a few years ago I moved from a detached
home into a 500 square foot apartment
with my husband I wanted to be a good
roommate so for the very first time I
downsized my closets this is the part
that I am NOT proud of but while purging
my three full size wardrobes I
discovered that I was the owner of over
a hundred pairs of shoes yeah I know it
would be this moment in many moments
that would come after that would cause
me to reflect on my blind consumer
habits the impact of consumerism and the
kind of planet we could be leaving for
future generations this awareness would
also lead me to find purpose in my role
as a fashion stylist so how did I end up
with over a hundred pairs of shoes well
it started at a very young age while
playing with dolls or playing dress-up
and my mom’s closet
I found myself admiring clothing for its
power of transformation as soon as I
could work I wanted to be in retail I
wanted to be close to close and it was
in retail that I learned to express my
creativity through clothing and uncover
the art of styling I also learned three
valuable things about myself I was good
at dressing people observing trends and
shopping
these skills I would come to develop
over time in different jobs from
salesperson to fashion blogger and now
fashion stylist so because of this love
affair with retail part of me could
rationalize the amount of clothing I
owned all the sweaters the skirts and
the shoes but another part of me felt a
deep sense of unease when purging my
closets
I saw the volume I was assigning to my
keep consign and donate piles through
learning to purge my closets
thoughtfully I learned how to edit
wardrobes and it connected me connected
me with like-minded individuals and
these individuals opened me to a
different perspective in the fashion
community people and brands elevating
minimalism thrifting shopping local
valuing traceable sustainable ethical
manufacturing these new relationships
also caused me to deep to dig deeper
into the truth of my overconsumption the
conversation of clothing and its impact
on people and the planet is huge I’m
barely going to scratch the surface of
it today
but we’re all a Google search away from
knowing more so what did I learn well I
learned that while we get dressed every
single day the parallel industry
continues to be the second largest
industrial polluter second only to oil
let’s start with a garment that we all
know and love and I’d actually love to
see a show of hands how many of you are
wearing jeans right now oh my gosh yeah
okay so more than half and of course I
love jeans too so imagine my shock and
my dismay
when I learned that denim is one of the
dirtiest garments to produce why because
the amount of water it uses it can take
up to ten thousand liters of water all
to produce one pair of denim pants from
cotton fields to store shelves it can
take up to ten thousand litres of water
and that and there’s toxic waste water
to consider filled with dyes and
carcinogens that in some factories is
left untreated and pumped back into the
rivers in the ocean we love jeans we
really do in 2016
over 1 billion pairs of jeans were sold
worldwide on average we owned 6 to 7
pairs so where are these jeans or our
clothes going once we fall out of love
with them pull on your t-shirt or your
underwear or your favorite black pants
and you’re gonna feel some stretch that
is in thanks to a synthetic man-made
fiber introduced in 1959 called spandex
it’s estimated that spandex can take up
to two hundred years to fully biodegrade
something our great-great-grandchildren
can confirm for sure in 2159 we now live
in an age where products go from concept
to sale in a matter of weeks this time
frame isn’t just costing us the health
of the environment it’s also coming at a
cost of human life Livia Firth founder
of eco age and the producer of the
documentary at the true cost wrote in
May 2016 that despite 1334 garment
workers dying in a Bangladesh factory
collapse big recognizable brands
continue to man
factor in unsafe working conditions she
states that these buildings don’t
support the masses employed and the
working conditions themselves are in
violation of the UN sustainable
development ‘el growth goals and of the
human rights of every single worker now
I know that’s heavy stuff and it’s a lot
to take in but these findings are just a
few of the findings that continue to
push me to be in – to move from being a
over consumer to a conscious consumer
and these aha moments which by the way
they don’t stop you keep having them I
started it was through these aha moments
that I started sharing my conscious
consumer behavior on social media as one
does these days and it was through the
positive responses I received online
that I began to form my ideas around the
solution our collective consumer dollar
has the power to shift an industry from
mindless to mindful and I have a role in
this a responsibility for how my choices
affect the world I also learned that I’m
also an advocate for feeling good in our
clothes and that this is a catalyst for
change so I have to ask how do you feel
in your clothes do you think about how
what you’re wearing affects how you feel
because feeling how our clothes make us
feel is powerful stuff I’ve observed it
in myself and in others from fitting
rooms to photo sets to walk you into a
boardroom
I’ve seen how clothing can affect the
way someone talks the way they carry
themselves even have a tangible effect
on how they perform surprisingly I
found research that backs us up it’s a
phenomenon scientists have labeled
enclosed cognition researchers had
subjects perform tasks while wearing a
very simple garment a medical lab coat
subjects wearing a doctor’s coat showed
an increase sustained attention versus
subjects who were a painter’s coat or no
coat at all so this is proof that what
we wear has an effect on how we function
and feel are we choosing powerfully like
what would you choose to put on if Union
you have to walk into a room or a stage
and feel like you could own it for me
it’s choosing garments that I am
connected to in feelings of confidence
individuality comfort and security now
choosing with feelings isn’t a new
concept ask your grandparents and
they’re gonna tell you it’s called
common sense so in this fast fashion
world how am i choosing consciously well
first off I’m slowing down and I’m
taking time to ask myself and others
more questions I’m thinking about my
wants versus needs and if I really need
something why and I ask where who is
making the stuff that I want I think
about am I going to purchase it locally
it might not purchase it from second
hand could I even possibly borrow this
from a friend and if I am purchasing
brand-new I’m asking a lot more of the
makers and I know clicking around of
brands website isn’t always clear so let
them know you care email them at them on
social media have your voice heard and
now if I’m looking at my wants then it’s
a a little bit different question
then I look at my clothes and I wonder
am i wanting something because I’m bored
so I look at my clothes and I push
myself to try something different pair
something a little bit differently and
while you’re while I’m there let’s look
at longevity what could I be doing
differently to make my clothes last a
bit longer am i caring for them am i
mending which by the way is a very easy
skill and you don’t need to look far to
acquire them and then there’s
considerations for there’s
considerations for the clothes that we
fall out of love with be thoughtful in
where we donate look at shelters or
charity shops that support our local
communities and finally if I still end
up in a fitting room I’m asking myself
how do I feel before how do I look so
what’s the impact in all of this well
where and how we spend our money is the
power we have to change the clothing
industry by tuning in to how we feel we
choose less out of habit and more with
intent our collective spending is a
domino effect for change so now that we
know how to choose consciously when are
we going to change what would the people
of tomorrow want us to do it was this
time last year that I met the future my
niece and the very first
great-grandchild in my husband’s family
she was barely 24 hours old when I held
her for the first time and it was her
weight in my arms that I felt the weight
of my choices and how they come to
affect her generation and the kind of
world they’ll inherit
getting dressed every single day is one
of the simplest tasks we perform we have
the opportunity to choose more mindfully
and together we can shift an industry to
function and thrive more mindfully we
have the power for change change we can
choose to see in this lifetime and for
generations to come
thank you
[Applause]
home into a 500 square foot apartment
with my husband I wanted to be a good
roommate so for the very first time I
downsized my closets this is the part
that I am NOT proud of but while purging
my three full size wardrobes I
discovered that I was the owner of over
a hundred pairs of shoes yeah I know it
would be this moment in many moments
that would come after that would cause
me to reflect on my blind consumer
habits the impact of consumerism and the
kind of planet we could be leaving for
future generations this awareness would
also lead me to find purpose in my role
as a fashion stylist so how did I end up
with over a hundred pairs of shoes well
it started at a very young age while
playing with dolls or playing dress-up
and my mom’s closet
I found myself admiring clothing for its
power of transformation as soon as I
could work I wanted to be in retail I
wanted to be close to close and it was
in retail that I learned to express my
creativity through clothing and uncover
the art of styling I also learned three
valuable things about myself I was good
at dressing people observing trends and
shopping
these skills I would come to develop
over time in different jobs from
salesperson to fashion blogger and now
fashion stylist so because of this love
affair with retail part of me could
rationalize the amount of clothing I
owned all the sweaters the skirts and
the shoes but another part of me felt a
deep sense of unease when purging my
closets
I saw the volume I was assigning to my
keep consign and donate piles through
learning to purge my closets
thoughtfully I learned how to edit
wardrobes and it connected me connected
me with like-minded individuals and
these individuals opened me to a
different perspective in the fashion
community people and brands elevating
minimalism thrifting shopping local
valuing traceable sustainable ethical
manufacturing these new relationships
also caused me to deep to dig deeper
into the truth of my overconsumption the
conversation of clothing and its impact
on people and the planet is huge I’m
barely going to scratch the surface of
it today
but we’re all a Google search away from
knowing more so what did I learn well I
learned that while we get dressed every
single day the parallel industry
continues to be the second largest
industrial polluter second only to oil
let’s start with a garment that we all
know and love and I’d actually love to
see a show of hands how many of you are
wearing jeans right now oh my gosh yeah
okay so more than half and of course I
love jeans too so imagine my shock and
my dismay
when I learned that denim is one of the
dirtiest garments to produce why because
the amount of water it uses it can take
up to ten thousand liters of water all
to produce one pair of denim pants from
cotton fields to store shelves it can
take up to ten thousand litres of water
and that and there’s toxic waste water
to consider filled with dyes and
carcinogens that in some factories is
left untreated and pumped back into the
rivers in the ocean we love jeans we
really do in 2016
over 1 billion pairs of jeans were sold
worldwide on average we owned 6 to 7
pairs so where are these jeans or our
clothes going once we fall out of love
with them pull on your t-shirt or your
underwear or your favorite black pants
and you’re gonna feel some stretch that
is in thanks to a synthetic man-made
fiber introduced in 1959 called spandex
it’s estimated that spandex can take up
to two hundred years to fully biodegrade
something our great-great-grandchildren
can confirm for sure in 2159 we now live
in an age where products go from concept
to sale in a matter of weeks this time
frame isn’t just costing us the health
of the environment it’s also coming at a
cost of human life Livia Firth founder
of eco age and the producer of the
documentary at the true cost wrote in
May 2016 that despite 1334 garment
workers dying in a Bangladesh factory
collapse big recognizable brands
continue to man
factor in unsafe working conditions she
states that these buildings don’t
support the masses employed and the
working conditions themselves are in
violation of the UN sustainable
development ‘el growth goals and of the
human rights of every single worker now
I know that’s heavy stuff and it’s a lot
to take in but these findings are just a
few of the findings that continue to
push me to be in – to move from being a
over consumer to a conscious consumer
and these aha moments which by the way
they don’t stop you keep having them I
started it was through these aha moments
that I started sharing my conscious
consumer behavior on social media as one
does these days and it was through the
positive responses I received online
that I began to form my ideas around the
solution our collective consumer dollar
has the power to shift an industry from
mindless to mindful and I have a role in
this a responsibility for how my choices
affect the world I also learned that I’m
also an advocate for feeling good in our
clothes and that this is a catalyst for
change so I have to ask how do you feel
in your clothes do you think about how
what you’re wearing affects how you feel
because feeling how our clothes make us
feel is powerful stuff I’ve observed it
in myself and in others from fitting
rooms to photo sets to walk you into a
boardroom
I’ve seen how clothing can affect the
way someone talks the way they carry
themselves even have a tangible effect
on how they perform surprisingly I
found research that backs us up it’s a
phenomenon scientists have labeled
enclosed cognition researchers had
subjects perform tasks while wearing a
very simple garment a medical lab coat
subjects wearing a doctor’s coat showed
an increase sustained attention versus
subjects who were a painter’s coat or no
coat at all so this is proof that what
we wear has an effect on how we function
and feel are we choosing powerfully like
what would you choose to put on if Union
you have to walk into a room or a stage
and feel like you could own it for me
it’s choosing garments that I am
connected to in feelings of confidence
individuality comfort and security now
choosing with feelings isn’t a new
concept ask your grandparents and
they’re gonna tell you it’s called
common sense so in this fast fashion
world how am i choosing consciously well
first off I’m slowing down and I’m
taking time to ask myself and others
more questions I’m thinking about my
wants versus needs and if I really need
something why and I ask where who is
making the stuff that I want I think
about am I going to purchase it locally
it might not purchase it from second
hand could I even possibly borrow this
from a friend and if I am purchasing
brand-new I’m asking a lot more of the
makers and I know clicking around of
brands website isn’t always clear so let
them know you care email them at them on
social media have your voice heard and
now if I’m looking at my wants then it’s
a a little bit different question
then I look at my clothes and I wonder
am i wanting something because I’m bored
so I look at my clothes and I push
myself to try something different pair
something a little bit differently and
while you’re while I’m there let’s look
at longevity what could I be doing
differently to make my clothes last a
bit longer am i caring for them am i
mending which by the way is a very easy
skill and you don’t need to look far to
acquire them and then there’s
considerations for there’s
considerations for the clothes that we
fall out of love with be thoughtful in
where we donate look at shelters or
charity shops that support our local
communities and finally if I still end
up in a fitting room I’m asking myself
how do I feel before how do I look so
what’s the impact in all of this well
where and how we spend our money is the
power we have to change the clothing
industry by tuning in to how we feel we
choose less out of habit and more with
intent our collective spending is a
domino effect for change so now that we
know how to choose consciously when are
we going to change what would the people
of tomorrow want us to do it was this
time last year that I met the future my
niece and the very first
great-grandchild in my husband’s family
she was barely 24 hours old when I held
her for the first time and it was her
weight in my arms that I felt the weight
of my choices and how they come to
affect her generation and the kind of
world they’ll inherit
getting dressed every single day is one
of the simplest tasks we perform we have
the opportunity to choose more mindfully
and together we can shift an industry to
function and thrive more mindfully we
have the power for change change we can
choose to see in this lifetime and for
generations to come
thank you
[Applause]
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