Rethink Your Closet With Five Sustainable Books
While fashion is important to all of us, it’s no secret the toll it takes on the environment. To make one pair of cotton jeans takes 1800 gallons of water, which is subsequently dumped and pollutes waterways. Farmers and factory workers make little to none to grow and produce the raw materials needed to make clothing, and with the rise of fast fashion, more clothing is being produced (and thrown away) than ever before. These five books explore the current state of fashion, the future, and what we can do to reduce our impact. From discovering new sustainable brands and the practices they are developing, to reimagining our current wardrobes, we can all take a page from one of these books and make even a small difference to a massive problem.
An investigation into the damage wrought by the colossal clothing industry and the grassroots, high-tech, international movement fighting to reform it. Bestselling journalist Dana Thomas has traveled the globe to discover the visionary designers and companies who are propelling the industry toward that more positive future by reclaiming traditional craft and launching cutting-edge sustainable technologies to produce better fashion. In Fashionopolis, Thomas sees renewal in a host of developments, including printing 3-D clothes, clean denim processing, smart manufacturing, hyper localism, fabric recycling—even lab-grown materials.
Dana Thomas began her career as a writer on the style section of the Washington Post. She is currently a New York Times bestselling author, British Vogue’s European sustainability editor, and current host of The Green Dream podcasts, which focuses on sustainability and human rights. Fashionopolis is Thomas’ third book published in September of 2019 as a look into the global crisis of clothing production and some future practices aimed to change it.
“Whether your goal is to build an effortless capsule wardrobe, keep up with trends without harming the environment, buy better quality, seek out ethical brands, or all of the above, The Conscious Closet is packed with the vital tools you need. Elizabeth delves into fresh research on fashion's impacts and shows how we can leverage our everyday fashion choices to change the world through style.”
Based in New York, Elizabeth L. Cline is a journalist, author, public speaker, and an expert on consumer culture and labor rights within the apparel industry. As of fall 2022, she also teaches two graduate courses at Columbia University’s Sustainability Management Master’s Program. The Conscious Closet, published August of 2019, is her second book dedicated to the impact of fast fashion’s impacts and how consumers can rethink everyday choices to change the the apparel industry for the better.
How To Break Up With Fast Fashion will help you to change your mindset, fall back in love with your wardrobe and embrace more sustainable ways of shopping - from the clothes swap to the charity shop. Full of refreshing honesty and realistic advice, Lauren will inspire you to repair, recycle and give your unloved items a new lease of life without sacrificing your style.
Lauren Bravo is a journalist and author writing for publications such as Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 UK, The Guardian, and Sunday Times Style. How To Break up with Fast Fashion is Bravo’s second book. As a fashion lover herself, this book is her personal journey in search of a more sensible and slower way of shopping and ways we can do the same.
“A revolutionary guide to the art of mindful buying that will teach you how to resist cheaply made goods and make smart, fulfilling purchases that last a lifetime.”
Tara Button is an author, public speaker, and founder of BuyMeOnce, an online shopping website that offers durable and sustainable goods. Her debut book, A Life Less Throwaway is a guide with ways to rediscover how to care for and keep things you buy, detect overspending tricks, how to move past trends and much more to lead a more “mindfully curated lifestyle.”
“This book will equip you with a myriad of ways to mend, rewear and breathe new life into your wardrobe to achieve a more sustainable lifestyle. By teaching you to scrutinize your shopping habits and make sustainable purchases, she will inspire you to buy better, care more and reduce your carbon footprint by simply making your loved clothes last longer.”
Orsola de Castro is a fashion designer, upcyclist, author, and founder of fashion brand From Somewhere, that repurposes pre consumer textile waste. She also is the co-founder and creative director of Fashion Revolution, an activist movement that works towards sustainability within the fashion industry. Loved Clothes Last is Castro’s debut book, as a guide to clothing longevity and repair through her own experience as an upcyclist.
Article by Melia Robinson, Contributor, PhotoBook Magazine
Tearsheets by Alexa Dyer, Graphic Designer, PhotoBook Magazine
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