Why is it chic to be thrifty?

The authors of Thrifty Chic, Alexandra Campbell and Liz Bauwens, explain.

How would you define Thrifty Chic?
Thrifty Chic is not buying anything unless you really need it, or think it is very beautiful. It is also not being influenced by designer names, brands or the latest fashions.

Thrifty and Chic are words that would not have been put side-by-side twenty years ago. Why do you think thriftiness is so chic at the moment?
It's about tapping into creativity rather than spending: people now feel much prouder of giving their old bookcase a lift by painting it than of going out and buying a new bookcase. It's saving whereever you can so you can buy the one glorious extravagance that will make all the difference.

You say that thriftiness is essential to today’s living, what are your top three thriftiest tips?
1) Paint changes everything (and is cheap)
2) Think about updating or repairing rather than replacing: would that lamp look better with a new shade? Could you add a strip of fabric to your curtains to make them longer?
3) Everything that goes around comes around. If you don't want something see if you can find someone who will. You could try selling it, or, ask if anyone would like to take it away for free (councils usually charge, so this will be doing you a favour) Either ask around or contact www.freecycle.org One day someone will ring you and ask if you want their gorgeous mirror, traditionally built sofa or chest of drawers.

People think that Thrifty Chic must be shabby, battered or retro. Is there a particular era it is linked with?
Our Thrifty Chic book shows that you can have anything from a very modern interior to classic English country style without spending too much money. It's not linked to any particular era or style - it's just a question of getting to know the look that suits you best and finding out as much as possible about where and how you can get it cheaply.

What is your favourite bargain purchase and why?
My favourite bargain at the moment is some dark chocolate Alcantara (a very high quality washable faux-suede) which I got on ebay for £20. It often retails at about £120 a metre, but my £20 has bought me enough to re-cover about four chair seats.
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A chapter in Thrifty Chic is dedicated to step-by-step projects for accessories for the home. Where did you get the ideas for the projects and which one is your favourite?
The ideas for the projects come from us all chatting about how people do things - very often the person whose house we're photographing will have done something clever and we think it would be nice to show readers how they did it. The padded headboard is my favourite because companies can charge such alot for a padded headboard.

As well as being a design style do you think the principle of thrifty chic can become a lifestyle choice? If so, what other parts of life can it be applied to?
Everyone is now questioning both the ethics and viability of our high-spending, throw-away society. A few people have become very rich in the past few decades, and& nbsp;their consumption (thousands of pounds on a handbag, hundreds of pairs of shoes, four or five holidays a year) has been presented as normal, rather than the exception. A whole generation has grown up with being offered loans to buy things they can't afford, and been encouraged to think this will make their lives better. In fact, there is nothing more terrifying and less life-enhancing than debt, and all the shoes, holidays and fast cars in the world can't take that fear away.

Almost everyone who has lived 'the high life' but got into debt, and has then traded down for a more economical way of living says that they are so much happier and enjoy what they buy much more because they have budgeted for it, looked for it carefully and, by the time they actually find it, they know they want it and will use it.