Mallory Grundman
Fast fashion began in the 1990s and refers to cheaply produced and priced garments that get made quickly in order to maximize on trends. There are many unethical problems with fast fashion, including but not limited to: child labor, depletion of non-renewable sources, spreading of microplastics and large use of energy. Overall fashion production makes up 10% of total global carbon emissions and 85% of all textiles go to the dump each year.
One solution to this problem is buying from secondhand sellers. Dandy is a brand that reuses or uses recycled material to make its merchandise. In a time of fast fashion and over consumption this brand is a soft reminder to be mindful.
My inspiration came from a favorite childhood book of mine, The Curious Garden, where the moral of the story is that one person can make a difference. In summary, a little boy lives in a polluted city until one day he finds a tiny garden and takes care of it till, slowly but surely, it takes over the whole city making it green. That is Dandy’s goal. We want to grow our “garden” and spread the message that one person can make a difference, while wearing a really cool shirt.