I love finding collections that feel like a readymade wardrobe. It's not that I want to replace my own collection of clothing. It's just inspiring. Every piece in the current Waltz collection earns its place. Different looks + feels are achievable with a few well-chosen pieces: a perfectly fitting button-up, jeans that can accommodate monthly fluctuations + the comfiest skirt. 

I love monochrome dressing, so the dark jeans + navy button-up call to me. Likewise, the cream button-up + pants feel just right. Mix + match for variety. Throw a button-up on with the skirt...or switch it out for a fitted sweatshirt or oversized sweater + comfort easily looks pulled together. 

Waltz is based in San Francisco (+ made in California) + is "built on the belief that fashion should elevate the everyday experience without frills or excess." Expert tailoring + quality materials come together in seasonless pieces that will just work year after year.
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All lovely photos via Waltz.

Wies Made is clothing that is farmed, milled + sewn in the USA. Nice. It's an American uniform for men + women (jeans, tees, sweatshirts + jean jackets) cut + sewn in small batches in Wies Made's own family run shop in Los Angeles. 

All photos via Wies Made.

Not only is each element of LWN designed + made with intention, the styles have a timeless quality. The colors are playful, and the fabrics look to be the sort that you reach for again + again.

LWN garments are made with local dead-stock, repurposed + upcycled materials. Labels + trims are made with the fabric leftover after pattern cutting. Mixed fiber fabrics are avoided to maximize the ability to recycle them after they are no longer useful as garments. Even zippers are avoided to minimize waste.

Small batches are designed + sewn in Los Angeles where factories can be visited daily. Fair, living wages + good working conditions are prioritized.

All lovely photos via LWN. Find this + other ethical brands here, when you need them.

This one has me more excited than I have been about a new brand in a while. The fabrics look to be quality + the shapes are a bit unique (that seersucker set!). These pieces look comfy + wearable...minimal yet interesting. I'm still loving sets that can be worn together or as separates. I just really feel like they give us so many different looks out of not many pieces. The color palette feels made for me...down to the brown bandana. Any of these pieces would mix into my wardrobe seamlessly.

Neranese is designed + made in Los Angeles in small batches from locally sourced, natural fabrics.

All lovely photos via Neranese. Find this + so many other ethical brands on our ethical brands page, when you need them.

These pieces from So Elly seem to have a handmade quality (in the best of ways). Each piece in this small, Brooklyn-based collection is sewn in a woman owned + operated sewing studio in Manhattan. The pieces feature both classic shapes + interesting details like a slightly longer hem on the back of a dress or squared off, deep slit sides on an oversized button up.

My favorite piece is that vest that could be worn so many ways over many seasons. These small batch, natural fiber beauties would surely earn their place in many a well-curated, ethical wardrobe.

All beautiful photos via So Elly.

Using natural fibers that get better with wear, Ashli designs key pieces for Mamene that will be in style for many seasons + through all stages of life. In her words, "that is the true test of sustainability."
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This is an approach to ethical clothing that seems to get less attention. Many of us talk about wearing pieces forever, but when actually faced with wearing what we have year after year...it's harder than it sounds. We are programmed to enjoy newness. 

As I get older, this is no less true. What is also true, however, is that I've seen the same styles come + go a time or two now. I know that some just aren't for me + my body type. I know what stands the test of time. I know that there are ways to wear certain pieces across time in different ways. These Mamene pieces are those pieces, I think.
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All lovely photos via Mamene.

Based out of Los Angeles + Paris, Human Assembly offers clothing alongside vintage rugs + textiles. The curation favors timeless pieces made from natural fibers, many of which originate in Japan + France.

The shapes favored allow me to see the beauty + function already in my own wardrobe. The styling prompts appreciation for the adventures I have while wearing a piece for a long time. These long-worn pieces become imbued with story + this only enhances my relationship to them. It adds to their value + my desire to keep wearing them. This is the essence of zero-waste, so thank you Human Assembly for the beauty + inspiration. I'd totally wear those stripes for a long, long time.
 
All lovely photos via Human Assembly.

Who doesn't love soft, comfy clothing that allows for all the movement of a gym workout + feels appropriate for all day wear? Sokoi offers interesting shapes that are comfortable + functional...without being made from plastic! I'm into the hemp/linen pants that I could get onto my mat wearing + then move through my day without changing. Yes!

Sokoi's founder started her brand out of a love for yoga, but not for tight, yoga clothing. Sokoi is made from natural fibers, designed + made in California in small batches (to avoid waste), and shipped with plastic-free packaging.

All lovely photos via Sokoi. Thank you Omoriala for this one! It's so good!

Dana Lee Brown is a collection of clothing made with a mindful approach to the origins and formation of garments. In an industry that has us celebrating the mere mention of the country where a garment was sewn, it is rare to come across a brand mentioning soil as a recognized part of a garment's origins. 

Designer, Dana Lee Brown, views her garments as collaborations with farms + mills. Each piece carries a label hand-chronicling a journey that begins with soil. The brand's shop on Bowen Island, British Columbia (as well as the website) offers more detail on farms, fibers and the process behind each piece.

Organic cotton is grown on three carefully chosen farms in California, New Mexico and Texas. Wool comes from sheep raised with regenerative practices on two farms in Ontario + California. Regeneratively grown indigo + foraged plants such as walnut hulls are used as natural dyes.

It's brands like these that expose what a garment can be. Each one of these pieces really does feel like a valuable education, an enlightened journey, a storied treasure. Spending time absorbing all of this naturally brings forward the question, "How many things do I need when each one is this precious?"

All lovely photos via Dana Lee Brown.

Love,
Jane