Book Review: Dress [with] Sense

Just yesterday I was telling friends about [one-of-my] older sisters who always has a great eye for style with a wardrobe of classy clothes, most of which have been packed away in her attic for far too many years. Her immensely creative, eco-conscious designer daughter discovered the boxes and my sister's wardrobe has a new lease of life. She really is the queen of vintage!

I guarantee that if you took the time to really sift through your overflowing closet, you too might surprise yourself with what you discover. The wheel has come full circle so even during our middle years we can reclaim the style of our younger years - for fashion cred and for the environment.

Eco warrior Christina Dean

If still in doubt, then Dress [with] Sense is a must. Packed with practical tips and inspirational advice from bloggers, activists, designers and models including Amber Valletta and Bonnie Chen, Dress [with] Sense will help you consciously reinvent your wardrobe and shop in a more sustainable and economical way.

Redress

The book is written by leading Hong Kong-based eco warriors and fashion advocates Christina Dean, Hannah Lane and Sofia Tarneberg. I have known Christina for many years through Redress, the Asian NGO she founded in 2007, with the mission of promoting sustainability in the fashion industry, Dean is also the brains behind The EcoChic Design Award, the world’s largest sustainable fashion design competition for emerging fashion designers. Through the years she really has paved a sustainable path to a more conscious lifestyle, being the recipient of numerous awards for her work, including being listed by Vogue as one of the UK’s ‘Top 30 Inspirational Women’. Accolades aside, Dean practises what she preaches in everything she does from how she dresses to salvaging her local supermarket bakery leftovers at the end of the day

Mid Life Style

She believes that as fashion trends are clearly designed for youth, it's up to us to develop our own sense of style during our middle years and beyond. "At this stage in our lives we don't want or need to be a slave to trends. The key is making the most of our closets so we can look and feel good in the clothes we already own. Feeling good is the new looking good - this is the latest trend that Business of Fashion is touting and the book covers all the tricks to make the most of what you already have."

Teenage girls can be shopaholics, so lets instil some sustainability into their thinking along with the practical tips (care, repair, storage, cleaning etc) that our Grannies taught us.

Tips for more conscious buying (until you read the book, of course!):

• BUY better, and make more responsible choices when hitting the shops.

• WEAR your clothes more creatively, and rescue hidden treasures from the depths of your wardrobe.

• CARE for your clothes by learning better (more environmentally friendly} ways of washing

• DISPOSE of unworn clothes by swapping, gifting, donating or recycling – anything but throwing them in the trash!

Dress [with] Sense is available in leading bookstores and via Amazon