produce anything. But slow fashion means I definitely don’t do fast fashion.”
One of the unique features of Signora Solare is the option of individualized Pinterest Board Style Bundles. Through her website, you sign up with a form and pin outfits you can see yourself wearing, such as cotton sweaters or linen pants. Unruh will then thrift items that fit your aesthetic and board.
“Transitioning seasons is when people really mostly want a bunch of new clothes,” she said. “With the style bundles, I can go through it, look at all of your inspo, and then go thrift pieces from that board that I see in the thrift store, so that is so much fun for me – to basically make people have a mini-Christmas and just get to open up 10 things they pinned on Pinterest.”
Unruh explained thrifting can be very overwhelming and time-consuming and not realistic for everyone. Her store offers an alternative to fast fashion and the challenges of thrifting, offering a curated alternative shopping experience that is better for you and the environment. While this is sometimes looked down upon in the vintage spaces, Unruh does not source clothing based on brands or logos. Instead, she looks at the garment’s structure and condition. This reduces waste as she focuses on versatile, quality clothing that can be worn again and again.
Arlie Gordon is a junior majoring in apparel merchandising and product development at the University of Arkansas. She has always been interested in fashion and is minoring in sustainability.
Currently, she is enrolled in Sustainability and the Apparel Industry, a course taught by Dr. Lance M. Cheramie that explains the effects of the fashion industry on the environment. One of the main points highlighted in the course is how the cycles of clothing are exponentially speeding up like never before. To Gordon, sustainable fashion is taking what you have and making the best use of it as well as being mindful when shopping for new items. Gordon also appreciates how many options there are in Fayetteville for shopping sustainably.
“I think that it brings a unique piece of character to Fayetteville,” Gordon said “There are no cool spots for vintage shopping in the rest of NWA. One of my personal favorite shops is Recollect – it is more men’s clothing, but I have found some really cool finds. Another place I love is Cheap Thrills – I feel like overall it just adds more character to Fayetteville. As a college town – it definitely feels like the hip part of Fayetteville.”
Gordon has been a long-time follower of Signora Solare, recently attending their vintage pop-up at the farmers market and buying a vintage brass duck for her apartment. She said she always makes it a priority to go to Signora Solare when she’s in the square.
“I’ve been associated with Unruh since she worked at Darcy, which I also appreciate for being sustainable. I’m really proud of her and I can’t wait to see where the business goes.”
The Library Vintage is a subscription-based clothing store, meaning items can be returned and swapped for new styles and pieces as often as customers want. For $20 a month, you can check out one item and swap it as many times as you want. For $50, you can check out five items. They offer a 10% discount on things you want to keep and have no late fees. Meg Carpenter is the owner of the eclectic and homey Library Vintage. For Carpenter, accessibility is one of the most important aspects of their business, and this can be seen through all aspects of the shop.
The rental model is incredibly eco-friendly; it allows clothes to be worn, shared and used to their fullest potential. Carpenter states they are “allergic to trash,” and nothing has to be wasted. They are very resourceful and have always been that way. They look at approaching sustainability as the harder yet necessary choice.
“Just because it’s easier to go on Amazon doesn’t mean you have to go online – start at a local business,” Carpenter said.
While this rental model is fairly new to Fayetteville, subscription-based clothing models have been seen from brands such as Nuuly and Rent the Runway. Yet, The Library Vintage has a heart running through it that is not seen within the national-level brands. The Library Vintage showcases small independent and local designers, who might not otherwise have the capacity to showcase their work. Having it in The Library helps to absorb the costs and allows more exposure to the upcoming brands. Their goal is to uplift local designers and provide an outlet for their work to be shown.
One of the most recent additions to fashion has been the advent of microtrends. Microtrends are the result of accelerated trend cycles and remain a controversial topic among the fashion community.
“I have no problems with trends, at the end of the day, it is whatever someone wants to wear,” Carpenter states. “As a queer person, clothing is part of representation toward others. I have no overarching curating theme; I buy cool, weird clothes and my hope is people can experiment with their style. Fast fashion is, well, bleh, but it is sometimes the only accessible option for plus-size wearers. Vintage and modern brands often fail people today. Ultimately, no clothes should cost that little amount of money. Not gonna shame people for their habits, climate change is not in the hands of the consumer, we are all just doing our best.”
One of Carpenter’s main motivations in starting The Library Vintage was providing first and foremost a queer safe space, as “there is a huge lack of queer spaces in Northwest Arkansas” Carpenter said. Activism and advocacy are at the very core of The Library Vintage. The shop spouts LGBTQ+ flags, community resources such as information on local food banks, free Plan B, and information from the Ozark Circle for Choice as well as information surrounding the Free Palestine Movement and fundraising for families in Gaza.
Balancing businesses and activism can be tricky; there is the question of whether it would motivate consumers to shop at stores such as The Library Vintage or if it could steer them away. Gordon values transparency above all.
“I like when companies are transparent, I like to look on their website to see where things are being sourced and made,” Gordon said. “ When the company is very transparent and upfront about an item of clothing, I feel better about purchasing. While I support sustainability, I also shop fast fashion at times. I’m not perfect, but it is nice to see exactly what impact is being made, as greenwashing is a huge problem and transparency is the most effective way of combating it.”
Carpenter explained the point of the store is to “create a safe place and fashion community. A place to come exist and make friends, and that has been part of the reason why the Library Vintage has been so successful. It allows for a queer third space – an outlet for participation, a place where people can come and hang out, or pop in on the way to work.”
The Library Vintage has a community scrapbook, filled to the brim with collages and works of art made right there at the store – they offer free, donated craft supplies and a space to create. People of all ages come in often to craft and hang out. Carpenter said they believe the donations given to the store should be free for the customers to use and enforce this as a rule, offering free craft supplies and a free clothing donation bin.
Similarly, Signora Solare not only offers cute and ethical clothes but an opportunity for other small brands to find community, as well. Toward the end of the month, Unruh hosts a community vintage market in the store’s parking lot to give other small vendors a chance to shine. She describes the relationships between other small businesses as friendly, with no animosity. Instead, they bond over being a small business.
“Fayetteville is small enough to be here for one another,” Unruh said, her voice light and content, “I am all for shopping small and helping the economy be more circular.”
One of the other ways Unruh has worked to involve the community in her store is with her new “Sunny Lady Club.” She describes this once-a-month club as a third space besides work and home, where there is a place for a community of people who also love shopping sustainability. The membership-based club also includes early access to drops, earning rewards, and 20% off the whole store.
“I am all for adults having hobbies and doing fun things together. Let’s all hang out at my store and have a glass of champagne. It’s fun!”
Sav, one of Meg’s closest friends, had been a huge help in getting the business started up. They were sitting and working at the communal table, just enjoying the environment of the shop.
“I’ve seen so many iterations of this idea, written in their journal, and it’s great to see this beautiful community space,” Sav said, tearing up. “A place where you can take up space and be a bigger version of yourself, and this is what being friends with Meg is like. It is an absolute honor to be adjacent to this.”
At the heart of all these second-hand shops is a love for our environment, our community and its people. Regardless of the business structure, it is the caring and kind people behind the businesses that make it all worthwhile.