Everlane 100% human tee | small (mine is made in the US, even though online it says it’s made in Vietnam. Hmmm.)
Prana skorts | size 8
Nike free running shoes
Wearing/Shopping
What I wear to walk Dagny… ^
As you can see I ordered Everlane’s 100% human tee as part of my white tees experiment (to test out if my deodorant was making the armpits yellow more quickly, or if it’s something else) and I like it. Still, I prefer James Perse’s tees, because they’re slimmer at the waist and a better length on me. And although it doesn’t say so online, this tee and the other two white tees I ordered from Everlane say made in the US.
And every time REI does their member 20% off coupon I use it to buy something I need, and every spring, I usually need some item of clothing for warm weather with pockets. Since I don’t wear shorts – I hate shorts – I stock up on these skort-thingies every time I find a good pair. And this is a great pair by Prana.
I ordered the 6397 shorty jeans in herringbone from Shopbop this week with their coupon code and some credit, so I’m patiently waiting for them to arrive. Has anyone received their order yet?
Reading/Listening
I’ve been reading a lot about Stoicism after listening to a podcast with The Daily Stoic author on, you guessed it, James Altucher’s podcast. It has really resonated with me because at it’s core, from what I understand, Stoicism deals with letting go of any idea that you have any control over anything in your life – you only have “control” over how you respond to things.
When I was having a particularly bad time awhile ago, I actually came to this conclusion, and made a list of all the things I could control, which I refer to ALL THE TIME:
- What I put INTO my body
- What I put ONTO my body
- How I deal with/respond to interactions with other people
- How I deal with/respond to situations that arise
- What I choose to spend money on
That’s it. I cannot control how my husband responds to my words or actions, nor can I control the lack of parking at the post office, or the guy who cuts me off in traffic. All I can “control” is my response to all of that; I can choose to get mad and take things personally, or I can observe that it happened, and move on.
The Case Against Yoga Pants – Kathryn mentioned in a comment recently that every time you wash polyester/synthetics you release pollutants/toxins into the water. I had maybe heard that in passing, but hadn’t given it much thought until I was talking to my mother about all the reasons why NOT to buy clothing made with polyester. I found this article on a search, and find it very thorough, yet incredibly depressing. Of course I wear leggings made with polyester/nylon/spandex for Pure Barre, and can’t imagine wearing anything else (I love merino wool for tees & socks, but it would make terrible workout leggings), so I felt horrible after learning how much of an impact they have even AFTER manufacturing. Ugh.
The problem is that I think even my recycled polyester leggings STILL release the synthetic microfibers that pollute the water. So what to do?? Thankfully, I already wash my workout clothes on delicate (less agitation minimizes the release of microfibers) and in cold water, and hang to dry. But we have a top-loading washing machine with releases more than 500% MORE microfibers in the wash. 500%!!!!!!!!!
Like I said. Depressing.
The Co-Founder of REI died at age 107 recently. She and her husband started the co-op, as an actual co-op in the 1930’s. Anyway, I’d like to think she lived so long because of her love of the outdoors and reverence for nature. If only because hopefully that will bode well for me.
THINK with Temple Grandin – this was such a fascinating conversation; I was so inspired by Temple.
LOL, can you tell I spend a lot of time listening to NPR? It’s on all day in my office and whenever I’m in my car.
I hope you have a wonderful weekend and Easter if you celebrate.
I just got my beek Parakeets from Shopbop yesterday! They are lovely and are comfortable right out of the box; I love them. Thank you for recommending them! I had been eyeing Beek for a long time but had a hard time pulling the trigger due to the cost. They were the only major purchase I made for the Shopbop sale — partially because the shoes were sold out on the Beek website but available at Shopbop, but I’m also saving all my shopping money to buy (seemingly) everything from the ES WWC — Linen Clydes, Linen coat with pockets (!), and Petra tops — I can’t wait!!
I’ve been washing my pilates/barre stuff in my LaundryPod (essentially a fancy hand washer) and it’s just one step up from handwashing so I doubt it releases many microfibers. Patagonia is going to also sell guppy friend, which is a bag that you put them in for washing that prevents microfibers from escaping.
http://guppyfriend.com/
Some of my exercise stuff is starting to wear out though and I’m thinking about what I’ll replace it with. Maybe like hemp or linen crop yoga pants like these? https://www.rawganique.co/organic-cotton-thai-fishermans-pants-p/tfp-oc-3.htm
I think that’s a really fun outfit! I got the black unisex 100% human shirt and I think it was made in Vietnam. Weird! I do love the shirt though, more than I thought I would…I feel a bit awkward with the graphic on it, even though it’s the small graphic version. I never wear prints or graphic tees anymore, so even a small chest graphic feels too “loud” to me. But the shirt is sooo sooooft!
I had no idea about microfibers, I did not even know that was a thing. Do you think the impact would be lessened if we hand washed everything? Though sometimes I feel like my clothes don’t get quite “clean” enough with hand washing.
Speaking of washing, do you machine wash your wools? I have some wool pants, and a couple of cashmere sweaters, and I really really really don’t want to dry clean them, but I’m afraid of putting them in my machine!
I did not know the Laundry Pod was a thing! I’m going to get one of those! I mentioned below, I have some “dry clean only” things I’d rather just wash at home but I’m afraid to put them in my machine, so this sounds like a great idea. Thanks for mentioning it!
I have a hand wash cycle on my machine and use it for unstructured wool (sweaters mostly, and I have some merino tees & long underwear, oh, and sweater dresses but that’s just basically a long sweater, right? I don’t have any wool pants at the moment but would use the machine cycle if they were not lined or part of a suit….) and I do use it for cashmere sweaters & scarves, then I try to block before air drying (but sometimes fail – like, if I wash more than one sweater at a time because I only have one flat dryer and other sweaters end up on the exercise ball or hanging on the upright air dryer….
Soooo…..do you know something we don’t know ;-)??????? ES promised “hints” of what’s to come this summer, but haven’t seen anything myself although I have been doing my level best to stalk. Last summer I loved everything and hence bought nothing, because I have very limited means and just couldn’t choose. Sigh.
OH MY GOSH THAT IS BRILLIANT. i’m ordering one. i would use that for almost everything – it would be great for one or two sweaters, delicates, exercise clothes. WHERE HAS THIS BEEN ALL MY LIFE???
i love those thai fisherman pants, but i wouldn’t be able to wear them for pure barre; they’re too loose and would get in the way. they’d be great for other stuff though. i’ve always wanted a pair of those!
kathryn i think alyssa’s been stalking ES’ instagram – i saw someone on instagram i think say they were following ES’ instagram like it was their “job” lol – ES has been showing part of the collection in her stories (little videos) lately, so you can actually get a pretty good idea of what’s coming. seems to be a linen trench (!!) and some other really cool looking linen pieces. i know the collection is launching on 4/26 and hopefully i’ll get to share some images before.
i would totally do that. i’m going to get one too…
but in the meantime, i wash everything in my washing machine on delicate cycle, cold water and so far so good…i have done this for years.
i’m not sure i would wash wool pants that are lined in the machine though – i don’t know why? they might lose their structure?
i’m so glad you love your beek sandals! i was really tempted to get another pair (different style), but i don’t need them. i just love how comfortable they are – like as comfortable as my birkenstocks, but a little more “polished” LOL
YES! I joined Instagram solely so I could follow ES on there, and they have been posting clips of the photoshoots of their newest collection.
wait, you don’t follow me also?? 😉
just kidding….
I do follow instagram and have seen nothing. Also her latest video seems to be from months ago……I am missing something you social media stars?
in your app, you should see those circles at the top – click on eelizsuzann and see her latest “stories”
OMG . just did it and there’s a HARPER DRESS!!!!!!!!!!
lol, i just took a screenshot just now, total coincidence that mamavalveeta’s post is at the top 😉 – or is it a happy accident??
I checked that link on the polyester/microfiber washing claims…and their research links and documentation of claims are pretty sketchy. Legitimately researched articles should be chock-full of data pulled from educational, government and scientific non-profit publications/websites. Instead, they have links to the Guardian or other newspapers, weebly and other private sites, and etc…
That particular article didn’t cite them, but there are studies that demonstrate the phenomenon. Many news articles cite this study from UC Santa Barbara: http://www.esm.ucsb.edu/research/2016Group_Projects/documents/PataPlastFinalReport.pdf
You can see a range of studies if you search “microfiber pollution” on google scholar:
https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=%22microfiber+pollution%22+&btnG=&hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C36&as_vis=1
I’ve been wearing cotton capris made by Champion for exercising, and I’ve struggled to find something else that I like as much that is made more sustainably. Champion has agreed to some goals in far as environment and labor, but they could do better. But this has me wondering about balancing the company and the environmental impact of washing their clothing. I might stick with the Champion capris, which are better to wash. I love reading more about your thought process when buying, and I’d say that all the comments about washing seem like they’re saying this would be a great topic for a post exploring the environmental and ethical impacts of laundering.
Thanks, Claire. The Guardian article is quite a good layperson’s summary too. I am actually impressed that Patagonia has been funding research at U of C, since they are currently (inadvertently) a major part of the problem. And clearly they did this some time ago, before it became such a public issue, since at least one project has been completed and published. And they are not hiding the results!
Grechen: thanks for trying to help me with ES previews, but I don’t have a problem getting in, I just can’t find the “stories.” Maybe my equipment is too old? Maybe their is some insider registration I am not aware of? Don’t know. I have emailed ES support to see if they can help. As a loyal customer since it was just her and her sewing machine, I would like the privilege of seeing her stuff when others do! 😉 I’m sure she wouldn’t mind either lol!
Grechen, THANK YOU for sharing your list of what we can and can’t control. It was most timely for me and has already saved me more than once in recent stressful interactions. I find doing regular mindfulness exercises also helps (but I’ve been lazy with that lately) but your list is so effective as an immediate band-aid to frustrations that you can’t control. Hope you’ve had a great Easter break!