#interview with Mengyán Eszter

Eszter Mengyán is an honest person. I like reading her blog about sustainable fashion because it is visible that she loves this topic and does her best to make people aware about its importance. She is the one who makes 10x10 clothes challanges and I always followed but never dared to start (I aim spring next year for my first one!)

Read her words about her thoughts on secondhand itmes and the dedication towards environment.

Introduce yourself, please!

I am Eszter Menygán, more than 10 years I work as a journalist and since 2 years I have a blog as well. I was born in Békéscsaba and now I live in Budapest. I am so lucky that my work is my hobby. For this reason I don’t find the border between and I find particularly hard to find new ways to recharge. It is hard to always think of new and upcoming content. Since a year sport is active part of my daily life and I go to psychologist as well. It was a long journey to the person who I am today and I know still there is a lot to develop and I am working on it.

What do you think of the secondhand clothes? Do you have any item what is from a secondhand store?

In the beginning of the summer when I was preparing as a guest speaker at Simplicity Festival I was counting my actual wardrobe (not the whole as we are in the middle of changing flats). I have from all places, mainly 50 % of my clothes are from second hand – not just from stores but from clothes swaps, garage sales or I inherited.  I think I don’t have any from charity shops.

What is important for you when creating your wardrobe?

At the moment I have to accept that my style / wardrobe is changing with me and I have to learn to let it go the feeling that it have to be ready. An other important thing what I keep in mind that I want to have less new clothes and I try to buy from secondhand what I can. As a blogger I also test clothes and other items about clothing  so I can talk about them and spread the word and this is how new pieces are entering my wardrobe. Today has an extra importance that I wear my type of colors what I learnt in the past year. I know my exact bra size, I know my body and its measures so when I choose a cloth I all take this into consideration. At the moment I can live together with the fact that my wardrobe is not 100% perfect and I have pieces that I know the origin of it. In this way I keep the transition a slower process so I will not go crazy in letting go pieces what I do not want yet.

How can we use second hand stores consciously?

Once I wrote a blog post about it and since than many people read and shared it. The aim is to stay “conscious” also in the secondhand shops. You should stay wise also while shopping there. I often get messages that in the secondhand stores there are only fast fashion pieces and it doesn’t worth buying it, during a sale you can find cheaper pieces in the store. On one hand it is true, there are many fast fashion pieces in the secondhand shops, cloths are swapping super fast. But there is a difference also between fast fashion brands and in the secondhand shops you can find better pieces as well and you can search a concrete brand as well who has more quality collections.

How did you start working on this topic?

I started as a journalist and it became priority.

Why is it important for you?

I really like fashion – more preciously I love how we can express ourselves with clothes. I like that from pieces of fabric we can create a cloth and it helps us to feel better and it can tell our story and talks about us, it connects us with no words. Fashion is much more than clothes. What is happening the fashion industry in the past years it took from us what made lovable clothing. The fashion what rules the world is exploited and harming environment. We know alternatives so why not talk about it? In this play I have a role as an mediator what is really exciting in my profession and also interesting for me as a person. In connection of sustainable fashion I met wonderful people and I believe it is because people work a common higher goal. This common goal is not the  profit, finding new lines but something more complex.

In your daily life how this environmentally conscious lifestyle does appear?

I aim to shop less than before – not just from clothes but in general. Cosmetics, household products. Back at times I had 3 bottle of shower gel at my bath tub, today I have one soap and I buy new one only when it finishes. I use less plastic – like I do not drink mineral water, I do not ask for straw and plastic bag. I still have to do a lot to rearrange my life in order I can say I did everything what I could – but I do my best.

What does this lifestyle give you?

Connection with people. Honest and serious conversations. Development. Deep thinking. Failures, but mainly successes. It feels good that I can also do something and that together with me, or for my effect also others start to think this way. I believe it is a huge thing.

When do you feel yourself authentic?

I feel authentic when I am honest. when I explain to people who follow me, what and why I do it. Not everyone agrees with me and I can cause disappointment as well. In October my blog will come over a big development and I do not know how will it be for others but I know exactly what and why I did it.

How do you reach out to people? How can you communicate this topic effectively?

Oh, I never thought I can affect people or how they think. Feedbacks and the letters from the readers are saying something different. Obviously I can not affect people and this is not my aim. Many times I am afraid I cannot give enough.

I think the key of effective communication is in honesty. There are people, who are more authentic than me in the topic of sustainable fashion but they do not talk about it. There are people who already made their own capsule wardrobe and in the meantime I am not able to do it over 2 years. But I am honest about it and share with others where I am at the moment even if sometimes it feels really hard to do it because it makes me vulnerable.

+1.

I am satisfied when

... Oh, it happens rarely :D