It's always a pleasure to come across fair brands in real life that I've only seen online. Today, I had the pleasure of touching a few Le Bon Shoppe tees, trying one on + taking it home! Le Bon Shoppe has long intrigued me. Many of their tees are made in the USA + all are fair-trade. The cotton has a very nice weight that drapes beautifully + feels like it will last for a long time.

Le Bon Shoppe has some deliciously interesting, fair values such as producing limited quantities in an unhurried, flexible time frame, noting:

• "Our goal is not to be a super famous brand sold in every store in the world, instead we want to make just enough for everyone who genuinely loves the product."
• "We are flexible + compassionate with our factories + value all those who have a hand in making all things Le Bon Shoppe as people first."
• "We give ourselves ample time to restock + don't sweat it if things don't go according to schedule!"

I very much appreciate being able to support both Le Bon Shoppe + a local, small business while gaining a well-priced basic that I will wear for a long time!

Love,
Jane

I periodically comb through the ethical brands list to make sure it's accurate + up-to-date. This time around, there have been quite a few changes. 

Many brands mentioned rising prices of materials, missing the mark with demand estimates + supply chain delays as real issues lately. The following are no longer making clothing:

• North of West
• Study New York
• ​The New Blak
• Two Days Off (now selling some sweet weekend projects)
• Winsome Goods (now selling sewing patterns)

On the other hand, many are forging ahead! Above are a few things that caught my eye along the way.

• Organic cotton leggings, shorts + tanks made in Los Angeles + dyed with onion skins collected from local grocery stores from Groceries Apparel.
• Danu Organics' fully compostable jeans.
• A lovely, organic cotton knit made from leftover yarn (from their main sweater collection) in California from Curator.​
• A bright, linen set sewn by Nettle's team of five.
• Pants made in LA from 100% North American waste cotton from Everybody World.
• Organic cotton/natural rubber elastic, corozo/tagua nut buttons + organic cotton thread (for making or repairing our own compostable clothing) for sale at Danu Organics.

On the resale front:

• I have enjoyed dipping into Noihsaf Bazaar's new home recently. It just makes a little bit more sense to me now.
• Renewal Workshop has been aquired + will no doubt be a part of something positive. We are just not able to buy directly from them anymore. 

I'm so grateful for all the hard work, perseverance + innovation these brand share with the world! It's always exciting to see what creativity can do, and I can't wait to see the new spring collections arrive in the next few weeks!

Our ethical brands list can be found here. It is updated periodically (not always with mention). Please let me know if you find any ethical brands you'd like to share! All lovely photos via links.

Love,
Jane

Surf shops seem to have a special way of partnering with artists + makers. Slowly shaping boards into tools with nuance related to both wave + rider can surely enhances a shaper's ability to appreciate makers of other useful objects. Spending hours in the ocean nudges a surfer's a sense of interconnectedness with nature that can heighten sensitivity toward the resources we consume + use. 

Daydream Surf Shop offers handmade items as varied as surfboards, ceramics, clothing, skincare products + pastries. Their line of clothing is designed, sewn + garment dyed in California. Their tees are made from 100% USA-grown cotton that is knitted in Los Angeles. The sweatshirts are made from organic hemp + cotton.​ (More styles of clothing are on offer as well...including some made from deadstock fabrics + some vintage pieces as well!)

Daydream Surf Shop also sells gorgeous towels that are designed in Costa Mesa, California + made in the USA. I'm sure they would work just as well after a shower as on the beach (says this girl who lives nowhere near a beach).  ;) I would absolutely love to visit this little gem of a shop (and cafe!) in Newport Beach, California!

All lovely photos via Daydream Surf Shop.

Love,
​Jane

Roberta avoids trends when designing Wilder footwear in hopes of increasing longevity of wear. Integrity was a founding value of the brand which Roberta has interpreted as choosing vegetable tanned leather whenever possible, using recycled paper for packaging + producing in limited quantities in an effort to avoid waste. I like that the styles seem to work throughout the spectrum of casual to more dressy...jeans or shorts to dresses. Wilder footwear are made prioritizing safe work conditions + fair wages in Los Angeles + Brazil.

All lovely photos via Wilder.

I love brands started by people who set out to do one thing well. Jessica's obsession with button-ups led to her begin making them with her partner Kyle in their apartment. Those first shirts took 18 hours to construct from cutting to buttoning up. Today their carefully designed shirts are made with natural fibers in a wide range of sizes twenty miles from where they are designed. A few made-to-order pieces are still made in their studio in New Westminster, Canada. Jessica + Kyle sum up Power of My People as "responsibly handcrafted shirts made for your capsule wardrobe." I love this subtle reminder to consume with care + intention.

All lovely photos via Power of My People.

Beaumont Organics designs beautiful clothing in the UK. Their organic cotton pieces are made in Portugal, while their knitwear is made from lambswool in the UK. Looking at these pieces makes me a little more ready to embrace all of the crisp autumn days to come.

All lovely photos via Beaumont Organics.

If you're like me + find yourself increasingly allergic to all the alpaca found in so many sweaters these days...this brand might peak your interest. If you simply like beautiful cozy layers...these beauties will likely be of interest to you too!  :) 

Merrow knits are designed + made in Fall River, Massachusetts. Many (most?) of their knits are made from 100% natural materials like cotton + linen. Most knits are now made overseas, so this feels like a pretty amazing find...perfect for these cooler days!

Find this + so many other fair brands on our ethical brands page, when you need them. More fair sweaters here.

The interwebs I swim in love La Réunion, and I couldn't be happier that Sarah Nsikak's pieces are being so widely embraced. Sarah's pieces are made (in New York) exclusively with vintage + waste textiles. Some vintage pieces wear their patches proudly, while others are made completely out of pieced together fabric scraps.

Those of us who have experience thrifting, mending, quilting, or crafting our own clothing understand the price point of these pieces. The higher price point brings awareness to the time + attention that goes into each piece. Price can also suggest the value an item should have once in a wardrobe. 

Of course, we can choose to find inspiration in Sarah's pieces + put our own time + attention into our own patchy pieces. I find encouragement in the all the La Rèunion love, because I feel that my patches may be seen in a different light due in part to this brand's influence.

Patches may have signaled poverty + lack in the past, but many of us are now seeing them as emblems of care + reverence. I feel a sort of full-bodied, visceral connection with humanity when I see these pieces. To be human is to struggle + toil + imagine + create. It is both fiercely difficult + gloriously beautiful. Somehow I see all of that reflected here.

Dress photo via La Réunion. All other photos via Vestige.

Love,
​Jane

Tintorería is the type of project that can only result from an intersection of grand imaginings, artistry + collaboration. Maria Romero is an artist who has a dye kitchen in her studio modeled after "earlier dye houses, where people would drop off their garments to be re-colored".

Food waste is gathered from local New York restaurants + community gardens to become the dye material. Maria has designed a few basic pieces that are made in New York from natural fibers to take her dyes. She has also collaborated with the New Denim Project to dye some pieces made closer to them in Guatemala City. Gosh, I love a project where zero-waste + fair fashion come together!