Trends of Dressing Responsibly

A dear friend of mine is getting married in the fall. The word unique is overused but it applies to her—with her vintage sapphire engagement ring and history of remaking every piece of clothing she owns. I got to spend a morning with her a few days ago(which rarely happens since she lives in Chicago), and it happened to be the morning she was ordering her wedding dress. I was slightly surprised that this friend of all people was going to buy a wedding dress, visions of sequins began to dance menacingly in my head as she told me about the process. My fears were allayed however when she explained to me that she has become interested in buying clothing she can wear for decades—clothes that will last and are of the quality and texture that can be combined with all sorts of things. Now how do you buy a white wedding dress that you can wear for years? Well you buy from Ivey Abitz of course, a clothing creator who offers clothing of a not quite vintage variety and displays pieces in an old fashioned online look book. My friend then outlined a new philosophy she was developing about clothing and how she dressed herself. In a world where a responsible consumer ethic is sorely lacking and even thrifting still is supporting the industry through recycling, she has sought out clothing makers who work out of a dressing philosophy that values quality, fair wages/prices and is environmentally freindly. While I am not prepared to pay the $200-600 for a clothing item, as an unemployed student, I am intrigued by the idea of sustainable fabric production and the classic lines offered by this innovative designer.