Our next mag could have your name on it 💅

We’re accepting pitches for issue 2.0!!

Mag #2 is officially happening and we want you to be a part of it!

If you’re new around here, Not Buying It dishes the dirt on the fashion sins (exploitation - not skinny jeans) traditional media loves to ignore. We remix the teen mags of the early 2000s in style and attitude. Get to know us here.

The theme: fashion x politics

Our wardrobes contain more than cute fits - they tell stories of struggle and resistance. Politics = power. Power = money. And fashion is defined by an imbalance of both. Billionaire founders get richer while garment workers starve and the planet burns.

Fashion is SO political. Migrant workers targeted by ICE raids. Farmers and machinists collapsing in deadlier heatwaves. Waste pickers forced to clean up Big Fashion’s mess. Different struggles, same root cause: racial capitalism.

To pretend “it’s not that deep” is to ignore all of the way fashion shapes (and is shaped by) culture, industry, geopolitical relations, elections, our sense of self, our mental health, neocolonialism, conflict and more. Mag #2 will be delving into these intersections because it’s all connected!

How to get your work featured

1) Pitch your idea: We’re looking for original writing, illustrations, collages, teen mag-style games and quizzes, photography, fashion designs and interviews that respond to the theme. To pitch, send us a short bio and 1-2 paras outlining your idea to mag@not-buying-it.co.uk.

BTW you don’t need to have tons of experience - just a good idea that suits the mags vibe! Before pitching, we recommend reading the first mag to get a feel for our style.

2) Join our writing pool: Want to be assigned an article for this issue and be considered for future guest writing opps? Email us your bio, examples of your writing and interests. Here are some examples of the topics we’re looking to commission for mag #2:

1. How the billionaire boys club is ruining everything

2. One hun’s trash ≠ another hun’s treasure

3. What slogan tees get right (and very wrong!)

4. Fashion’s fake democracy promise

5. Cultural appropriation

6. The tradwife aesthetic and rise of fascism

7. Palestinian craft, solidarity and remembrance

8. How we went from subcultures to microtrends

9. The fight for migrant rights on the factory floor

10. Why repairing is political

11. “Not asking for it” - why clothes ≠ consent

12. A short history of political fashion statements

13. Teen mag elements: quiz, horoscopes, this or that etc.

Get in touch by 15th Feb

We will respond to everyone once this deadline has passed. If accepted, contributors will be sent submission guidelines. Upon completion, contributors will each receive a £100 submission fee, a free mag plus a free invite to our London launch event. We can’t wait to co-create this next issue with you! 💋