Posts in Fashion

This Modern Sustainable Clothing Line is Rethinking Fashion for Conscious, Creative Minds

Brava Fabrics - A Sustainable Fashion Brand To Know

When I was first introduced to Brava Fabrics, I was immediately drawn to their unique, fun prints - and prices! Often with sustainable fashion, you tend to see a lot of the same thing, like minimalistic color palettes and boxy dresses. It’s refreshing to find brands who create a little outside that niche box and take risks with their designs. Not to say Brava isn’t timeless and classic because I can wear seersucker and stripes forever, but they do have a special little character to their aesthetic. In this post, I’m going to dive into more detail on why I find this brand worth knowing - and wearing!

Reasons I Love Brava Fabrics

Unique Designs that Don’t Follow Trends:

Trends aren’t completely bad, but they create an overwhelming sense of needing to produce more & more. You don’t have to keep up constantly with the fashion world; however, I understand the fun of it all. When it comes to sustainable fashion brands, following trends kind of defeats the purpose; if one of your designs happens to be trending, that could be a great selling point, but to design solely based on what’s popular doesn’t end up being sustainable for anyone. I like that Brava marches to the beat of their own drum, and their designs end up coming off quite timeless. I don’t think you could become easily bored or tired by their prints and patterns.

Ethical Production in Spain & Portugal:

Not only are they creating slow fashion you can wear for many years, but Brava is also ethically producing everything close to home in Spain and Portugal. They believe in fairness and transparency throughout the entire supply chain, so they keep a close relationship with all of their tailors. It’s essential for them to offer fair working conditions, adequate working hours, safe working environments, and fair wages to every employee who touches their product. Especially in the current fashion climate, these offerings are imperative.

Eco-friendly Fabrics:

The textile nerd in me is always excited to write about this part! I want to talk about their primary choice of fabric, ECOVERO™ Viscose. I've always had a love-hate relationship with viscose. It, unfortunately, has a bad rep because generic viscose isn't that sustainable. Viscose is a semi-synthetic made from wood pulp. It's known for being very soft and comfortable and is a very common fabric (bamboo is viscose, too!). However, most of the time, the pulp used for this type of fabric is not derived sustainably, and transparency lacks in the entire production model. Luckily, LENZING™ has come out with a new standard in eco-responsible viscose with their ECOVERO™ textile. The manufacturing of LENZING™ ECOVERO™ fibers generates up to 50% lower emissions and water impact than generic viscose, and it's derived from certified renewable wood sources. So we can still enjoy all the benefits viscose has to offer but in a more sustainable form. You can read more about this textile here. They also use a classic favorite, Organic Cotton.

Affordable:

A big issue we have within the sustainable fashion movement is the lack of accessibility. While sustainable clothing will cost far greater than its fast-fashion counterparts, there still needs to be a price level easier for people to obtain. I find Brava’s price points to be that happy medium more people can enjoy and feel a part of the sustainable fashion industry.

What I’m Wearing From Brava Fabrics

Leo T-Shirt: I’m a Leo, so naturally, I fell for this shirt. This playful tee is made from ECOVERO™ (like all of the pieces I’m about to highlight), and it’s a great fit. It comes out to be just above $50 and looks purrfect with the Seersucker Shorts.

Seersucker Ocean Shorts: I’ve always been a big fan of seersucker. It’s a great look for the warmer months, and these shorts are unbelievably comfy with their elastic waist and organic cotton fabric. Plus, they have pockets!

Earthy Stripes Top & Pants: Wear them together or separate; the Earthy Stripes have added some much-needed summer color into my wardrobe. I honestly feel like I’m wearing pajamas because this outfit is so easy and breathable on a hot Florida day. The pants have been quite versatile in my wardrobe. I’ve been dressing them up with clogged heels for dinners out and wearing sandals for a more casual look.

You can shop Brava Fabrics online - here - and make sure to follow them on Instagram for updates of new clothing launches!

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Brand Features, FashionEditorJune 11, 2021 Comment

6 Reasons to Quit Fast Fashion, Today

Why You Should Stop Shopping Fast Fashion

It's possible that you clicked on this post for a few different reasons. Perhaps you're curious about what fast fashion is, you may have just learned about it and want to know more, or you're quite knowledgeable on the topic and want to make sure you're aware of all the reasons to quit so you can share them with others. Whatever your reasons are for reading this post, I'm glad you're here! I'm surprised it took me so many years to actually sit down and write this post. Almost a decade ago, I quit my habit of fast fashion. I didn't give it up completely right away, and there are times when I find myself buying Elliott socks or Travis a new bathing suit because we are in a bind and all I have is fast fashion. There were years when I was super adamant about not going into a mall, but sometimes you have to have wiggle room because the system has not completely changed. I think the most important thing right now is to quit those usual shopping habits - like when you just want something new to wear to a party, but you know you'll only wear it once so you want to purchase something cheap. This is the type of mentality that society needs to deviate from, but it'll take a lot of work - and people like YOU who are ready to do that work.

What Is Fast Fashion?

In the early days of the fashion industry, there were only two seasons for collections: Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter. However, with the rise of fast fashion, we now have up to 52 seasons. What used to take six months to create a collection can now be done in just a matter of days. Fast fashion is designed to be disposable, with garments often made to be worn only about 7 times before falling apart. Although not every fast fashion item will fall apart, a large majority of them do, leading to a lot of waste ending up in landfills.

You may be wondering which stores are considered fast fashion. The usual suspects are brands like H&M, Zara, and TopShop. There are also popular internet brands like Fashion Nova, Boohoo, and Nasty Gal. Some brands are more sneaky about their process and try to act like you're getting a superior product because the price is higher, when in reality workers are still being paid unfairly and the materials are toxic. These are typically the mall gems like Urban Outfitters, GAP, and Victoria's Secret. Even Target and Walmart are home to several unethical brands. In fact, most brands today are part of the fast fashion problem. However, there are many brands that are doing it right and trying to change the industry for the better. Unfortunately, it's not always possible for the average consumer to find and afford these brands. Stay tuned for a post on accessibility.

How to Tell if It’s Fast Fashion

A quick Google search can tell you a lot about a big-name brand, but if you are having trouble obtaining more information, here are a few clues: (1) Low Price Point, (2) Synthetic Materials, (3) Made in a foreign country, with high poverty rates and little regulations for workers. Unfortunately, there is a lot of greenwashing. H&M now has a ‘sustainable’ collection where you can purchase a dress for well under $50, which means the garment worker could not have made a living wage.

Why Stop Shopping Fast Fashion?

Exploitation of Workers
I began learning about sustainability in the fashion industry almost a decade ago due to numerous reports of unethical treatment of workers by major brands in the US. If you're interested in finding out more, I recommend watching the documentary "The True Cost" or the short film "Behind the Labels: Garment Workers on US Saipan." While I could provide countless examples, I believe that watching actual footage is the best way to truly grasp the issue.
Negative Environmental Impacts
The fashion industry is one of the world’s top five polluters. Most clothing items are made from synthetic materials such as polyester, which can take hundreds of years to decompose. The process of creating synthetic threads involves the use of toxic chemicals and consumes a lot of water. Moreover, the majority of dyes used in the industry are also toxic and contribute to water pollution. Additionally, the use of toxic pesticides by cotton farmers to keep the crop growing has a detrimental impact on the health of both the ecosystem and people. Would you want to wear something that required so many chemicals to produce? Lastly, when you wash your clothes, microplastics are released into the environment. In summary, the process of producing a fast fashion garment has little to no regard for the planet and its inhabitants.
Costs You More in the Long Run
If you purchase a $5 shirt, you won't be able to wear it for more than a few times before it wears out, which means you'll have to buy more clothes. Moreover, I've observed my friends and family shopping for fast fashion, and when they think they're getting a good deal, they tend to buy more. As a result, they end up spending the same amount (or more), but on a lower quality product that has negative environmental impact and unfair labor practices. The actual cost of that item is much higher than the price tag suggests.
Changes the Value We Put on Fashion
I believe that fast fashion has caused a concerning shift in the way we value clothing. Fashion is no longer seen as an art form or something to appreciate. We should take more time and care when creating the clothes we wear. For many of us, what we wear is a form of expression. However, we seldom consider the history of the garments we put on. We are quick to go out and spend more money on a meal than on an article of clothing that will last much longer. We don't consider the impact our purchasing decisions have on people or the planet. As a result, we have lost our respect for clothing, as well as the people who produce it.
Makes You Feel you Don’t Have Enough
It can be difficult to keep up with fashion trends, especially when fast fashion companies market their products so aggressively. They create a constantly changing lifestyle that requires frequent updates. They tell you that your wardrobe is incomplete without their latest items. I recently decided to go ad-free on my social media accounts because of this issue. Whenever I logged in, I was bombarded with ads that said things like "Buy this!" "Check out my new outfit!" "This is on sale!" and so on. I mainly use social media to keep in touch with friends and family and to have a few laughs. Unfortunately, the more influencers I followed, the more I was inundated with ads. To me, these ads are unsolicited because I didn't express any interest in them beforehand. They're completely random. I only post affiliate links and partnerships on my website because I know that people who visit my site are there for a specific reason. They're looking for sustainable clothing, for example. I could go on about this topic forever, so I'll address it more in a future post.
Cultural Appropriation, Racism & Stolen Designs
Ugh, this part is just sick. I feel like every time I sign onto Instagram; there is another brand making a disrespectful design appropriating a culture or stealing from a small designer. It’s difficult to give money to a business once you’ve seen it. Not to mention the racist, insensitive products that happen to make it all the way to the stores?! Like, how?! It’s hard for me to want to show examples because I hate to even resurface some of it, but another one just happened the other day with Shein (ugh don’t get me started on the Swastika and how that once beautiful symbol was ruined by white supremacy). And here’s another list to go through.

I’m sure we can go on and on with reasons to quit fashion, but these were the main ones for me. I understand quitting fast fashion isn’t the solution to climate change or modern-day slavery, but it’s a start. The more people tell big brands they aren’t shopping if they don’t change their ways, the better. We can’t continue this cycle and let them dictate how people are treated.

Want to learn more about sustainable fashion? Click here.

& stay tuned for a future post about all the ways you can build a sustainable wardrobe on all budgets - because that is one thing sustainable fashion should be - accessible for all!

p.s. the above photo with the text ‘but, I can buy that at Target for $25’ is an actual comment I received a few weeks back. It’s a comment I receive in various forms on a lot of my posts. Now, I have a place to direct them to ;)

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LOOKING FOR SUSTAINABLE BRANDS?

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Celtic & Co.

I’m a sweater girl through and through. I love getting bundled up in coziness during the cooler months, and I wish we had more of them in Florida! I am taking full advantage of being able to wear this beautiful cardigan from Celtic & Co. as much as possible over the next few months.

Reasons to Love Celtic & Co.

Slow Fashion Since the Beginning: This wonderful brand started nearly 30 years ago in Cornwall, England, and has always been committed to creating products that last for many years. With so many brands manufacturing disposable clothing, it's becoming increasingly difficult to find those that take pride in their craft. Celtic & Co. produces everything with care, from their renowned sheepskin boots to their cozy outerwear for both men and women, all of which are mindfully and locally crafted.

Natural Fibers: Most of the sweaters available today are made of synthetic fibers such as acrylic and polyester. These fibers release plastic microfibers into the oceans and water supply during each wash, which is harmful to the environment. On the other hand, natural fibers such as wool, which are used by Celtic & Co., are biodegradable and therefore more eco-friendly. Wool has numerous benefits such as being wrinkle-resistant, durable, breathable, and odor-resistant. It is an ideal fiber that provides warmth without the use of synthetic materials. In addition to wool, Celtic & Co. also uses byproduct shearling, leather, and wax cotton, which is perfect for wet days.

Ongoing Commitment: This is something I love to hear about with brands! Celtic & Co. has a monthly Sustainability Working Group to discuss their environmental impact, plastic reduction, and energy consumption. There is always room for improvement, and knowing a brand takes action throughout the year is crucial for me as a customer.

Reducing Waste: If you happen to buy a pair of their boots, do not throw them away after the sole is worn down. They will happily repair it for you!

What I’m Wearing

Cable Cardi: This is one of those styles I will never grow tired of. It’s timeless and can be paired with almost anything in your closet. When I was younger, I hated when my mom would want to dress me up in a cardigan, but now I see how practical they genuinely are (& if I had a daughter, I would be doing the same!!). This one is made in Europe with 100% wool. The buttons are lovely and made from coconuts! I love the dropped shoulders, which can help give your outfit a more relaxed yet effortless feel. And how perfect is this oatmeal color?

I’ve styled it three ways so you can see just how versatile this piece is - from daytime to evening to lounge!

Where to Shop

You can find the entire Celtic & Co. collection - here - and don’t forget to stay up-to-date with all new products on Instagram!

& make sure to use code CHIC10 for 10% off

FashionEditorNovember 18, 2019

The Classic Tee We’ve All Been Waiting For | Comfy, Lasting, & Easy on the Planet

This post is sponsored by The Classic T-Shirt Company, We only partner with brands we truly love!

Organic Cotton T-Shirts Made in the USA

After 30 years, I’ve gone through my fair share of t-shirts. Most were not made to last and are probably sitting in a landfill somewhere. It makes me feel awful just thinking about it, but for most of my life, I would buy tees based on price and accessibility. I purchased it on a whim without any knowledge of the product itself. What I was left with was a cheap, inevitable trash of a garment.

Besides the usual wear and tear, my biggest complaint over the years has been shrinkage. Another mishap I couldn’t stand with several of my tees was the seam cutting into the front. That’s a sign of poor quality and lack of attention to detail. It’s lovely to have brands today that care about the consumer and the planet while creating a lasting product. The Classic T-Shirt Company is one of those brands I think you would love to learn more about!

Reasons to Love The Classic T-Shirt Company

Comfortable, Organic Cotton: I prefer my t-shirts to be made from organic cotton as it feels better on the skin and is more sustainable for the planet. This type of cotton is grown using 70% less water than conventional cotton, making it environmentally friendly. Additionally, it provides a lightweight and comfortable fit, making it a great choice for anyone who wants to feel good while also being conscious of their impact on the environment and the farmers who grow the cotton.

Made in the USA: This is an extremely important issue for me. The apparel industry produces a lot of clothing outside of the country, which results in a larger carbon footprint. Additionally, maintaining a high standard of ethics and ensuring transparency is much easier when the facilities are located nearby and can be visited for quality control purposes.

Great Fit: I love the fit and style of these boyfriend shirts. They pair perfectly with jeans, overalls, or wide-leg pants, making them a versatile closet staple.

Quality: These tees are made with organic cotton and dyed using premium dyes that are free of harsh chemicals. The cotton is also pre-shrunk, so you don't have to worry about the shape changing after each wash. Additionally, the tees won't fade or develop yellow underarm stains like many other shirts do.

Impact: Not only does The Classic T-Shirt Company make sure their manufacturing process is fair and sustainable, they also give back with each purchase. 1% of profits are donated to a cause they care deeply for, and YOU get to choose which one at checkout. You can either donate to Clean Water, Ocean Clean Up or you can Plant a Tree. Plus, they use recycled packaging when shipping!

Tees for Men & Women: A big question I receive a lot from viewers is where to buy sustainably made clothing for their husbands. Five years ago, I would have had a lot of trouble answering that question. Today, we are lucky to have so many great brands catering to everyone in our family.

Transparency: It’s rare you see a brand break down their pricing as transparent as The Classic T-Shirt Company.Below, you can see a chart they have put together of their price anatomy, which is made up of the product cost, promotion and shipping, and gross profit. It’s so nice to be able to see this written out so we can know exactly why this tee costs almost $50.

What I’m Wearing

Womens Long Sleeve V Neck in White: As winter is approaching, I decided to try out one of their long-sleeved tees. After some experimentation, I have come to the conclusion that I prefer my short-sleeved tees to be crew neck and my long-sleeved tees to be v-neck. These styles seem to suit me best. It has been a while since I last owned a long-sleeved white tee - probably back in high school - so this essential item was long overdue. When paired with a pair of jeans, this boyfriend-fit tee feels effortless. I love the cut, and the neck is just right. This style is also available in three other colors: light pink, black, and navy blue. The organic cotton used in this tee is incredibly soft and comfortable - I may consider getting it in more colors in the future ;)

You can shop the entire collection from The Classic T-Shirt Company - here - and make sure to give them a follow on Instagram!

FashionEditorNovember 8, 2019

Celebrate the New Season with Aid Through Trade’s Fall Collection

fayirtradejewelry — This post is sponsored by Aid Through Trade. We only partner with brands we truly love!

I absolutely adore this time of year, the transition from hot summer days to cooler fall days. Although in Florida, it takes quite some time for the heat to leave us, I tend to change my home decor and closet ahead of time. I switch to deep oranges, purples, and reds, as well as more black and gold, and surprisingly, my new Aid Through Trade jewelry perfectly blends in with that color scheme!

Just a little recap on why Aid Through Trade is such a wonderful brand:

Aid Through Trade is a company that produces handmade jewelry in Nepal. They have a team of artisan women who are paid fairly and provided with benefits in a safe and healthy work environment. One of their popular products is The Original Roll-On® Bracelets, which I personally love because they are perfect for everyday wear and don't easily fall off my wrist. They offer a wide range of colors and even have styles for children. I wear Aid Through Trade's jewelry almost every day, and I have taken photos of myself wearing their new collection. Their pieces are easy to mix and match with different outfits, and they add a special touch to neutral-colored clothing. My new favorite color is the Saffron ones!