Earlier this year, British publication The Pool published an interesting series called Wear Your Clothes: “An editorial series discussing sustainability and transparency within the fashion industry and looking at what we can do to love, treasure and make the most of the clothes that we enjoy wearing.” I wanted to share some of the articles today:

• In this video series, ethical fashion brand Birdsong explains what it takes to make fair fashion.
• One thing we can do to reduce the rate of our consumption is to rediscover our old clothes. Here some of the editors share which items aren’t just the longest-standing members of their wardrobes, but also the hardest working.
• Suggestions for what to do with your clothes once you’re finished with them.
• Tamsin Blanchard rounds up some popular mainstream clothing brands that are making a concerted effort to work towards a better way of doing things. 
• The inaugural Fashion Transparency Index revealed that Levi’s is one of the most transparent fashion brands, while Chanel is lagging behind in this department.
• Now that more and more customers are looking for pieces with longevity, Frankie Graddon explains how she sees cost-per-wear dressing.

Fab Links from Our Members

La Belle Demimondaine found this article about Gwyneth Paltrow, Goop, and being in the “aspirational business,” fascinating.

MsMaven reports that San Jose outfit blogger Tanesha Awasthi has teamed up with Lane Bryant for a 20-piece clothing collection available in sizes 12 to 28.

Jenni NZ wanted to let us know that Karen Walker, one of New Zealand’s best-known fashion designers, is starting a collaboration with Madewell.

Runcarla thought this was interesting, and she’s glad some stations are encouraging and supporting their presenters to embrace their natural style.

There’s a good discussion over on the YLF forum about the optimal size of a wardrobe. Of course, there is no one magical number because needs vary from person to person. Your lifestyle, climate, need for outfit variety, need for trendy updates, and your affection for fashion will greatly affect the size of your wardrobe. Other factors are the physical size and convenience of your closet. 

I have clients who manage extremely large wardrobes extremely well, thereby thoroughly enjoying their enormous variety. Conversely, I have clients who feel overwhelmed with much smaller wardrobes.

I suggest to my clients that a wardrobe is the right size when they can successfully MANAGE it. They can remember their favourite items across the seasons, create sufficient outfit variety, and feel at peace when they enter their closet and dressing space. As soon as they’re overwhelmed, they need to cut back and/or edit. As soon as they’re bored, they need to think about how to refresh their style.

For some, a small wardrobe is the answer. I think of a small wardrobe as between 50 and 100 items, including footwear, occasion wear, some accessories, and outerwear, but not including underwear, loungewear, sleepwear, workout wear, or jewellery.

Here are the pros and cons.

Pros

• Easier to manage and remember item details
• Easier to store and keep tidy
• A cost-effective way to manage a wardrobe when you’re on a weight loss or weight gain journey
• Well suited to a stay-at-home lifestyle
• Well suited to a “uniform” dresser who enjoys repeating outfits
• Well suited to someone who wears a uniform most days of the week, and wears sports gear over the weekend
• Well suited to a climate with fewer extreme seasons
• Well suited to those who enjoy wearing a few carefully chosen neutrals
• Well suited to those who are minimalists in other areas of their lives

Cons

• Wear and tear on each item is much greater, so they don’t last as long
• Causes laundry bottlenecks, especially in high heat and with frequent travel
• Creates outfit boredom
• Can create outfit creation challenges
• Falls short of covering wardrobe needs for a four-season climate
• Falls short of covering wardrobe needs for a diverse lifestyle
• Falls short of satisfying that happy gene when you love to wear all sorts of colours and patterns
• Falls short of satisfying your love for fashion, and refreshing your wardrobe with exciting new trends

I’m a fashion professional with a diverse lifestyle who loves fashion, lives in a four-season climate, travels a lot, enjoys trends, and likes variety in my outfits. A small wardrobe would not make me happy, and wouldn’t be practical for me. I therefore have a moderately sized wardrobe with around 150 items. Almost 50 of those items are handbags and scarves that I have collected over many years, which inflates the number. In fact, I have more handbags than shoes. I keep the size of my wardrobe fairly consistent because it’s easier to manage and works well with our storage space.

Over to you. Do you have a small wardrobe, and does it work for you? If not, why does a larger wardrobe suit you better?

When I ran this poll on YLF many years ago, it was an easy victory for Team Waist Definition. But since then, fluid and oversized fits with varying degrees of slouch in tops, knitwear, pants and dresses have become fashionable and trendy. Even flooding the market. Slowly but surely, clothing with waist definition is coming back on trend (although it never went out of style). The assortment of both structured and unstructured silhouettes at retail is once again looking balanced.

You are on Team Waist Definition if you prefer to wear outfits that showcase your waistline, thereby adding structure to the outfit. Waist definition usually means that you enjoy sporting the narrowest part of your torso because it creates a silhouette that makes you feel fabulous. Defining your waist can be extreme, like wearing body-con clothing, a fit-and-flare dress, a belted coat, or tucking a top into bottoms that are tailored on the waist. Or it can be subtle, like semi-tucking a fluid or oversized top into bottoms with a mid or low rise. Either way, outfits with waist definition can add professional polish to your look, create curves, accentuate curves, create positive body image, and make you feel more streamlined in your outfit.

You are on Team Waist Surrender if you prefer to wear outfits that do not draw attention to your waistline. You wear cuts that are trapeze, A-line, boxy, draped or straight, and use the fluid or oversized volume of the garment to hide the silhouette of the midsection. Waist-surrendering outfits are extremely comfortable and forgiving of midsection extra bits. No need for shapewear or worrying about a belly that expands during the day. Waist-surrendering outfits can look arty, architectural, avant-garde and interesting, thereby making you feel confident and fabulous.

I love wearing both. I thoroughly enjoy extreme waist definition by wearing fit-and-flare dresses, body-con knitwear, belted trench coats, and fully tucking tops into tailored skirts, trousers and high-rise skinnies. I enjoy subtle waist definition by semi-tucking fluid tops into all sorts of bottoms. But I also enjoy wearing straight shift and shirt dresses, cocoon coats, the occasional sack dress, boxy untucked cropped tops, and fluid untucked tops. So I’m benched with the very best seeded Dutch bread, Dutch cheese, Irish butter, cherry tomatoes, a rocket salad, and cold fresh mango for dessert.

Over to you. Do you bat for Team Waist Definition or Team Waist Surrender? Tell us why, and no batting for both teams, but feel free to join me on the bench.

A new outfit from Kimberly Smith of Penny Pincher Fashion, whom we introduced to YLF in October 2013.

Kimberly plays with texture and pattern in this polished casual Summer look. The mixed stripe culottes immediately catch the eye thanks to the horizontal and vertical placement of the black and white stripes.Pairing them with a simple fitted tank lets the statement bottoms do all the talking. Tucking the top lengthens the leg line from the hips up. Pairing the outfit with on-trend slides feels fresh, plus the white footwear bookends our blogger’s tank top. Her semi-circular bamboo bag adds textural interest, echoes the striped culottes, and amps up the Summer vibe. Accessorizing with delicate gold-toned necklaces, bangle bracelet and drop earrings adds polish. Red-rimmed sunnies and lavender nail polish are the playful finishing touches.