RNG Thrifting Challenge + Haul!!

Goodwill thrift clothing, number generator, phone camera, $11.58

Instructions

Assess the layout of your thrift store (mine being Goodwill)
Determine which aisles you will choose from for ‘tops’ and ‘bottoms’ by using a number generator. I (the number generator set to 3) randomly chose between 1-sleeveless tops, 2-short sleeve tops, and 3-dresses. For bottoms, I chose between 1-skirts, 2-pants, and 3-jeans.
If there is more than one aisle, for example, 3 pants aisles, I would once again use a number generator to determine which aisle to select from. However, if there was an aisle with mostly Ls-XXXLs, I would not count the aisle.
If you landed on the ‘dress’ aisle, you may not need to repeat the process for the pants.
Estimate the number of items in an aisle (I estimated 100) and set the generator to the said number.
Repeat the process 6 times, 3 times for tops and 3 times for bottoms.
Out of the 6 (or 5) items randomly chosen, make an outfit.
If items do not fit or are either too big or too small, take them into your own hands and alter them accordingly by deconstructing and reconstructing the pieces.

Artist Statement

In a complex and technologically advanced world, the word system can be applied to anything. We have systems set in place to keep people safe and to provide services, and most certainly in a capitalistic society, which is a system, we have many systems working to optimize productivity, and wealth and keep the bourgeoisie and the working class separate.

Like many frugal families not profiting from the systems we have in place, I grew up unaware of weekend shopping sprees, instead learning how to treasure the items I already have. Only when we grew out of anything essential like winter boots, school pants, or running shoes, and had no hand-me-downs, were we given a tight budget to buy something new. Therefore, when my mother took me to Value Village for the first time for a Halloween costume, I unlocked the shopping that was within my grasp. Fast forward to today, however, and those who can afford to buy new clothing in shopping malls flood thrift stores and resell those items at ridiculous prices. This may be one motivation for thrift stores to price gouge their selections, making them further inaccessible to those in the most need of discounted items.

Now, fast fashion in malls is becoming more affordable than thrift stores. Those stores which work as nodes in a larger system are implementing changes to deepen the pockets of their CEOs by removing changerooms and cutting hiring costs by implementing self-checkouts. It was upsetting to see the original purpose of the thrifting system change over time due to late-stage capitalism and the influence of affluent hipsters and resellers partaking and encouraging in consumerist culture in the digital space.

So, after boycotting Value Village, I decided to give Goodwill a shot and introduce a rule-based game fueled by chance to reduce my bias and curation. This experiment was intended for me to mimic the influencers taking over thrift stores and encouraging a harmful culture in sustainable spaces meant to be accessible, giving CEOs a reason to continue to inflate prices and encourage mass purchases. The rules were decided to explore donations at this location from a neutral standpoint, introduce an aspect of chance and model the ‘challenges’ that allow influencers to have catchy video titles.

To my surprise, the prices were much cheaper than Value Village, and there were also changing rooms and cashier clerks. I went into this experiment dreading that I had promised to make an outfit from the 6 items I randomly chose, but I ended up finding a cute outfit that I would wear again together or as separate pieces. In conclusion, it was interesting but vital to assess how an everyday system, in this case, thrift stores continue to be affected by an overarching system like capitalism. Subsequently, I plan to continue investigating changes that are implemented, encourage responsible thrifting, and analyze other changing systems we tend to overlook in our everyday routines.