Slow Jams
This month's artisan fashion launches, climate conferences, slow fashion fits & more
I’m thinking of making this a recurring franchise like the Vibe Check, but focused exclusively on news in business, politics and everything slow fashion related! Let me know if you enjoy this format, and what you would like to see… maybe an Ask Me Anything section could be fun?
Hey everyone,
It’s been at least two weeks since you’ve heard from me — as I mentioned in the chat I have had my hands full (+ a heavy heart!) amidst a farewell tour and move from London back to the States. I appreciate your patience and support as I took the time to soak up time with my friends, favorite cafes, bookshops and wine bars, and days basking in the best parks my beloved city has to offer. There were cakes, pints, and a fair share of tears so far this month & I finally feel collected enough to get back into the swing of things with this newsletter. This week you’ll get a twofer as I catch up: one today, and a guest feature on Saturday that I’m really excited for you to read. Lucky you!!!
In the last two months, I’ve felt incredibly inspired by the slow fashion movements that surround me, IRL and digitally speaking. From music festival fundraisers in my local park, to an insightful interview with Stella McCartney, there have been plenty of sources I have felt drawn to investigating… or rather, for some that aren’t listed, to leave as one of 98 open tabs in my Safari to be re-discovered at a later date.
Below, a collection of “slow jams” in news, events, and my recent outfits as food for thought for how we can show up for each other and have closets with positive impact.
EVENTS THAT MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Indian fashion label and NGO Saheli Women launched their Dhora Collection with London-based retail platform Ardour at the end of last month with a kickoff event full of joy, storytelling and intersectional community-building. If the name rings a bell, it’s because I interviewed my friend Sacha in the first edition of Take Five, who worked with Saheli for the better part of the year in anticipation of the collection. Their MO is to provide a community space for women in the Rajasthan area to attain economic and social empowerment by way of upskilling, fair wages, and childcare provisions. After hearing the stories of Saheli Women from founder Madhu Vaishnav and a (joyful, heartwarming) short film of a few of the artisans who work at the fashion manufacturing center, it is clear that this business is redefining the word on their own terms.
There’s a lot of criticism in the fair fashion/ethical consumption world that expressing mission-oriented brand stories or talking about sustainability and labor empowerment is not high on the list for consumer’s shopping choices. However, I couldn’t help but wonder if more brands were able to bring the empathic stories of everyone — from who made the clothes, to who runs the brand — we would all be drawn further into this space. Fair fashion cannot be simplified into a formula of neutral sacks and boho aesthetes: it is living, breathing proof of the increasingly intersectional lives we lead in the modern world. It has to entice consumers with a good price point, yes, but it also needs to communicate stories that help us better understand our relationships to each other and the Earth.
From what I witnessed at the Dhora launch, there are artisans out there putting in that work already! PS if you’re a brand that would like to collab with Saheli, Madhu mentioned her dream is to have a US partnership. I have her contact and would be happy to put you in touch with her!x
At the beginning of the month, Verona Farrell (better known as @secondhandhuns on IG) hosted a live secondhand sale on her platform featuring a banging curation of Fendi sunnies, leather jackets, Gustaf Westman drink ware and more with 100% of the proceeds going towards the UNWRA fund for Palestinian refugees. When half of your friends are Stockholm fashion girlies with over 500k followers combined, a collection of donated luxury items is a great action that considers your audience/engagement without taking away from the overall mission at hand.
Finally, last weekend I went for a wee mental health stroll in Clissold Park and happened upon a stage and roughly 20 vendor stalls smack dab in the middle of the green. As it turns out, I walked into a fundraiser festival hosted by the Peace and Justice Project, a social and economic justice organization founded by MP Jeremy Corbyn. The “Music for a Ceasfire” concert centered on Palestinian ceasefire, but also recognized the efforts needed in Sudan, Ukraine, and other regions globally that are experiencing persecution or displacement. Another great example of using your talents to make a difference! Especially considering the organization is led by the only independent politician in London.
NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW
In an exclusive interview with Atmos, Stella McCartney shares a portrait of her upbringing on an organic farm in the humble southeast English village of Rye (I’ve been, and Rye is adorable in an Americans-who-dream-of-English-cottages way), and how it’s shaped her life’s work in fashion. The main theme that came across to me as the reader was the age-old discussion of sustainability’s role in fashion — the focus is typically on being progressive, even radical, but never at the cost of compromising creativity and artistic innovation. IMO, compromise is often too vague and unregulated, and many incredible creative directors push the boundaries of fashion at great costs to the planet; on a less dramatic level, I can remember feeling displeased with Stella’s AW23 runway using horses to perform, despite hailing the label for its circular efforts in waste and plant-based leathers. Overall, the interview was a great read for anyone interested in conscious consumption at the luxury level!
“I was brought up observing my parents fight for the right of animals to share planet Earth with us in equality. I watched them try to figure out how to make it palatable for people…When it comes to design, in answer to your question, it means I come at every season with a conversation as to: Why am I making this? How am I going to use this to change my industry? How am I going to have a conversation that people can learn from and be informed to make a more conscious contribution with their time on Earth?”
Stella McCartney
Teen Vogue interviewed Maine Representative Chellie Pingree (D-M.E.) on her newly created Slow Fashion Caucus in Congress — the first of its kind for the fashion industry! The caucus will focus on legislation around textile waste, labor issues in fashion and its contributions to climate change. As I mentioned before about regulations being a crucial move in reducing waste in the fashion value chain, it’s hard not to be optimistic when an entire cohort of politicians are organizing to better understand America’s role in the issue. While it’s in early stages, I think it’s a great move that the publication snapped up an interview with Rep. Pingree to further engage their younger Gen Z/Gen Alpha readership in the movements they are likely already attuned.
Other members include Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.), Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Julia Brownley (D-Calif.), Sydney Kamlager- Dove (D-Calif.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), and Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) — if you live in any of these districts, or want your member of Congress involved, give them a call! It’s always good to look at what other committees they are part of and your district’s major industries to figure out what they may be able to bring to the table/advocate for.
Millennial beauty fave heard ‘round the world Glossier is the first beauty brand to officially partner with the USA Women's National Basketball Team for the Paris Olympics, only a few months after extending their contract as a key sponsor of the WNBA. Much like their footy counterparts in the NWSL, women’s pro basketball is focusing their efforts on expanded career development opportunities and resources — and they are continuing to pick up the pace as brands across the US recognize the profit potential in investing in women at the top of their game. Shocker!!! Female pro’s and their commercial lifespan no longer have to live and die by a Nike or Adidas contract (Imagine how much more Skylar Diggins could have earned from brands in her Adidas headband prime). Let’s hope we see more of this energy in 2024 across women’s professional sports… if Flavor Flav’s decision to personally fund the US women’s water polo team for the Olympics is any indicator, I think things are going to get pretty interesting.
MY SLOW FASHION FITS THIS MONTH
I’d be lying if I didn’t mention that most of late June/early July in London has been COLD AND RAINY (!!!!!), but I’ve had a couple chances to throw some summery bits together for all my pub garden/park evening/Lime bike gallivanting — details below, though looking at it now from 80 degree weather in Michigan, I don’t know how applicable it is right now…
Sending all the movers, world travellers and homesick girlies some love this week <3
Ryann xx
ICYMI
I have an Easter egg in the most recent Vibe Check for my lovely guest featured in this weekend’s Take Five… how sneaky am I !!! See if you can find it:
Midwesterners will love my last post giving love to one of our favorite summer pastimes — which is definitely it’s own thriving aesthetic!
it feels so refreshing to hear discourse about slow fashion during a time when it feels like everyone is telling me to shop a sale? slow fashion forever <3