swishing - what's new?

Those of you who know me well and even for those who have only just visited the ecospot, will know my obsession with all things eco.

Well, I have a new obsession - swishing.

This has all originated from the current BBC 2 programme - 'Twiggy's Frock Exchange'. The clue is in the title really - frocks and outfits are exchanged between visiting women, thus getting rid of that fashion disaster yourself, and swapping it for something more fitting...

Anything truly awful has the opportunity to be customised by a team from TRAID remade, and every week a designer give away is fought over by the ravening fashion hordes.

The idea is that we can all arrange parties to swap our clothes that we no longer like, get a new look for free, and help the environment to boot.

Call me cynical, but when I was younger, this was just called charity shopping, and yes, not free, but then the money was going to needy causes. And we ripped things up, painted things, and sewed them back together (badly) but hey - I was not going to see anyone else in the same outfit (sometimes a good thing)

Now, if we have to sexy up eco for the fashionistas - fine - every little helps, and better that we all swap or buy secondhand than new, but itself swishing is not new. We've been doing it for years. It's just that now it's fashionable - so my new obsession is not new, it's just got another label.

I suppose 'swishing' is infinitely more sexy than 'thrifty'...