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One advocate of this new wave of budget conscious and Earth friendly shopping is vintage collector and seller, Julie Gury. Gury has sold vintage on Etsy.com under the seller name Joules since January 2006. Recently, Gury decided to expand on the popular Flickr.com group Wardrobe_Remix - a group of fashionistas who share pictures of their daily ensembles, which often include vintage and thrifted finds. Her group is called 100% Thrifted and its purpose really brings home this new wave of conscious fashion. "I founded the 100% Thrifted group on Flickr [because] I wanted to add the extra challenge for the Remixers of creating fashionable outfits from purely secondhand, thrifted, or vintage combinations. At the same time, I wished to encourage less consumption and waste, and pure individual creativity. The group is constantly expanding, worldwide, which is most encouraging. I think our thrifty stylings are catching on", says Gury. You can check out 100% Thrifted at www.flickr.com /groups/100percentthrifted. Not all fashionistas are quite ready to embrace the ritual of thrift store digging. Once proud to be called fashionistas, these stylish shoppers are now opting for a more acceptable term in these economic times - recessionistas. The recessionista loves vintage, but may not be willing to hunt with the natives. She still wants the designer label, but wants to feel like a financially savvy and environmentally conscious shopper. Doris Raymond, owner of the premiere Los Angeles vintage boutique The Way We Wore, knows this creature well. Raymond has announced her special project, "Out of the Ordinary" in honor of Earth Day 2009. She has invited fashion designers to repurpose vintage clothing that is no longer relevant into modern, one-of-a-kind creations. The purpose of the event is to give the general public an idea of how to breathe new life into clothing they already own or may find at vintage clothing stores, flea markets, or second hand shops. The re-designed items will be sold at The Way We Wore and online with all proceeds going to green charities of the designer's choice. A special event will take place at The Way We Wore boutique on Earth Day, April 22, 2009. Another vintage repurposer is Christine Anderson, owner of online vintage clothing store, Listitcafe.com. Anderson repurposes damaged and unusable vintage fabrics and creates items such as handbags made out of vintage hats and Edwardian lace. "Maybe we will learn something in this financial crisis. We can realize how much we waste and start looking at how we can buy cheaper and in a way that will reflect positively on our environment. Recycling not only applies to soda cans, but to our clothing and furniture as well." You've heard the phrase it takes a village to raise a child. Perhaps it takes vintage clothing to raise financial and environmental consciousness. Now, if we could only keep responsible and ethical shopping in vogue past these crises. Sandra Mendoza-Daly is a freelance fashion and lifestyle writer. She has been featured in Eliza, Collector's News and Pasadena Magazine, and has her own website at www.debutanteclothing.com. |
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