with Shirley
Shirley is one of the Ambassadors in our new program, the Worn Well Collective. We are so thrilled and honored to be working with her and so many other talented creators in the slow and ethical fashion niche. Shop Shirley's looks and enjoy her story!
Name: Shirley
Intro: Hi! I’m Shirley and I’m 23 years old, born and raised in southern California. I’ve always loved creating and documenting memories ever since I was young. A camera was constantly attached to my hand and not much has changed since then! I love to read, learn and develop new skills, and have a strong passion for carbs.
City: Los Angeles
IG Handle: @classifiedcloset
Comfortable, airy, and color-focused!! Honestly something I realized as I’ve continued on this slow living/fashion journey is how much my style was previously based around fast fashion, trends, and anticipated perceptions. Now that I’m more conscious of my consumption I feel like I’m rediscovering and re-experimenting with my style!!
Comfortable, airy, and color-focused!! Honestly something I realized as I’ve continued on this slow living/fashion journey is how much my style was previously based around fast fashion, trends, and anticipated perceptions. Now that I’m more conscious of my consumption I feel like I’m rediscovering and re-experimenting with my style!!
Reading is a big passion of mine!! I used to read upwards of 120+ books a year and would wheel a mini cart to the library because I would check out so many. That number has dwindled down to about 50 books a year, but I’ve been intentional with setting aside more time to read and it’s been the best!
Over quarantine, I finally learned how to play mahjong and now my family does weekly mahjong nights. It’s been a lovely way for us to spend time together and I cherish it so much! Other than that, I’ve been learning more video and photo editing techniques to try and rejuvenate my enthusiasm for the whole creative process. Being in lockdown all year has been an interesting opportunity for me to push myself creatively while giving myself the compassion to take a break.
I was doing my 3rd “closet clean out” of the year and got very overwhelmed with how much stuff I had. How was it possible that despite doing 2 “clean outs” earlier in the year, I had the same amount of clothes to give away each time?
I’ve learned about sustainability before, but never felt like I was in the right position to talk about it because I wasn’t “perfectly sustainable” and didn’t know everything there was to know about it. But something clicked in me, and I realized that sustainability looked different for everyone, there’s no such thing as being “perfectly” sustainable, and everyone starts somewhere. My journey started out more consumer-focused, but it’s been really cool to see how I’ve evolved since then. Not only am I way more politically active (and understand how much that ties into sustainability action), but I also understand that the pressure and change should be focused on large corporations, policy, and government.
I love my birch Jude pullover! It’s truly the perfect cream sweater and goes with just about everything. I really appreciate its versatility and how I’m able to layer it a bunch of ways- like over dresses, jumpsuits (i.e. the Guide Coverall !!), in addition to wearing it on its own. The Jude is definitely going to be a closet staple for years!
@frisky_gatos is one of my favorite people to follow!! She talks a lot about listening to your “lizard brain”, which is really just listening to your gut and wearing what you want. Since I’ve been in this limbo stage of my style, it’s been really freeing to view my style as a blank canvas and just wearing what I want!
Some of my other favorites include: @abbyontheinternet, @cookiecat.herine, @yesconnieishere, and @leeeuuh ❤️
I love my birch Jude pullover! It’s truly the perfect cream sweater and goes with just about everything. I really appreciate its versatility and how I’m able to layer it a bunch of ways- like over dresses, jumpsuits (i.e. the Guide Coverall !!), in addition to wearing it on its own. The Jude is definitely going to be a closet staple for years!
@frisky_gatos is one of my favorite people to follow!! She talks a lot about listening to your “lizard brain”, which is really just listening to your gut and wearing what you want. Since I’ve been in this limbo stage of my style, it’s been really freeing to view my style as a blank canvas and just wearing what I want!
Some of my other favorites include: @abbyontheinternet, @cookiecat.herine, @yesconnieishere, and @leeeuuh ❤️
Remember that it isn’t a perfect process and there’s no such thing as being a perfect slow/ethical/responsible consumer. Everything is so intersectional, and slow fashion is no exception.
Start off with a small step and then go from there! I started off by unsubscribing and unfollowing from fast fashion brands, and then supplemented that by following people focused on climate change and slow fashion. And remember, the most sustainable option is something you already own :)
I’m really looking forward to (hopefully) seeing more friends this year and picking up a new hobby (looking into knitting!!). But overall I’m just really grateful for the perspective that this past year has allowed me to have, the amount of growth I’ve gone through, and all of the new and old relationships that have blossomed!
Thank you so much, Shirley!
Check out more of her style and ethical fashion interviews on Instagram. Also feel free to support Shirley by using her link for 15% off your first purchase:
SHIRLEY15
Stay tuned for our next interview coming up soon. In the meantime, shop Shirley's style!