This collection by Go Gently Nation is ticking all the boxes for me right now: beautiful colors, easy shapes, natural fibers + made in Los Angeles. There are lots of adorable, simple, matching pieces for littles (0-12 years) as well. I could be happy with not much more than these pieces including the sandals, shorts + a big straw hat all summer long. :)
All lovely photos from Go Gently Nation. Love, Jane
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 Three keys to more abundant living:
caring about others, daring for others, sharing with others. ~William Arthur Ward  Pizza is another category in my list of zero-waste weekly meals. These six categories of meals really simplify my meal planning + grocery list making. I'm going through them one by one here in order to go into a little more depth about each one. When we found that we needed to make the switch to gluten-free foods, it took me a while to figure out how to get pizza back in the rotation. Gluten-free flours are much more expensive + less available in bulk than wheat flours, so it took me a while to get comfortable with adding the gluten-free version to my shopping list. We spent more than a year mostly avoiding gluten-free flour, but we've recently started adding it back in occasionally. I mention this especially in regards to pizza, because I find that this gluten-free pizza not only tastes great...I've found it to be simpler, quicker + less messy to make than regular pizza crust. There is no rising time involved + the dough doesn't gunk things up so much in the cleaning process. I've gone back + forth about making my own gluten-free flour mixtures from the flours available in the bulk bins (our usual grocery store closed + the new one doesn't offer as many options...and some packaged flours + add-ins are still necessary when mixing our own). At the moment my favorite pizza crust is made with gluten-free 1-1 flour (I can buy the biggest bag of Bob's Red Mill possible...which is paper). We can whip this up + spread it out in about ten minutes. We add the toppings + it cooks in 20 minutes. It's a pretty quick meal.  Best Gluten-free Pizza Crust
2 tsp. yeast 1 tsp. sugar 3/4 cup warm water 1 egg 1 tbsp olive oil 1 1/2 cups 1-1 gluten-free flour 1/2 tsp salt Preheat oven to 425F. Mix yeast, sugar + water. Let sit 5 minutes. Mix in other ingredients. Spread onto compostable parchment covered pan. (Can let stand for 10-15 minutes for a thicker crust.) Add toppings. Cook 15-20 minutes. (this recipe slightly tweaked) The pizza pictured just above is topped with olive oil, sliced potatoes (purposely left over from earlier in the week), pepper jack cheese, feta (put into our own container at the salad bar), salt + cracked pepper. Top it with a big pile of greens tossed with lemon juice + a little olive oil- yum! (some fresh chives from the garden sprinkled on top would have been great as well) The pizza up top is a taco pizza topped with salsa, beans + cheese...with greens, cilantro, avocado, cayenne + salt added after removing from the oven. So good. Let seasonal vegetables or ethnic flavors steer the direction. Pizza is extremely versatile + quite nutritious when piled with protein + vegetables (go easy on the cheese). :) Top it with some nutritional yeast (found in the bulk bins) +/or fresh herbs for a little more goodness. Love, Jane
Jeans are one of the most worn items of clothing today. Almost everyone would like to have a pair of jeans that feels like home...comfortable and familiar. Lots of us would also like those jeans to make our butts look great. :) I won't say that the search for a perfect pair of jeans is easy, but at least it can start fair.
First things first...do you or I really need another pair of jeans? We might want to take a look at refashioning, altering or mending a pair of jeans already in our possession. Swapping or thrifting are great options as well...because there are literal tons of great jeans out there already. The prices are amazing (like $7-$10 where we live), but a willingness to search is necessary. Thrift stores, flea markets, etsy + eBay are great places to find vintage denim. Find inspiration to see thrifted jeans as treasures by perusing Bliss + Mischief and B-sides. With a little ingenuity, almost any pair of jeans can be reworked into a masterpiece. Each of the brands pictured above takes a different approach to ethical and/or fair practices. It would be amazing if every brand was committed to organic denim grown, manufactured + sewn locally...but many brands are being thoughtful, creative + innovative. There are various styles + sizes (plus + petites too) offered by most of the brands, so take your time and investigate. The super adventurous may even want to try making a pair of jeans. There are some great jeans sewing patterns, along with in-depth tutorials, out there. Closet Case, Megan Nielsen, Anna Allen, Merchant & Mills, and Named Clothing offer jeans patterns. Thread Theory makes some incredible men's patterns too. Use some USA grown, organic denim from Houston Textiles or Sally Fox for the ultimate fair pair of jeans. Quick reference for the fair jeans listed here: organic denim + fair wages :: industry of nations :: organic cotton :: fair wages :: natural dyes :: unisex :: $ j.crew fair-trade collection :: organic denim made in italy :: fair-trade certified factory :: men's too :: $ kowtow :: fair-trade certified organic cotton :: SA8000 certified factory :: $$$ madewell fair-trade collection :: organic denim made in italy :: fair-trade certified factory ::$ monkee genes :: organic cotton :: living wages :: GOTS :: men's too :: uk based :: $ nudie :: organic cotton :: made in italy + tunisia :: fair wear foundation audits :: repairs :: resells :: recycling :: men too :: $$ patagonia :: 98% organic cotton :: fair-trade certified sewing :: men's too :: $ people tree :: organic cotton :: GOTS :: fairwear foundation audited :: UK based :: $ outerknown :: organic cotton made in italy :: fair-trade certified sewing :: life-time guarantee (repair or replace) :: recycling :: women's + men's :: $ organic or deadstock cotton + made in usa :: agolde x amour vert :: organic + recycled denim :: made in usa :: $$ bliss + mischief :: deadstock cotton :: made in los angeles :: $$$ citizens of humanity :: organic cotton collection :: made in los angeles :: $$ jesse kamm :: made in usa :: deadstock fabric :: $$$ rudy jude :: organic cotton :: made in los angeles :: unisex + kids :: $$ organic cotton :: eileen fisher :: organic cotton :: sustainable emphasis :: $$ prana :: 79% organic cotton :: sustainable emphasis :: $ made in north america :: arturo :: made in canada :: alterations + repairs (one year) :: men's too :: $ bluer denim :: made in los angeles :: men's too :: $ b-sides :: made + milled in the usa :: also re-worked vintage collection ($$$) :: men's too ::$$ doen :: made in the usa :: $$ emerson fry :: made in nyc :: $$ esby :: made in usa :: $$$ father's daughter :: made in los angeles :: $$ gamine workwear :: deadstock cone mill denim :: made in the usa by a single seamstress :: $ good american :: made in los angeles :: sizes for everyone :: $ ilana kohn :: made in nyc :: $$$ imogene + willie :: sewn in the usa :: $$ industry standard :: made in los angeles :: $ iris :: made in canada :: $$ mother :: made in los angeles :: $$ prairie underground :: made in seattle (usa) :: $$ raleigh denim workshop :: made in raleigh (usa) :: $$ reformation :: made in los angeles :: $ renewal workshop :: reworked discards from the apparel industry :: $ the great :: made in the usa :: $$$ also: search "made in the usa" on nordstrom.com $ :: $150 + under $$ :: $150-$250 $$$ :: $250 + over This is just a sampling or fair denim, so search for "organic denim" or "Australian jeans" or whatever makes jeans fair to you...and then please let us know, if you find (or already know of) some fair jeans brands that you love! This post will be linked toward the bottom of the ethical brands page for reference. Happy jeans hunting! All photos via links. Love, Jane  When I decided to try this zero-waste thing, food was my biggest concern. In most of our homes, the biggest trash can is located in the kitchen...because that's where the majority of our trash is made. I'd read about how the only person out there at the time doing zero-waste bought her groceries...and decided to drive past four grocery stores to the one that had bulk bins. I skipped the middle aisles + gathered my (mostly) package free foods. At the time, I felt a bit cut-off from our usual staple meals. There was a bit of a learning curve...an adjustment to making do with what was now available to me...but I could see that eating zero-waste was possible + in so many ways...preferable.
A list of flexible recipe categories is very helpful to me today. Each week, I use these six categories to guide my meal planning + grocery list making. On the seventh day of the week, we might order pizza (+ recycle the box), go out to eat (somewhere with real plates) or eat leftovers. Food almost never goes to waste this way. So...the first category we'll dive into is soup or salad. In the summer, we are more likely to eat salad...in the winter, it is almost always soup. We like hearty soups + salads that really count as meals...so I make sure there are in-season vegetables, protein + grains involved. Soups + salads are very simple + forgiving, so this can be a great fridge-clean-out meal to eat just before grocery day. When I first started cooking, I wasn't exactly sure how to get soup to taste like soup rather than stuff floating around in water. Here's what works for me now: -heat some olive oil over medium heat + add some chopped onion (I use about 1/6 of a big red onion) + cook until translucent -add water, vegetables, protein, spices, grain + a spoonful of bouillon (I like this brand) + bring to a boil -reduce heat + simmer until vegetables are tender + grain is cooked -adding a squeeze of lime, small glug of vinegar, coconut milk or cream after removing from heat often adds a great hit of flavor or creaminess The soup above was the one we ate last week. It started with the olive oil + onion, had a broth of bouillon, water + tomato sauce (a chopped tomato works well too), and also included carrots, broccoli, chickpeas (cooked + frozen), rice (extra cooked earlier in the week), salt, cayenne + cilantro. It might sound like there are lots of ingredients to gather, but one of the reasons that we ended up with this combination is that I already had rice in a jar and tomato sauce + chickpeas in the freezer when I made my grocery list. We already had onion + bouillon + spices. I wanted broccoli + cilantro for different meals this week, so used what I knew would be leftover in this meal. The only thing that went on the grocery list for this soup was carrots. I want my meals to fit together like puzzle pieces. That way we save money + eat everything we buy. Zero-waste salads are simple enough to put together with seasonal ingredients. Homegrown herbs, nuts, seeds + cheeses are tasty additions. My favorite dressings are simple combinations of olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice, mustard, salt + pepper. I also like a mixture of yogurt + salsa as a dressing. Soup + salad are easily adjustable for vegetarians, vegans, gluten-free or other dietary needs or preferences. Since I cook for a family of four, we usually eat all of what I make. If I were cooking for one or two, I would put some into jars for dinners or lunches later in the week. More soup + salad inspiration here. :) Love, Jane  "Is true freedom having the right to own a gun, or is true freedom having the ability to live unarmed + fearless, refusing to fight violence on its own terms?" We watched as a piece of a gun was pounded + reshaped into a garden tool in front of our eyes. Powerful.
"It should never be about what you take with you...but about what you might find when you get there." The manufacturer pays. Plus-size ethical fashion brands. Is fear the best motivator? No packaging would be better, but "100% reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging by 2025" is engagement. "It's about what matters most to you in life. It's not just about less." Hope you are enjoying a lovely weekend, friends! Love, Jane  What you do with what you know is the important thing.
To know is not enough. ~John Rice When it comes to sleepwear, any old t-shirt will do. But sometimes it's nice to have a little something special to wear to bed...and around bed-ish times. It can be nice to have something a bit more covered up or presentable to wear when houseguests are about...or teenagers share the house...or when we are the houseguests...or just because. There are lots of places to find fair tees + elastic waisted bottoms that can be worn to bed, but here are a few brands putting some special care into more specifically pajama-type clothing: coyuchi :: organic cotton :: GOTS certified domi :: organic cotton :: GOTS certified fair indigo :: organic cotton :: fairly made in peru lacausa :: made in usa la relaxed :: made in usa maison du soir :: made in usa pact :: organic cotton :: GOTS certified :: fair-trade factory pansy :: organic cotton grown + made in usa richer poorer :: organic cotton :: made in usa Pajamas could also be a wonderful beginner (or not so beginner) sewing project. Again, there are lots of ways to think about pajamas...a tee or tank with loose shorts or pants...or leggings...a robe or a sweatshirt or a sweater. We can sleep + lounge in whatever we choose, but here are a few indie patterns that would work well in this category. I'd imagine that I'm not the only one who often relegates less than presentable tees or leggings to the sleepwear pile. This is a great way to use up our clothing. Another common way we unwittingly exercise our ethical creativity is to borrow...say from our partner's side of the closet. Some even find some lovely thrifted options (silk pajamas?). There are lots of fair options for sleepwear. Take your pick + sleep well! :)
All lovely photos via links. Love, Jane  Spent the morning reading about prayer + making yogurt...the midday driving here + there in earnest conversation about the uncertain future plans of a teenager...and the afternoon planting seeds. A day spent deep in the pocket of faith, hope + mystery.
Love, Jane |
on a journey toward zero-waste, simplicity, + compassion :: daring to choose fair one choice at a time
 
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