This is going to sound arrogant (and perhaps it is), but I rarely find people whose thoughts on fashion I’m genuinely interested in. The insiders can be uncritical and take themselves way too seriously, the outsiders often don’t understand how the industry works and/or are bitter because they are outsiders. The best person to have views on style – and on most things, really – is a somewhat disillusioned (former) insider.

So when Pandora Sykes writes about fashion, I pay attention. As the former Wardrobe Mistress of the Sunday Times and a street style darling, she has always been well informed, a great writer with fascinating personal style, and deeply analytical on top of that. She gets it. Her recent book of essays, How Do We Know We Are Doing It Right, is a very enjoyable read and if one wants to understand the thinking of an intelligent millennial women, there’s no need to look further.

While it’s not a book about fashion, the topic is covered in one of the essays called Get The Look. And interestingly, it’s one of the few essays where I feel like arguing with the author. She convincingly sets out the problems with our obsession of getting the look. And in discussing the (potential) remedies, she comes to a conclusion that while renting clothes is more sustainable – and cheaper – than buying them, it’s still not sustainable and cheap enough. But most importantly, renting is not a solution because it doesn’t address the root cause: our yearning for the new.

It’s not that I disagree with Sykes outright. I have said very similar things many times, lamenting our (my) constant craving for the new, shiny things. But recently, I’ve started to suspect that I’ve been too hard on this impulse. We have a tendency to see it simply as a vulgar wish to tote the latest expensive fashions, to have that IT item – something that confirms our status and taste. And that element certainly exists. But our desire for something fresh has redeeming qualities as well.

I think there is an intimate link between the need for the new and our creativity. The way I walk into Zara and can immediately envision three different ways of wearing every item in there isn’t quite on the same level as Mondrian’s vision for a different kind of art. But ultimately, it comes from the same place. It’s about creating an aesthetic, about having a point of view, about imagining something anew.

So it’s not necessarily the craving that is the problem. The problem is where and how we channel it. That Zara example – perhaps not what we should be focusing on. We have to find better, healthier outlets for this fundamental part of us: be it shopping vintage or swapping or renting or styling things up with makeup and hair. And frankly, even if some our impulses are unworthy (wanting those Bottega mules simply because they induce irrational lust), if renting them is better for the planet, it’s still a better choice. Imperfect action is better than dreams of perfection.

All the above is relevant for this post only because the pink Lilli Jahilo dress does not belong to me. I was picking up a dress that was, in fact, mine, and ended up taking this pink beauty with me for the shoot. While I don’t think this dress is usually available for rent, it represents a category where renting often makes sense. If you aren’t like me and don’t wear floor-length gowns to almost any event (including having a sandwich in your mother’s kitchen in the countryside), you may prefer renting occasion wear to buying it. The same goes for anything else that is expensive and not worn often.

Although if you WERE to buy this dress, it would serve you well for years. It’s simple but high impact and a colour that’s less about trends and more about making a statement. I admit that shocking pink isn’t the easiest shade to wear, so let me share my one pro tip: I would usually suggest that to make things more effortless, it’s best to pair high-voltage dresses with pared-back makeup and hair. In this case, however, I found that matching my lips to the dress really helped and prevented me from being completely washed out and overshadowed by the gown.

Do you have any good strategies for consuming less? Apart from, you know, simply consuming less.

Dress by Lilli Jahilo, MUAH by Lembe Lemmiksoo, images by Laura Nestor, location Pärnu Rannahotell.