Eco-Fashions on Campus

Hello again!

Today I wanted to talk about how to go green right here on the UA campus. When I have the option to buy anything environmentally safe and organic, I without question choose to do so. However, being a college student typically short on cash as well as time, convenience and price does tend to play a role in where and what I purchase (be it organic food, cleaning supplies, makeup, whatever). This is why I was over the moon to find out that American Apparel, which is close to my home (just right on University Blvd.) as well as inexpensive recently created a 100% organic t-shirt line.

I'm not going to lie, when I visited AA to take a look at the shirts, I thought to myself, "it's great that these t-shirts are organic, but they are a little plain jane for me." Then I heard the facts from AA's store manager, Tiffany Tadesco. She explained that the AA company as a whole has made many efforts so far to create eco-friendly fashions. Twenty-five percent of the power at the AA factory is solar power energy, and the fabric scraps they have leftover from creating the clothes are recycled, so they have little waste material. An example of fabric scrap use are the fabric neckties (see photo, left), headbands and belts. The recycled fabric neckties come in a gazillion colors and can spice up even the blandest outfit. Chances are, you will even be able to find a pair of shorts or a skirt to match, as I did with these retro-inspired teal jean shorts.

As I spent more time with the organic AA t-shirt, I started to come around to the idea of using the top as a base to accessorize with. By adding splashes of color here and there, the outfit became fun and exciting. However, I was still curious as to why the Sustainable edition shirts did not come in more colors like the standard AA pieces. Tedesco said that the fabric dye is actually the ingredient that makes the shirts un-natural. By not adding any color to the garment, they are able to label them organic.

Another option for enhancing the AA organic shirts is to add (what else) jewelry. This season, bangle bracelets are all the rage, especially mixing and matching numerous colors and sizes together. On your right, you can see that I threw on one bangle that matches the natural color of the AA shirt, one thin gold bangle to add a touch of sophistication, and one bright pink bangle to turn heads.

If you are looking for more eco-fashion close to campus, check out Urban Outfitters. Not only do they sell organic t-shirts with quirky sayings on them, but they also carry a few flavors of organic lipgloss. My friend and fellow green-fashion enthusiast, Lauren Browder, specialized in Urban and what they are doing to help the planet in her blog this week. You can check it out here.

For more information about AA and their Sustainable t-shirts, hop on the American Apparel Website.
See you all next week!

XOXO,
Amy