Green Options

This morning, per usual, I checked my email. A huge smile crossed my face when I saw an email from Lizz Wasserman, designer of Popomomo. With the words “Introducing” and “Collection” in the email’s subject I immediately, my heart racing, opened it. To my delirious satisfaction, my eyes soaked in picture after beautiful picture of a limited-edition-sexy collection.

Once upon a time, a young woman, oh let’s just call her Emily, was vintage shopping. She tried on garment after garment, in love with their colors, styles and worn appeal, yet nothing fit. She held handfuls of fabric behind her back, yanked hems up a couple inches, glared at long droopy sleeves and was saddened by puckered torsos. The girl, completely frustrated, left the store in a huff, dreaming of vintage items that couldn’t be bought.

There’s nothing quite as satisfying as finding that beautiful vintage item that no one else owns. However, it’s disappointing when it doesn’t fit quite right. Maybe it’s too long, the sleeves are too big or it’s shaped like a large square. Deborah Brosenne, owner of Taxi CDC, a.k.a. vintage re-constructor extraordinaire, excels in making vintage items new again by deconstructing and designing them into a perfect fit.

I don’t think I can find the words to express how much I love the reclaimed t-shirt dresses by Angela Johnson. I’m in love with the idea of reclaimed and repurposed clothing. I have found myself sitting in front of a sewing machine on many occasions looking for ways to extend the life of a garment. A way to make something old, new again.

The dress from the photo is a onesie dress which is custom made from your child’s outgrown onesies. How great is that? This is a wonderful way to reuse all those adorable pieces of clothing from the first few months of life. This dress will run you $100, but if you don’t have the mad sewing skills to create one, I think this just might be worth the green.

There is an affordable option for girls a bit older, for $40 you can order a t-shirt dress made from vintage/reclaimed adult t-shirts (you can even provide the t-shirt). They are cute, unique and sure to be a hit. My thought process is that a young child could get many years of use out of the shirts, growing from a dress to a top with leggings or jeans.

Many believe vintage shopping to be one step closer to protecting the planet! When I’m not around to swing by a favorite buy-sell-trade boutique like the Painted Bird, I find digging around online for styles the next best thing. Recycling clothing and finding creative wardrobe solutions like Dig ‘N’ Swap are truly the way to go. Once in a while I like looking for cool graphic teeshirts from online vintage boutiques such as: