Maybe you've noticed it too. More + more brands are getting into reselling their wares. These brands collect worn items with their own labels on them...give the previous owner a coupon toward a new purchase + resell the used pieces (or use a 3rd party reseller to do so). 

I feel like there are a couple of drawbacks to this sort of system. As a seller, the return on my investment would be quite low. I might make more money by selling directly to a buyer on a resale site like Poshmark. But, if convenience is my goal, returning an item for the brand to resell might be worth it. Another drawback to this sort of system is that it takes quality preowned clothing out of the local area. 

There are lots of benefits to be had from this sort of system. Brands like Patagonia + Ace & Jig might have items repaired if they are in need of it, before reselling. Brands like Eileen Fisher may even cut up + reimagine more damaged pieces. What a great way to keep clothing out of the landfill + in use! 

A buyer of preworn clothing might find it convenient to have a selection of items in one spot. I might know exactly what size I wear in a certain brand. It might also be quite nice to check if an item I'm shopping for is available in the preowned section before I buy it new.

A few brands offering buyback programs + preowned items for resale:

• Ace & Jig x The Renewal Workshop
• Eileen Fisher Renew
• Esby Buy Back
• Hackwith Design Sustain
• Lacausa Replay Market
• Madewell Forever
• Outerworn
• Patgonia Worn Wear
• REI Good & Used
• Sister Katie Hand Me Downs

​
There are a few new ones here...and a few that I'd listed previously have disappeared. It's pretty cool to see more brands recognizing resale as a viable source of revenue...and that's all down to what consumers have signaled to them! So many of us are willing to wear preowned clothing + have the desire to do so! That is really exciting! 

Hopefully recognition of the value consumers are placing on sustainability will translate into further action...more fair-trade sewing, more deadstock fabric, more recycled natural fibers, more organic cotton, less synthetic fabrics, more localized supply chains, less overproduction. Let's let our favorite brands (+ everyone else's) know what we want!  :)

Love,
Jane

You can do it like it is a great weight on you
or you can do it like a dance.
​~Ram Dass

I've been looking for a bed frame for years. When we moved back to the states from overseas, we bought the cheapest mattress we could find. It came with boxsprings which we put on the floor. We slept that way for almost a decade.

Our backs were begging for an upgrade, so we finally bought an Avocado mattress which we love. We bought the most basic model + would not change a thing. Avocado mattresses are organic, non-toxic + made in Los Angeles. Ours is the most comfortable mattress I've ever slept on. We put our new mattress on our old boxsprings. (It's important not to just put a mattress on the ground where no air can circulate, because mold will grow.)

Another few years passed as I tried to choose a bed frame. I try to make these big choices well...so not only was I prioritizing style, but also fairness to those who made it + to the planet. We needed a sturdy frame that would hold us + our heavy mattress. I wanted a minimal looking frame with a low profile. I was looking for a bed frame that would be the last we ever buy + that can be a daunting thing.  :)

A few of the choices I kept coming back to include:

• KD Frames Nomad platform bed :: This is the most economical choice. It is made to be very sturdy from wood grown in "responsibly managed Virginia forests". The frames are built in Athens, Georgia.

• Thuma :: These bed frames seem well-designed + well-built. They use Japanese joinery so that they can be easily assembled + disassembled for simpler moving. As someone who has moved numerous times, this is an extremely attractive quality. The reviews report that these bed frames are sturdy + do not make noise. They are made from spent rubberwood trees, shipped with minimal packaging (no styrofoam), and Thuma visits the factories often.

• Helix Natural Wood Frame :: This frame is made from Apallachian wood in the USA. It requires no tools or hardware for assembly. We actually tried this one, but sadly used their sleep trial to return it. I wanted to add this option to the list, because it has some great qualities, but unfortunately ours made some noise. It is made from three different kinds of wood + that was evident in its appearance. Our pillows fell down the space it left between the wall + the platform was too large for our mattress.


• Modernica Case Study Bed :: This frame is designed + built in-house in California. George Nelson originally designed the Case Study collection in the 1940s. This design has stood the test of time. We finally purchased this bed frame (without the headboard) + are very happy with it. It is very sturdy, doesn't squeak, wasn't too hard to put together + we love the way it looks. ​

Some things are worth the wait. 

Love,
​Jane

That autumn light is here. The tips of some trees are turning ever so slightly from green to gold. Our evening walk was illuminated only by street lights last night. Coming home feels ever so good these days. 

A little autumn home dreaming ::

• Shades of white are my usual bedding choice...but I'm considering adding a little color in the bedroom these days...maybe a pillow sham or two?

• This tile collection made me gasp. Four of them would fit perfectly over our tiny bathroom sink.

• It was a joy to hear the maker of this little broom talk about making it. It's functional art.

• This handmade bell recently came home with us + makes a lovely addition to a newly empty wall.

• Rosanna Morris makes the most lovely woodcut prints. I can't wait to experience them through this postcard set that will make warm additions to our walls + can be passed on to friends too. Zero-waste.​

• We've been painting the trim (very slowly) around the house. This coat rack by the front door just might be my pick for complementing the fresh paint.​

Dreaming, for me, is not really about adding new things or buying things.

• It might create sparks for craft projects of my own (a patchwork pillow sham or air dry clay wall hanging).
• It might be a way to connect with + support a local artist.
• It might offer me the opportunity to think differently about my space.
• It might prompt me to curate the things I have with an eye toward the colors of the season ahead. 
• It might remind me to gather acorns, leaves or branches on our walks.
• It might be a way to single out + appreciate a particular good thing that I already have. 

May all of our dreaming lead us toward creativity + contentment, friends! :)

Love,
Jane

Wisdom is not primarily knowing the truth,
​although it certainly includes that;
it is skill in living.
~Eugene Peterson

Each of Mira Blackman's Backyard collection pieces is cut + sewn from organic cotton in California. Mira then dyes them with low impact dyes in her backyard. A variety of comfortable, one-of-a-kind pieces are offered including intimates, socks, tanks, tees, sweatshirts + pants (some in solid colors). There are adorable pieces for little ones as well. 

The new dye + 5000 mile (+ counting) jeans.
Inspiring + innovative solutions.
Because we're all connected, we're all implicated. 
Organic cotton farming accounts for less than 1% of US cotton production.
When competitors collaborate...and for now...made to be remade.
There is potential for conscious investing in all our economic transactions.

We call on everyone, whatever their belief or worldview, to endeavour to listen to the cry of the earth + of people who are poor, examining their behaviour + pledging meaningful sacrifices.

Looking forward to spending as much time as possible outdoors drinking in the sunshine + autumn air! Hope your weekend is lovely, friends!
Much love,
Jane

Yesterday I walked into work + declared, "It's sweater weather!" Everyone chimed in right away with stories of how they'd excitedly tried on four sweaters in order to choose that day's perfect match...or shared a conversation with someone who dubbed it "swetta wetha". (love)

These are the days when we reach for something already in our own closet or drawer with a smile. We can see what we have as an abundance of choice, and we just might be able to imagine doing that every day...with no longing for more. This has been one of my primary dreams for my own fairdare challenge...because I think the whole thing hinges on grasping the concept of contentment with what I already have. 

Our clothing creates long shadows...from fiber to spinning to cutting to sewing to dyeing to shop to closet...people are growing or extracting, spinning, cutting, sewing, dyeing, packaging, shipping + delivering each piece...and these people often are not being paid living wages. People + the planet are being subjected to the detriments of pesticides, extraction, transportation emissions, dye runoff, microfiber pollution + landfill dumping. I wish it wasn't so easy for me to ignore all of this. Why should my desire for something new overshadow all of that in my own mind?​

Right now is a great time to tune in to what feels like "enough". Am I experiencing just so much wonderful choice in my closet as the weather changes? (Which cozy layer do I get to wear today!?) Am I excited to pull on those leggings again or to roll up the long sleeves on that button-up again? Take note. The only thing that wears off is the feeling of newness. These pieces will possess just as much functional goodness three months from now. These realizations can shed some much needed light on the abundance already in our own closets. Let's cultivate intentional contentment...together.  :)

Love,
Jane

I am a lover of lists. I make grocery lists + packing lists...dream lists...things to get done on our house lists...who I am + who I want to be lists. I also like Moonlists. I've followed along with Leigh's sort of everyday questions to friends + neighbors over the years + was inspired to ask myself the same questions too. I have mentioned her first book here before. 

But I'm not sure I've mentioned what these lists have offered me over the months that I've contemplated + written them. These lists have pointed out the tendency for my other lists to be somewhat future oriented. I often make lists of what I want to buy or pack or what I want to accomplish in the days to come. Moonlists are made thinking back over the recent past...the last two or four weeks. These lists can seem a bit mundane or unnecessary at first (like I've been sweating on morning walks for weeks now...or we've been eating cucumbers at every meal). But when I read back over them, they feel like juicy snapshots of exquisite, forgotten moments. I mean, of course I want to remember the fireflies flickering over the ripening strawberries...and Jo's puppy's exuberant ear licks when we picked them up outside their apartment as the fire alarm blared.

During the past few months, I've been making these lists with my partner. We discuss our individual answers + I write down bits of the conversation. I'd done some of the prompts before + reading over what I wrote the last time offers some perspective + contrast. It's interesting to hear his insights on what has stood out to him in the recent past...which might be something I'd totally forgotten about or thought about differently. It could be lovely to discuss these sorts of questions over the phone with a willing, long distance friend or relative...or with a child. 

I do think Leigh's books are lovely, but this is not a nudge to spend or acquire. The idea for Moonlists came from hearing about an older couple who came up with questions to answer every two weeks which coincided with the moon cycles. We can form our own moonlists by following Leigh's lead + focusing on the near past. Instead of asking, "What is your favorite memory of summer?"...one could be prompted to describe a taste, smell + sound remembered from the last two weeks...or "What has your mind been coming back to repeatedly?"

It can be lovely to take a moment to stop + think about these simple questions. Putting thoughts + sensations + feelings into words that can be written can shed some much needed light on what previously felt mundane, chaotic or impossible. These lists have been a lovely way to connect + share...with others + with myself.

Love,
Jane