Dear P.N.Q. family,

We all know the feeling. You just got your paycheck and you are about to spoil yourself. You hop on your bike and leave for the city centre. Time for a makeover.

Don’t we all start with 'the list': new summer shoes, a maxi dress and a light jacket. July is always the worst, because you find yourself bagging way too many steals. A couple hours later you find yourself carrying 7 plastic bags of the stores you shopped at.

Once home, you unpack your stuff and try everything on in front of the mirror. The catwalk is real. You feel new and improved, if only slightly guilty that you didn’t really buy the stuff on your list. Oh well, next month!

Now, if only you could still find some space to tuck away all those ugly plastic shoppingbags… You find yourself reaching for the ‘crap-drawer’ and you muffle the bags away along with the 200+ other ones in there.

Dont we all tell ourselves same thing: one day these will come in handy! The reality is, they will not. Every display of consumerism requires a brand new bag to carry your clothes in. I’ve never seen anyone carry around a wrinkled reused Zara bag.

I don’t really know about other countries, but in Belgium we buy special bags for our trash to make the recycling process more efficiënt. So you can’t use them for trash. Maybe temporarily.  Basically, they are useless.

So next time you go shopping, think of two things. First off, try sticking tot he list, there is a reason you make it. There is also a reason why the stuff you bought was on sale. But most importantly, bring a couple of linnen bag with you and stash your stuff in there.

Think of the environment and don't be afraid to invest in yourself as well.

With love,

Katrien Smets