class = “sc-cffd1e67-0 iQNQmc”>
In Blick’s “Green and Cheap” series, people from Switzerland show how they consume sustainably in their daily lives, in areas such as food, clothing, travel and furniture. Without having to spend a lot of money.
230 francs. That’s how little money Emma Croci (22), Merlin Spreyermann (21) and Mara Vea (22) spent on decorating their shared living room. All the furniture in the room is second-hand, from the crushed red sofa to the carpet to the huge art posters on the wall. It is available on online sales platforms, in the “Non-Commercial Marketplace” Telegram group, in Brockenhausen or by the roadside.
Furniture store furniture is so boring
For three friends, it is a second-hand way of life, a part of their identity. Approximately 80 percent of all shared flat furniture is second-hand. Saving money and protecting the environment are important, but not the only, motivations for her when furnishing furniture: “I like to look for special furniture and then, with a little luck, find them,” says data science intern Emma Croci. “I used to find it boring to go to the furniture store and live with ordinary furniture.”
The trio post links or photos of furniture they find in the shared apartment chat and then decide whether to buy it. To keep the time required to a minimum, they have subscriptions to search online platforms to find furniture from their neighborhood in Zurich’s District 10. Only a piece of furniture that is cheap and practical cannot enter the shared apartment; It should be so. to match the style they want and make three entries on their Pinterest board.
Also second hand clothes
In fact, most of the apartment residents’ clothes are not new. Things that people were ashamed of in previous generations are popular today; This is because we know about the destructive working conditions and climate damage of the “fast fashion” industry. Contrary to the cliché, even law student Merlin doesn’t bother anyone with his second-hand items on campus: “As a law student these days, it’s normal to wear second-hand items. “Nobody looked at me weird because of that,” he says, pointing to the coat hanger in his minimalist room.
There was an explosion while moving the sofa
The disadvantage of furnishing with used furniture is that it takes time. The shared flat will be established gradually and the packing of belongings needs to be planned well. Most of the time they use public transportation for transportation. Emma Croci and a friend transported her wooden table to their home by low-floor trolley during off-hours commutes. “The salesman looked a little incredulous,” he says, laughing. Everything does not always go according to plan and budget: There was an explosion in the parking lot when I was picking up the sofa in the rental car: minus 100 francs from the safe of the shared apartment for a broken rear-view mirror. After all, the price of the sofa was only one franc.
Tip for second-hand tools
Despite the obstacles, second hand is paying off for Mara Vea. There isn’t a single new piece of furniture in his room. She also propagated most of the plants herself. His little aloe vera is the sprout of a plant his roommate Merlin found abandoned on Langstrasse. She uses her sewing machine to sew second-hand clothes that don’t fit properly. “I grew up looking at Brocki first before buying anything new,” she says in her room overlooking the tram. The musician, who plays in the band Nico and The Tera Band, also prefers to buy used instruments. Your tip for this is Yesman’s in Bern.
Cabinet with a touching story
Mara Vea loves learning the story behind second-hand items. “Then I value the pieces more,” she says. One story is particularly important to him. The 22-year-old young man points to the wooden cabinet that covers almost the entire wall of the room: “Whenever I look at it, I think of a good friend of mine. His late father had the cabinet built. “I’ll take care of the closet until my boyfriend wants it back.”
Source : Blick
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
