The life cycle of clothing

Used, unwearable clothing was once used for quilts, rag, rugs, bandages, and many other household uses. It could also be recycled into paper. Now it is usually thrown away. Used but still wearable clothing can be sold at consignment shops, flea markets, online auction, or donated to charity. Charities usually skim the best of the clothing to sell in their own thrift stores and sell the rest to merchants, who bale it up and ship it to Third World countries, where vendors bid for the bales, then sell the used clothing.

There are many concerns about the life cycle of synthetics which come primarily from petrochemicals. Unlike natural fibers, their source is not renewable (in less than millions of years) and they are not biodegradable.

Early 21st-century clothing styles

Western fashion has, to some extent, become international fashion, as Western media and styles penetrate all parts of the world. Few places remain where people do not wear items of cheap, mass-produced Western clothing. People in poor countries can afford used clothing from wealthier Western countries.

People may wear ethnic or national dress on special occasions or in certain roles or occupations. For example, most Korean men and women have adopted Western-style dress for daily wear, but will still wear traditional hanboks on special occasions, like weddings and cultural holidays. Items of Western dress may also appear worn or accessorized in distinctive, non-Western ways. A Tongan man may combine a used T-shirt with a Tongan wrapped skirt, or tupenu.

Western fashion, too, does not function monolithically. It comes in many varieties, from expensive haute couture to thrift store grunge.

Regional styles

• Clothing of Europe and Russia
• Clothing in the Americas
• South American fashion
• United States mainstream fashion

For example: "Catalogue" fashion, regional styles such as preppy or Western wear.

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• United States alternative fashion

These fashions are often associated with fans of various musical styles.