Influencing thoughtful consumption with Anisha Kalsi
I’m Anisha and I’m a British Asian girl who has lived in Kent my whole life. I have a sister and live with my parents. I moved away about four years ago when I had the pleasure of attending university in Surrey studying contemporary music and songwriting... that’s been a passion of mine ever since I was about 8. I’ve always appreciated fashion, and though it took the backseat in my life for a while, during the first lockdown I started documenting my outfits - and the rest is history!
Q: Everyone has one outfit you look back on and think ‘What on earth was I thinking?’ Can you sum yours?
A: Oh I definitely have a few! Nothing from recent years, thank goodness! But, back around 2012 I wore burgundy, low waisted, wet look trousers an awful lot. Honestly, I had a nerve thinking I could pull off low waisted trousers. Never again!
Q: When did you know that you wanted to make fashion a big part of your life?
A: Both my sister and my mum were very much into their style and ever since I was young I’ve always thought about the clothes I wear. Whenever I’d go out or even while studying music at uni, I planned my outfits each day. I guess it was after I graduated that fashion became a bigger thing for me. It’s always been there in the background, but since posting my outfits online during lockdown, my liking for fashion has grown into a form of creativity and experimentation.
Q: What has your fashion journey looked like so far?
A: Up until the last year or so I always shopped on the high street. I never bought excessively, but becoming stuck inside and wanting to document my fashion journey influenced me to buy more, because god forbid I outfit repeated, especially on the gram! It wasn’t until I entered the world of Instagram and met bloggers that posed the questions, ‘who makes my clothes?’, ‘Where do my clothes come from?’ and ‘Why are they valued so cheaply?’ that I began to question my choices. It was around October - I had just made my first By Megan Crosby purchase - when I started to truly value sustainability and the ethics behind a brand. No journey is ever easy but I’m now in a place where I can afford to save for sustainable pieces that I really love and know would last for life. That’s so much better than buying fast fashion.
Q: What are your top tips for finding independent and sustainable fashion brands whilst also trying to stand out from the crowd?
A: Made to order! A lot of small brands allow you to literally design your own or alter an existing garment to put your own stamp on it. By Megan Crosby and With Love Evie do this beautifully. Also, follow smaller influencers who are into sustainable fashion because they could end up sharing a brand you may not have heard of before!
But the best way to find these independent, unique brands is just research. It’ll be luck if one crops up on your feed that’s sustainable, ethically made and right up your street, but they’re definitely out there. A few of my faves include By Megan Crosby and With Love Evie, Molby the Label, Ilk + Ernie and Cnstnce Boutique. These are great places to start if you love colour, gingham and big collars!
“It’s us influencers that people look to when buying. If I can show someone how to rewear an item in many ways, that’s better than influencing them to buy four tops they don’t need."
Q: What would be your top tips for living a more conscious life through fashion?
A: The first thing is to catch the impulse buyer in you and tell them to stop! When purchasing I always think about the brand, whether the piece will last and whether I could fall out of love with it the next few years. I also try to shop my wardrobe a lot, often trying new outfit combinations to spice things up a bit. If I ever want a sustainable item that’s a little bit pricey I’ll simply save up for it. That way you can break up the cost a little and continue to shop thoughtfully.
Q: As Summer approaches, I’m aware of how exposed colour makes me feel. Have you had this problem?
A: Oh yes, especially when I’m running around my local town where everyone else is dressed in muted neutrals and blacks. I just feel that for me, fashion is expression and I love funky, colourful outfits! That being said, if you want to add more colour into your wardrobe, the best time to do it is Summer. Brighter days make me want to dress boldly! At the end of the day, as long as you feel good in your colourful outfit, that’s all that matters!
Q: What would be your tips for incorporating more colour into your wardrobe?
A: I would say to start with easy colours like blues, or mellow colours like pastel shades and then gradually get bolder. Incorporating a colourful bag or cardigan on top of a neutral outfit would be a good start to test the waters with little pops of colour. Definitely look at what you’ve got in your wardrobe and experiment. It’s all about being creative!
Q: Are digital creators trying to abolish the idea of ‘one wear per image’ that’s paraded on the online fashion space?
A: Oh, no I hate this idea too! It never should’ve been a thing, but that’s fast, throwaway fashion for you. It baffles me that some influencers wear a completely different outfit in each post and some pieces, if not most, are never to be seen again. Luckily, a lot of creators I follow tend to restyle the same pieces in many of their reels and I admire this.
When you have these sustainable pieces, you’d never want to post about them just once. I’ll always try to restyle the pieces in my wardrobe in different ways. You can see on my feed that I’m practically always in a pair of gingham trousers and would never just wear them once and throw them. Reels like ‘three ways to wear X’ are great to escape that throwaway mentality. We should all be proud of our outfit repeating!
Q: I admire the way you subtly show your audience how to re-wear garments across a variation of outfits and styles. Do you believe more digital creators can make this a priority
A: Thank you very much! I love that I get the opportunity to do this for my audience and I really believe that digital creators should make this a priority. If an influential creator was to restyle a piece in a few ways, I bet it would influence others to try and do the same. At the end of the day, it’s us influencers that people look to when buying. If I can show someone how to rewear an item in many ways, that’s better than influencing them to buy four tops they don’t need.
Q: I’m eager to ask. What even is the ‘traditional fashion industry’ in your eyes?
A: As someone who just loves fashion and hasn’t really studied the industry, although I’m not educated to answer on this, what I would say is that the ‘traditional’ fashion industry is very much involved in throwaway, fast fashion culture. Pumping out new pieces every second and causing overconsumption; it’s a money making machine that has no care for its workers or how many clothes end up in landfill. The good thing is that there are now more conscious consumers around to challenge this. The only way things are going to get better is if we all start asking the difficult questions.
