SUSTAINABLE IN PARIS
Beaumont Organic dress, Matt + Nat bag, Vintage hat from Beacon's Closet, Wires sunglasses and Veja trainers
I'm in Paris for 24 hours (check out my 24-hour guides to Amsterdam and Copenhagen) for Nick's mum's birthday surprise: Joan Baez, legendary queen of folk music live in concert! For the two hour Eurostar train journey (quicker than visiting her in Exeter where she lives) I wanted to be as comfortable as possible so I could catch some "Zs" (meditation) before cramming in as much as possible whilst we're here in this beautiful and buzzy city of love and style. In this sustainable outfit my future mother-in-law thinks I look like Michelle from 'Allô Allô' after she got dressed in the dark - exactement! 😄 See full details below for these brands who are making sure we can shop ethically without compromising on style.
BEAUMONT ORGANIC
Beaumont Organic is an international ethical ladieswear brand that combines signature styling with contemporary classics. Teaming contrasting fabrics and unique silhouettes with luxury organic, fairtrade and eco fabrics to create a renowned style. The brand is inspired by making changes and paving a way for fashion to have a more sustainable future. They do this by asking questions, producing ethically, reducing wastage, using off-cuts where we can for sampling and keeping consumption low.
BEACON'S CLOSET
I discovered Beacon's Closet, a second-hand vintage shop, on a trip to New York earlier in the year. It's an 100% Brooklyn based, female founded company, that embraces sustainability and ethical business practices. Beacon Closet provides a living wage to our employees, offering 100% health insurance coverage for full timers, paid maternity and paternity leave, and paid vacation/personal days. The store also has the option for customers to bring in and sell their own clothes in return for Beacon's Closet vouchers - genius! If anybody knows of anything similar in London, please let me know!
MATT & NAT
MATT & NAT stands for MAT(T)ERIAL + NATURE. An 100% vegan brand, the company uses sustainable materials such as cork and rubber in its designs. The linings of handbags are made from 100% recycled plastic bottles. MATT & NAT is incredibly vigilant in the factories it uses and currently only produces in factories that operate by the SA8000 standard, which ensures quality work conditions for all.
WIRES
Wires Glasses was founded by Yair Neuman, a London-based designer. When in need of some sunglasses on holiday, Yair decided to make himself a pair using materials he had on hand, including a single piece of wire. Wire frames are handmade in a family run business in the Italian Dolomites, a region with a long history of craftsmanship. The brand uses extruded metal wires for the frames and 3D printing for the lens rims, producing a minuscule amount of waste in comparison to conventional methods of manufacturing eyewear.
VEJA
In 2004, childhood friends Sébastien Kopp and François-Ghislain Morillion founded Veja, a line of socially conscious sneakers inspired by vintage volleyball shoes. The French house works with Brazilian farmers to produce its minimal, subtly branded low-tops using organic cotton, wild rubber, and other sustainable materials. Known for its commitment to ethical business practices, the cult-worthy label forgoes traditional advertising and credits its success to word-of-mouth marketing.