eco brand: cossac, the transeasonal pieces every girl needs

some of us watched the 80's dance-romance movie flashdance, starring jennifer beals as alex owens, with eyes wide open and thought: with those moves, of course she belongs in the dance repertory! others thought that is the perfect mane of corkscrew curls, hair hardly afflicted by the realities of a heavy welding helmet. sometimes big dreams and big hair go hand in hand! still others admired her sexy, borrowed-from-the-boys sartorial ensembles: those off-the-shoulder, slouchy tees + sweatshirts were casually cool. if you were me, you marveled at all of the above. 

i'm sure if alex owens came to life today, she'd be wearing u.k. based sustainable fashion label cossac, a fair fashion brand offering redefined basics, sporty oversized joggers + sweatshirts,  slip dresses and feminine bodysuits at affordable prices. she'd ignore those snarky looks from the prima ballerinas and remind us to buy less, and buy better because quality does matter. then she'd breakdance right down the road. well, that's my version, at least! 

the clothes i reach for each morning are the clothes i can dance in which are the same clothes i can work in. my favorite closet staple is always a cozy, crop top that moves fluidly from one outfit to another and from one season to the next: i like to mix my capsule wardrobe pieces together, swapping out my vintage culottes for a thrifted midi skirt and then for a pair of high-waisted jeans: all with one deliciously dexterous top. cossac is a go-to eco brand for sassy gals who like ease in their clothes + stylish options that take them from day to play.

“Sustainably designed and ethically produced, each quality garment is intended to be transeasonal, with the aim of minimising wastefulness and maximising usefulness.”

on warm summer days in paris, there's usually a little rain that leaves the air feeling clean and fresh. on these particular days, the mornings start out with just a touch of cool mist, and on these days i like to layer a light pullover on top of a tee, like this polished white version from cossac. the classic cuts from cossac provide a modern + hip alternative to fast fashion brands as each garment is made to last and every design is constructed with high quality, earth friendly fabrics including organic cotton and tencel.

the founder + designer agatka kozak confesses that her infatuation with fashion led to a design career that took her from poland to spain for studies in fashion at esdi, then to istanbul to attend mimar sinan and eventually to london. kozak wanted to do things diffrently though, and she launched her own slow fashion brand in 2014, branding it as exactly what it is: eco-hot. you'll find sexy little dresses, on-trend jumpsuits and off-the-shoulder bodysuits, everything you need to build a sound capsule wardrobe. 

ethically produced, each piece adheres to kozak's mission of aesthetics with ethics, rejecting the tenets of fast fashion industry which produce cheap, low-quality and disposable items. kozak works exclusively with small factories who provide safe working milieus for production workers. check out cossac's eco designs, where you'll find the perfect pieces to flashdance in, work in, lounge in and pursue your passions in - welding helmet and legwarmers not included.

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eco mode: top by cossac /  vintage pants thrifted / shoes secondhand from paris flea market

{eco lifestyle} junkyard planet: accessible + robust resources

“The paradox of life lies exactly in this: its resources are finite, but it itself is endless. Such a contradictory state of affairs is feasible only because the resources accessible to life can be used over and over again.”

— I.I. Gitelson

textiles are a robust resource meant to be used again + again {gently used bedding + towels can be donated, and pre-loved clothes can be sold, traded or donated}. 

in the u.s. consumers recycle or donate only 15% of their unwanted clothing to charities {with the rest ending up in landfills}. the average american tosses 80 pounds {36 kilograms} of textile waste each year. every year.  that's 13 million tons of clothing. 

over the years, i've learned of inventive + thoughtful ways textiles {including shoes} can be transformed: 

paint it black:

following the assassination of president kennedy in 1963, jacqueline kennedy sent bill cunningham, fashion writer, photographer + milliner, her red balenciaga suit which she had previously purchased at chez ninon to dye black. she wore this suit to the funeral. 

art imitates life:

american graffiti artist jean-michel basquiat used his then-girlfriend's newly thrifted gold lame jacket as canvas. she recounts the story of waking up the following day to find her new coat painted over. all is fair in love and art.

a changed man:

a co-worker's grandfather took out his grandmother on their first date, and at the time he only owned one pair of shoes, so he dyed his shoes a different color each time they had a new date, rotating the colors to change the look + style of his outfits. the rest is history. 

eight is enough:

a friend who is one of eight siblings comes from a modest background; her mother recycled her satin, ivory wedding dress by cutting + sewing the white fabric into petite frocks for each of her brothers + sisters to wear in church at their christenings.

hidden treasures:

both in america + europe there are lots of wonderful thrift shops + consignment shops to buy pre-loved clothes + accessories and to sell/donate clothes that are no longer wanted or needed. crossroads + buffalo exchange are good places to start if you're stateside. chine machine + chercheminippes are great places in paris. craiglist is the place to sell household textiles in the usa, and boincoin is the place to do it in france. this is a great way to give pre-loved items a new life.

caring for your clothes extends their life. both new and vintage items sometimes need a little tlc: if you don't sew, find a local tailor {or take a class if you're truly inspired!}. i love to sew, and i enjoy the relationship i have with my clothes which involves simple fixes + mending {cutting loose threads + snipping off pills is also part of keeping clothes in good condition}. simple fixes might also include:

1/ securing + replacing buttons

2/ mending loose hems

3/ sewing small tears + pinholes

4/ replacing stretched-out elastic + bringing in over-sized pieces {i save these tasks for tailors}

before donating apparel, author + slow fashion activist elizabeth cline shares useful tips on how to properly donate clothes. 

the less we purchase, the less to discard + the fewer textiles we need to organize into piles to donate. before you make your next purchase, here's a great video from erin at my green closet, sharing 5 simple factors to consider to reduce consumption + to help you decide whether you truly need to make that purchase.

{don't forget the tip} each and every one of the pieces pictured here today - all are vintage + secondhand piece - have been cared for via alterations + mending. my capsule wardrobe takes summer pieces into the winter months: transition warm-weather apparel to fall + winter by layering! on warm weather days i'll pop summer dresses + skirts on with sandals + a jean jacket, and as autumn settles upon us, i'll layer the same pieces under a jean jacket or faux leather moto jacket {sometimes both} + add black stockings/tights and my animal-friendly kicks including wedges. sneakers and booties.

until next time, stay green dear hearts!

{header image by a. demt}

{eco travel} a cool capsule wardrobe for the eco traveler

“reduction is the least observed of the three r’s of environmentalism {reduce, reuse, recycle} but it’s probably the most important. reuse and recycling are sensible measures in an over-productive society, but why not neutralise the problem of overproduction at the source? instead of choosing to act efficiently at the end of a product’s life cycle by reusing or recycling it, we should stop said product from being made in the first place by eliminating consumer demand for it." robert wringham

what exactly is a capsule wardrobe? really, it's the idea of a minimalist closet: it means subscribing to the idea of less purchases + investing in pieces that withstand seasonal trends. it means purchasing slow fashion items in colors + styles that play nice {aka can be worn together}, with the end goal of keeping + caring for those items for years to come {and wearing + re-wearing those items}, as was done once upon a time.

essentially, it's like having a monogamous relationship with your wardrobe. but if dating + meeting new people thrills you more than settling down with a s/o, and the idea of committing to a capsule wardrobe sounds less than exciting {yawn, snore, snooooze}, well, stay with me here {head up off the keyboard!}. a capsule wardrobe is the ryan gosling of wardrobes. instead of buying a new frock each time a celebration or special event pops up {new dress = new date}, you take ryan {committed relationship = capsule wardrobe}. that is, you wear what you have, and what you have you really, really like}.

a capsule wardrobe is adopting the notion of quality over quantity. in the end, it means investing in a set number of wardrobe pieces* {many pieces you will already own} and spending less time in department stores, which equals more time with family + friends and yes, more money for travel adventures if your heart so desires {because when it's time to shop, you're going to pop into your very own closet + select a playful piece from your own wardrobe instead of heading to the mall to purchase another bargain bin item}.

traveling challenges me to whittle down my choices even further. i own a total of 48 pieces of apparel {that's my entire wardrobe}, and like russian stacking dolls, there's an even tinier version of my wardrobe lying in wait!

here for you today, 14 ethically-produced items including shoes {and not including my hefty books} for day to night outings so you can travel unfettered + free.

from chicago to new york to paris, and then to sunny marseille, i've been a busy girl. there are many things i profess to love about traveling: the planning + packing, the humming airports + the teeming terminals {meeting riveting humans like the two sexagenarian missionaries + their three-legged dog named trinity: where else could i encounter such a diverse + dynamic set?}; i even love the in-flight magazines. 

and i love to travel light.

no check-ins, no hassle, just me + the weight of my over-sized poetry books or novels {which i can't seem to live without} and a few clothing items to stay cozy + comfortable while looking contemporary + cool.

so here's an easy guide for creating a simple, capsule wardrobe; 14 modern basics in a monochromatic palette + simple silhouettes for mixing and matching galore {all fair trade, organic, animal-friendly + ready to roll}:

1  s k i r t

the midi skirt. i love this little number. i own a vintage, pleated diaphanous skirt that gets along swimmingly with everything in my wardrobe. depending on your style + body type, you might prefer a pencil skirt or an a-line skirt. search the racks at your fave charity shop or vintage retailer. if you're stateside, check out my absolute fave collective of vintage dealers at beehive chicago + if you're in paris, check out vintage system, 3e.

1  s c a r f

the knit scarf. mine is a thrifted version from vintage boutique chine machine in paris, 10e + 18e. if you're in america, try crossroads trading co. kaight shop in new york carries this handsome, handmade windowpane check scarf as well as this singular kantha knit scarf woven from 100% khadi cotton, by indigo handloom {crafted by hand using zero elecricity!}.

2  j a c k e t s

the trusty denim jacket. a goes-with-everything deep indigo version from patagonia. i wear mine solo on warmer days + layered under my moto jacket on crisp days. check your local thrift shop for a fine vintage model with lots of character: pop into buffalo exchange in the usa, or mad vintage in paris, 4e for the best selections. 

the moto jacket. you know how i feel about the moto jacket: simplify your life by choosing your perfect mate here. wear it independently or over the denim jacket on cooler days.

2  j e a n s

the long-lasting pair. a woman's best friends are not diamonds, it's denim. the most durable jeans i own are by nudie. and i wear them frequently. by frequently, i mean i depend on these jeans weekly.

the enduring pair. i also own + wear big star jeans. they move, they stretch, they retain their shape. eternally youthful, these jeans don't fray + won't age. i'm a mover + shaker, and boy can they keep up.

3  t o p s

the perfect layering tank from miakoda. or the fitted tank from groceries apparel. 

the cool graphic tank from beetxbeet. or a striped version from threads for thought.

the multitasking chambray top from loomstate. wear it over tanks or under jumpers.

3  p u l l o v e r s

the cropped pullover from theo the label. or the cropped sweater from know the origin.

the oversized boyfriend sweatshirt from baserange. or the deep v jumper from bon label.

the long-sleeved, funnel-neck top from signe. or the cropped turtleneck from reformation.

2  p a i r s  o f  s h o e s

perfect for the happy nomad + the fearless wanderer: the white trainer by wills  + black oxfords from bourgeois boheme. both are equally comfy. 

to see how my boy-meets-girl looks come together, follow along on instagram, where you'll see the mixing + matching magic happening. 

let us not forget books, glorious books. i like to choose my travel partners carefully; sometimes i select j.d. salinger, other times i pick f. scott fitzgerald. for my most recent travels i chose  literary iconoclast e.e. cummings as my companion; his complete book of poetry enthralls me. now, i didn't include socks on the list above, but i've long considered myself an eco sock connoisseur, and have a list of ethically produced + animal friendly options here. and of course, there's the perfect little weekender bag to pack your life into and head out for the next adventure.

{don't forget the tip}*capsule wardrobes can include 35-45 items of clothing, but there's no set rule. a helpful tip for creating a flexible + fluid capsule wardrobe is to choose a color palette from the start: colors that work well together. i love monochromatic hues, so my closet is a sea of black, gray and white. i'll add a splash of red wine {a deep, dark red hue intermingles nicely} or olive green. if you lean towards pastels, choose light tones: items that can be integrated into your closet easily. try to lean away from trends; if you like patterns, stay close to classic, enduring patterns like stripes + checks. really, it's deeply satisfying + quite fun to see how many different ensembles can come together from your capsule wardrobe. and all that time + extra funds on your hands, well the world is at your fingertips, my friends!

while i was packing light for cooler weather, my friend + fellow sustainable living blogger, holly at leotie lovely, has been showing us how to put together a warm-weather vacation capsule wardrobe for those traveling to tropical climes. see how she does it from head {headphones} to toe {fuzzy socks, that is} right over here.

until next time, stay green dear hearts!

{eco mode: wearing vintage denim jacket under thrifted faux leather moto jacket + jeans by big star denim; gloves by krochet kids}