I've "dry-cleaned" the woven skirt and my black slacks, and I'm on the hunt for looks that don't involve extra layers. The only thing new in Sunday's look would be the touches of orange--belt, scarf, and flip-flops.
Instead of a skirt or dress made from the shawl, you see the purple top below again. Thanks to Sally's post on Monday, I thought of this Elizabeth James obi I haven't worn since last winter. And then slipped on a pair of Franco Sarto flats, a pair that has been with me since Rags began.
Is anyone noticing a pattern? Yes, that's what the Labour behind the Labels campaign is all about. The tees are probably the only items that I think of as specifically "fast fashion" though all pieces originally came from the thrift store.
The woven skirt--the sturdiest piece in my wardrobe this month is by Central Falls and was made in the USA. And I want to believe that at the very least the seamstresses who made my skirt earned a minimum wage and in safe conditions.
When I get discouraged about my workload or the weather, I need only think a bit about these seamstresses to change my tune.
I've only just started really looking at my labels- I used to look at them to read how to wash the clothes, but now I've really started thinking about where it was made and if the textiles themselves are destroying the environment. Have you read "Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion" by Elizabeth Cline? I'm almost done with it and have learned SO much!
ReplyDelete--Vivienne
Vivienne--I know OF Cline's book and have listened to at least one radio interview with her. I suspect I need to read the book.
DeleteSix items would be just too few for me. It's hard to find anything these days that isn't made someplace where labor is cheap and plentiful. I think sometimes the best we can do is be conscious of it. I'm a big fan of NYDJ jeans, which are made in the US, not far from LA.
ReplyDeleteDejaPseu--In some ways the 6 items have greatly simplified getting dressed, but I hadn't counted on the extreme heat we've had. I may have to investigate the NYDJ jeans.
DeleteI love the obi belt with the last look. It's one of my fav accessories that you've used so far.
ReplyDeleteI don't even need to look to know that very little of my wardrobe was not made in the US. I find it really disappointing, but many of my favorite designs are from the UK/Canada. I wind up buying from thrift or ebay anyway, but I still wish I could find more ways to support clothing companies with good practices.
I think overall I've just worked to curb my spending.
MeganMae--I've had that belt for nearly two years...and its a wonder that I forgot it! Elizabeth James is an Etsy seller and it's good to support those entrepreneurs.
DeleteSuch great looks. Last year in Texas we had a bad dought and it is really sad to see everything die. We have been luckier this year. Hope everyone gets just the right amount of rain soon.
ReplyDeleteGracie--Thank you. I've never seen weather as hot and dry as we've had this summer. I'm used to high humidity and we haven't even had that. They've begun to talk about the high danger of grass fires...I'm a new follower of your blog!
DeleteNice outfits you've put together. It speaks of a modern woman ready to conquer the world. Well done.
ReplyDeleteBeautySalon--thank you!
DeleteDoes that scarf have words on it? I'd have to go get myself one if it does!! I love it with the dash of orange in your flip flops. If I could wear flip flops I'd definitely have orange ones.
ReplyDeleteJoni--After I got the scarf home I realized that it does NOT have words on it, although I'm pretty text-based and I do see LETTERS in the design. Lisa at Privilege deserves the credit for the orange flip-flops. Why can't you wear flip-flops?
DeleteTerri...sounds like you need a pick me up!
ReplyDeletePlease check my last blog post; I responded to your comment and placed a link there that might provide you with a little boost.
Check out the link and feast your eyes!
One thing I have loved about thrifting is that it has introduced items back into my wardrobe that are made in the USA. I'm very pleased about this; even if it means some of the things are older.
I do still have a number of pieces that are made in other countries and I'm not willing to just toss them; that would be wasteful, and I do love many of them. I am more aware now of where my clothing is being made and less willing to support companies who engage in unfair and unsafe practices. I no longer buy new clothing (retail) that is not made in the USA or is made by companies that engage in unfair labor practices.
During my undergrad studies, I wrote a paper about the maquiladoras in Juarez' and the horrible conditions facing women there. It's hard to face the fact that our (nation's) consumerism drives the success of these companies and harms the women who work there. Many people say that these factories provide jobs to people who may have been unemployed or working in the informal market. Its so much more complicated than that. Until I did the research for that paper; I had no clue about such things.
BTW, the book that Thrifted Shift mentions is excellent.
Lisa--I get like this just before finals for the summer semester begin. And I want to thank you for the award!
DeleteIt hasn't really been that long ago since clothing actually was manufactured in the USA. I have some awareness of the maquiladoras (I had a student who was an activist)and yes, I try to control the consumerism, but in some ways I've just transferred it to thrift stores. I haven't really nipped the urge to shop!
I haven't nipped the urge to shop either, but at least when we thrift, we are not contributing to the 'throw away' clothing phenomenon and we are making the most use out of our resources.
DeleteI don't know that I will ever conquer the shopping hunger, but I have tamed it!
I'm sorry you're struggling, Terri. I wonder if you'd be so fed up with your lack of choice if you weren't a blogger and posting outfits for regular scrutiny.
ReplyDeleteSadly it's not just "Third World" workers that receive a raw dealin the workplace. Many of our UK garment workers endure terrible working conditions, a fact exposed in several broadsheets and TV documentaries: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/retail-giants-shamed-by-uk-sweatshops-2128022.html
The female workers at American Apparel also reported harassment issues at their US factories: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/aug/25/rise-fall-american-apparel
Buying retail is a minefield, thank goodness there's a hardcore of us who don't and only buy second-hand.
Keep up the good work, the end's in sight. x
Vix--Prior to blogging, I had a fairly limited wardrobe and you're right, it did not bother me much. It is incredible to me that such working conditions can exist in highly-developed countries...and yet, I've watched many labor laws that were hard fought in the US be dismantled in the past 30 years.
DeleteThank you for the encouragement.
American made is harder to find- as our American companies are shipping manufacturing abroad- and your 6 garments do drive that fact home. Someone was telling me our US Olympic uniforms were made in China, and I feel that is so telling.
ReplyDeleteI read an article (someone tweeted it) about how we are making too much apparel and it is getting shipped abroad. I need to rethink something I thought I had already streamlined into an ethical closet- but new new new buy buy buy is no solution where ever we get it.
Hang in there- I hope you get some cooling weather- so I can enjoy your Joni-word scarf.
BellaQ--I'll bet the cotton for my t-shirts was grown and cut in the US and then shipped overseas. My t-shirts are more "traveled" than I'll ever be!
DeleteWe ARE making too much and I think clothes are manufactured to basically disintegrate now. And yes, it rained last night. Blessed, glorious rain.
Well, you know me, I always love a black top/white bottom combo, and think you look smashing in it.
ReplyDeleteLooking at labels, which I do, just fills me with despair sometimes. My mother was a quality-control checker at a garment factory back in the early seventies (they mostly made nightwear for Sears), and her job paid well, and she and her fellow workers had really good working conditions & benefits. Naturally, that plant and those jobs are long gone.
Anybody else remember the ILGWU "Look for the Union Label," adverts?
I can hear it right now - "Look for the union label, Whenever buying a coat, dress, or blouse." (Or words close to that.) I thought it was so clever rhyming "blouse" with "house" to make the point that people needed the wages to feed their kids and run their house.
DeleteI do remember the ILGWU labels and find them occasionally still in thrift store garments. I would love to read a post on your mother's experiences as a quality control checker...if she's willing to offer that information.
DeleteBeryl--I don't recall the jingle...
Sung to the tune of "Look For The Silver Lining". (And try to find the sunny side of life.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Lg4gGk53iY
DeleteI assume that's the youtube of the song, but I don't have any sound on my old netbook, so I couldn't check.
From Wikepedia - a source I never quoted before since I don't consider it reliable:
Look for the union label
When you are buying a coat, dress, or blouse,
Remember somewhere our union's sewing,
Our wages going to feed the kids and run the house,
We work hard, but who's complaining?
Thanks to the ILG, we're paying our way,
So always look for the union label,
It says we're able to make it in the USA!
I am amzed you have managed to go so far without hitting the wall. However, the serious message is to think about wher eour garments are made and campaigning to help the workers who made them.
ReplyDeleteIt has certainly made me think and I plan to take a look at where my garments are made next week.
Jane--I think the weather and my grading load has been discouraging me. Last night, we got rain and I have a new lease on the challenge.
DeleteI don't know about you but I never seem to tire of looking at that skirt. It holds its own over and over. I can't even imagine doing the challenge and you are doing it so well.
ReplyDeleteDarla
Darla--I love the woven skirt and it is perhaps the item that I will definitely KEEP once the challenge is over. And thank you for the encouragement.
DeleteI think you have done amazingly well in the challenge so far! Your many varied looks with just 6 items is astounding!
ReplyDeleteCarolyn--the challenge has definitely taught me the value of accessories, if not funny props.
DeleteAnother reason to love that skirt as much as I do! I love the pop of orange with it too.
ReplyDeleteI love looking at the labels when I thrift shop - the exciting part is finding an older piece that says, "made in Canada", or Italy, or Scotland - it always sends a thrill up my spine as I know the garments are well-made and have a heritage to them.
I hope your weather gets better and that you get some rain soon - my Mom tells me it's the same in Canada (with the exception of a mega storm they just had, they haven't had rain all summer).
GrungeQueen--I occasionally find items from Italy or Scotland, but oddly I don't think I've come across many Canadian made items in American thrifts. We DID get rain...and I was so excited about it that I could not sleep last night.
DeleteThat Monday look will be perfect when the weather cools down. (Minus the flip flops, of course.) It's my favorite outfit or the year so far. That scarf/shawl is what makes it work - with the pattern by the face and those light colored fringed ends. Perfect!
ReplyDeleteBeryl--I found a wild and crazy pair of shoes today to replace the flip-flops, although I am a big fan of cheap rubber shoes. I imagine I'm showing some sort of solidarity with the poor of the world.
DeleteMany years ago I worked at a local garment factory that made mens suits. I've also worked on the line in a shoe factory (hey that art degree was USELESS in 1982) I know how it feels to BUST YOUR BUTT and barely make minimum wage. You are paid a pittance for each piece you produce-not by the hour. Heaven help you if your machine has problems and cuts into you quota for the day.
ReplyDeleteThanks for bringing this to light!
Tamera--I have done piece work (grading tree seedlings) and been involved in efforts to challenge the line to move faster! (and I had an MFA degree when I did this work) You ought to do a post on what it was like to work in that factory. I'm always amazed by the wealth of experience my blogger friends have had.
DeleteVery much like your calling attention to the work conditions and where the pieces came from. May we all be more thoughtful of not only where we are spending our dollars but what (who) we are supporting when we spend them.
ReplyDeleteApril--I try to do this not just with clothing, but with almost all of my expenditures...but it is a process and requires some critical thinking at times.
DeleteYou always look so pretty with your hair down.
ReplyDeleteI like working with very few pieces, as you know, although six pieces would be far too few even for me. I DO think about the working conditions and it really bothers me. I try to buy made in the USA whenever possible but as you're finding, it's not easy.
Oh, Susan--thank you. I have ordered a book on Parisian Chic that advocates for a basic 7 pieces! If that's all I had, I could afford luxury items. It's a mindset I think.
DeleteYou look great Terri. Interesting to note where those 6 items came from...I know I don't even want to deal with buying anything apparel-wise anymore, new or used. When I catalogued all I had, it was appalling, and that's when I decided No More. I've just been refashioning my old stuff into whatever I want/need or using my fabric stash to sew whatever it is for the past year, going on 2. Keeping it down to 6 items is a real education, kudos to you!
ReplyDeletePao--I often have interesting ideas for clothing, but lack both the drawing skills and the sewing skills to carry them to fruition. I envy you that skill...but perhaps you are self-taught too.
DeleteWell, I have an MFA, but I don't draw for sewing. I have been sewing since my teens...but I just experiment, especially on old clothes that don't fit or I don't care for. If it doesn't work, I just try something else.
DeleteYour words ring so true, I really can't stop checking the labels in everything I own lately, it makes me mad that it is so hard to find things made in our own countries!! It is sad we have no way of knowing if the people involved in making our clothes were paid a fair wage. I now buy most of my clothes from Vivienne Westwood, especially her Worlds end label as it is all made in London!
ReplyDeleteI really like all the outfit but I think the last one is my fav as I think you look so elegant in the blue belted top x
Pearl--I want to believe that Vivienne Westwood is a trustworthy label given her Manifesto and all. She is a bit out of my price range, but I would love to window shop there when and if I ever get to the UK.
DeleteYou look great in all your outfits - and I can't see any signs of a wall... However, I don't think you can go through a challenge like this without getting fed up, hitting the wall or maybe even hating it. It is an extreme challenge. But so far you've done an amazing job, you've managed to look very different and fantastic as ever. Today I love how the orange accessories spice up your looks.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading about your challenge I've started checking all the labels in my clothes in my closet - and in the new that I buy. I'm very proud and a bit surprised that I've managed to find a few locally made. I'm quite certain that Danish textiles workers are treated very fairly. Many years ago I tried it for a few weeks. It wasn't too bad, just boring! Anyway, the union is very strong in our country, and all workers are organized as a general rule. That makes it so much harder to exploit workers!
Kaffesoester--I suspect that coming to hate the challenge is PART o the challenge. You were a textile worker? Please do a post about that. The union was once very strong in the US too, but since Reagan and the 1980s, it has lost influence and power. Even as a college instructor, we practice "collective bargaining."
DeleteYou continue to amaze me with your creativity, style, and determination. I know I would have so cheated by now :(
ReplyDeleteYou also make me appreciate my job a little more when you put it like that :o
Lynne--thank you. Amazingly, I have "cheated" not at all on this challenge. I have often put on my nightgown at an early hour, but otherwise, I've stuck strictly to the 6 items. Could not have done it, if I were going to the office.
DeleteLinen, madras, seersucker. All materials which will help you beat the heat, available in my garments, styles, and at all price points. Widely available in second-hand shops, thrift stores, Good Will, etc...
ReplyDeleteKionon-Back in June I did a week long series on Seersucker, a favorite fabric of mine. But, I've been doing this 6 items thing and until the end of July, I'm stuck with the items you see here. It was 110 degrees here yesterday...very uncharacteristic of Kansas in July.
DeleteI saw that post with the Obi and thought about you having one as well. I'm glad you got that back out.
ReplyDeleteRose--When I bought the obi two years ago, I thought it was a lot of money...and yet, I've had a LOT of good out of it. Crazy that it took Sally to remind me of something in my own closet!
Deleteit does put things into perspective, right? i hope you get over your wall...just keep thinking of the word that you are getting out there. i think what you are doing is not only difficult, but also inspiring and educational...so good for you!
ReplyDeleteTwoBirds--I am over the wall. It rained last night--a small miracle! And thanks for the pep talk.
DeleteDuring NYC summers with the heat and off the wall humidity, I pretty much say good bye to long sleeves, neck scarves, weighty fabrics and layering of any kind. Even thinking about clothes can be tough. Good for you still looking good despite the elements.
ReplyDeletePat--Yes, city streets and buildings hold the heat too. I'd say my plan to layer was a bad idea all around--I was just going for variation and not thinking too clearly about the possibility of this heat.
DeleteThose orange flips flops are so cool. Love the obi with that top.
ReplyDeleteLisa--thank you! I like the color of the flip-flops, though I couldn't wear them to the office. I have worn the obi to the office though.
DeleteAll very different looks- the last one is my favorite, its very unique and very standout!
ReplyDeleteMeri--thank you!
DeleteYour woven skirt was a great choice to choose to the challenge. It looks good on and on. No wonder, as it is made in USA!
ReplyDeleteAn amazing amount of countries where clothes are made, Cambodia too, wow. All these places startle me.
Honestly, how do you feel about the challenge at this phase?
Mette--the country of manufacture startles me too. It means that my clothing is more well-traveled than I am! As how I feel about the challenge--I'm ready for it to be over although I've learned a few things about the creative use of accessories and about the routine care of my clothing.
DeleteThanks so much for stopping by and commenting. We so missed all our blog friends! Your skirt in the first photo is amazing! What a great piece.
ReplyDeleteStyle Journey--thank you. Sometimes a blog sabbatical is good and even necessary.
DeleteI can understand why you've hit the wall. This has been quite the project, but I've learned so much from what you've presented. The obi was a great addition to the last outfit! I agree about the seamstresses -what do I have to complain about?
ReplyDeleteJudith--Well, I'm sure Americans have much they could complain about, but generally speaking our working conditions are not one of the items.
DeleteI think one of the saddest by-products of fast fashion is how my thrift stores have increasingly begun to be populated by rejects from low-quality fast fashion stores. often with tags still on! Ick!
ReplyDeleteI don't blame you for getting tired of this challenge, but you know what, you look great in every single picture! As for Made in the USA... I hate to be a party pooper, but according to the Department of Labor over 50% of garment factories in the US can be considered sweatshops. A lot of American companies manufacture clothes in sweatshops in places like the Samoa (I guess they have less regulation there), just so they can use the Made in the USA label. It's very sad. Let's hope that your skirt comes from the other 50%!
ReplyDeleteokay, you look amazing in all these outfits! challenges do get tiresome and you're doing a fabulous job! yes, it does make me feel bad when i think about the fast fashion working conditions. then i think, would it just be better for them to have a different job? i wonder. i dunno how to fix these problems or what the answers are. but anyway, it makes me feel good about purchasing some of the pretty dresses i've gotten from heavenlytreasures.org, that come from other countries and have helped people build better lives!
ReplyDeletehttp://spinning-threads.blogspot.com
Love the obi belt! Did you just tie a scarf as an obi? Great look!
ReplyDeleteSarah
Cable Car Couture
That obi looks great. I can't imagine being able to continually create new looks with only six pieces; I think you've done amazingly well. I remember when I first came to England being a bit shocked at how few clothes women had and how often they wore the same things. I assumed one lady hadn't been home that evening when she wore a new dress two days in a row. Mind, she was a Consultant Physician (top of the ladder) and it was a beautiful dress that suited her to a T. I managed to finish Veblen's Theory of the Leisure Classes while in France. He gave us the phrase 'conspicuous consumption' and it is obvious to me that we American's have taken this to heart in our need to always wear somethinhg different.
ReplyDelete