WTF is conscious fashion?

For a long time I grappled with “what kind” of fashion brand is TMV...? 

Organic fabrics were tottally my vibe once I used them, so I defaulted as “well.. sustainable fashion” cause yes.. I tottally stand behind a better fashion industry.. cause I love fashion and can’t imagine myself without it, and don't want to be contributing to child labor and mass earth pollution and toxicity. 

But it never felt quite right to me, tbh, it always felt like there was something else, I just didn’t completely light up talking about it from that angle like I did other things.. and I know when im genuinely passionate about something.

So I kept an open mind as I do with all things, and eventually through getting to know myself even deeper, years deep into working on this brand. One day, It was just like “duh”

Conscious fashion. Conscious fashion is my jam. Conscious fashion has been my journey. They both lead in the same direction to the same goal, but the path is a little different. 

I believe hitting both angles are super important and will resonate differently to different people, and the sustainable fashion movement and awareness Is wildly important. I think there's room for both. 

Although, It was conscious fashion, for me.

Maybe this resonates at a deeper level for you, too. 

My journey with clothing and fashion didn’t completely shift from knowing the sustainable realities, watching the documentaries, etc. It definitely shifted my perspective and some choices on a surface level, which after studying human psyche and nuero science the past few years, makes total sense. 

Sustainable fashion in itself is a bit surface level, its focused on cleaning up the mess that is the result of our society's over indulgent behaviors, where I see conscious fashion focuses more on shifting the root of the toxic behavior itself. 

What I know about humans, is the way you do one thing, is the way you do everything, and shifting external behaviors around what clothes your purchasing, doesn't really stop you from over indulging in other areas of life. 

Sustainable fashion is really more about changing your habits, behaviors, choices around the clothes you buy and wear. Its more about the WHAT of shopping, where I see conscious fashion more of the HOW.

Its more about HOW you shop, rather than WHAT your purchasing. 

Limits never really sat well with me, and sustainable shopping severely limited my choices, and ultimately my fun. I have a big heart, and it means a lot to me to do the right thing, but expressing myself how I want too is also of huge importance to me and not something I was ever willing to sacrifice, hence TMV being born. 

Ultimately, conscious fashion allowed me to explore my options, indulge in my desires, and feel good about it. While still being as sustainable as possible. Though I don't have to feel like an awful human or a fraud, if I desire to shop something not "sustainable" because I very consciously and intentionally choose that thing with purpose, buying quality things I know I will have for a long time. 

So, 

In the midst of a global pandemic, a mass spiritual awakening.. 

What does that mean for fashion?

So many waking up from a unconscious life, peaking into the window of what a conscious life could look like for them..

For us fashionistas, that means bringing our wardrobe with us, into our new conscious life.. 

But like everything else, it won’t be like anything before. 

See, even with my awakening to the reality of fast fashion, it was through consciousness I exhibited sustainable shopping patterns. 

I believe behind sustainability is, consciousness. 

I was a shopaholic. I remember coming home from school in HS just to scroll the computer for hours looking at all the clothes, filling up my cart, and buying nothing. It was this weird dopamine kick just to look, never ending options. You could scroll forever. Then the dopamine having something new arrive in the mail. The rollercoaster of emotion when it works out or doesn’t. It’s addicting. 

 I knew it needed to stop. I knew the places I put my money was way out of alignment with my values. 

So like waking up to everything else in my life, I wanted to take my closet with me. 

I wanted a beautiful shopping experience that stemmed from desire and fun, not a dopamine addiction. 

I wanted to fill my closet with beautiful intentional treasures that meant something and made me feel like more of myself, that came from somewhere that gave me a story to tell I felt proud about. 

And this, began the journey. It didn’t happen overnight. 

It was a couple years of giving up old habits, observing old patterns, consciously choosing new ways of being, finding new information, getting curious around what I wanted my shopping experience to be like. 

Slipping up, choosing better. No shame or guilt. 

Conscious fashion to me, stems from a conscious way of life. 

Conscious fashion is thoughtful, intentional, ritualistic, and so much damn more than a quick dopamine hit on your doorstep. 

It’s curating your life, curating how you choose to adorn and express yourself, curating the moment with how you show up for it. 

Fashion at its hightest, can be pure ritual and alchemy, and at its lowest, a shiny distraction, that can chew you up and spit you out. 

Leading you to think you need more, something else, to make you feel good, to feel happy, to receive the moment with deep bliss and contentment. 

A fabulous outfit should always be in addition to, ready to amplify, your fabulous vibes and life. 

It won’t create it. That’s your responsibility. But it can surely be the cherry on top, or even a window into what’s possible. 

Let fashion be your practice, where you come home to self, turn your relationship to fashion into a conscious one and watch it spill over into other areas of life. You’ll want to curate each moment, the way you curate each outfit. 

Intentionally. And, fabulously. 

💘✨

So what is conscious fashion?

It’s knowing why your buying what you buy. 

It’s letting fashion elevate your vibe, not create it. 

It’s buying the scandalous option that makes you squirm but you know your dying for.

It’s buying the thing you really want, not 5 pieces of the sale rack. 

It’s buying from places you feel proud of.

It’s choosing intentionally where you put your money and the cycle you choose to help perpetuate. 

It’s choosing things that are good for your body, or supporting brands who bring you the nest of the best. 

It’s taking the time to look for a better option, or creating one yourself.

Conscious fashion, it’s your own story to tell. There’s no rules. You get to decide what is consciously good for you. You get to be in power and in charge of your reality. You get to do what feels good. You get to go on the journey of trusting yourself to do what’s best for you and the planet, and other humans conexsisting with you, it’s already inside you, or you wouldn’t be here reading this. 

Now you get to amplify it. Choose to let it lead. ✨