We read all the headlines – the island of love Dumps Fast Fashion! Ebay sponsor saves the environment! — and tied for a series of wellness apparel underscored by an “eat, sleep, put back, repeat” mentality. But, two weeks into ITV2’s holiday dating camp, how many times have we witnessed repeated wear and tear, apart from the wedges of criminal sneakers that Love Islanders are, for unknown reasons, wedded to, and the Yeezy-style slides that even Kanye West has trouble pulling off (sorry Lucas).

This year’s ITV2 series got off to a promising start. With contestants wearing a mix of their own clothes and pre-loved pieces sourced from Ebay by stylist Amy Bannerman, we saw Dami sporting a blue Pleats Please Issey Miyake shirt, Tasha modeling an old-school studded Diesel dress and Amber sporting a Chanel brooch on her white jumpsuit. But then it was back to business as usual.

the island of love 2022 has been a disappointing explosion of barely-there bikinis and micro-mini dresses from top brands, such as Asos, New Look, Boohoo, H&M and Oh Polly. Admittedly, there’s not the same element of encouraging viewers to buy contestants’ Missguided or I Saw It First looks as sponsors in previous years, but it doesn’t take long to scour the internet for, say, , Paige’s pink. sequined swimsuits (£40 at Sherbet Lemon, since you asked).

One problem is that the islanders themselves don’t seem thrilled that there’s a vintage treasure at their fingertips. Rather than being shipped cheap, fast-paced batches of clothes — styles that sponsors typically whip out after hopefuls have worn them on TV — Bannerman’s team curated an internal Ebay edition of major hits. ‘archives of Gucci, Prada, Dior and Versace and high – street gems from old favourites, such as Bay Trading, Tammy Girl and Morgan. There’s no mention of the nostalgia of seeing Kate Moss for Topshop on the rails (maybe they’re too young to appreciate that?), or images of the girls arguing over who gets to wear a dress first. Balmain particularly beautiful (sharing clothes is also the eco-responsible objective of the season). It could be the editing, as there seems to be very little – aside from cuddling – that gets them talking.

Second, there’s no indication of all of Bannerman’s fabulous fashion sources on Ebay for weeks, or the poignant themes they’ve picked, from the smooth “Blurred Lines” to the compilation of classics, called ” Love Me Forever”. Unless you’re a fashion sleuth, you might need a little help identifying this niche Christopher Kane X Browns dress. All Ebay offers are generic advertisements during the frequent the island of love breaks.

“Any attempt to normalize second-hand fashion can only be a good thing, but if viewers don’t know if contestants are wearing pre-loved clothes, it’s hard to know how much it will actually change their habits. of purchase”, declares the Briton vogueEmily Chan, Senior Sustainability and Reporting Writer. “It’s a start, but there’s still a long way to go before we see widespread cultural change.”

Deep breathing. There are still six weeks of life left on the island. Tanned and toned attendees just might miss Mistress Rocks, Femme Luxe and Club L. The opportunity to help change the narrative around the value of fashion is too precious to waste. Ditto the chance to promote individualism over a cohesive dress code — one of the reasons Bannerman signed up for the job. Somebody wear Versace, please.