Sustainable Slow Fashion for Conservation with Lindsey Biondo

Lindsey joins me from Detroit, Michigan.  She’s about to launch her new sustainable, slow fashion line called Violet Revolt.  Lindsey hand sews every piece in her line from certified organic plant-based fabrics that have been naturally dyed.

She additionally works with a social enterprise based in northern Kenya, to source hand-beaded embellishments that are placed in different places on each item that she adds them to.  A portion of all proceeds goes to help wildlife conservation.  And each piece is a truly unique wearable piece of art.

1. SAVE UP & INVEST IN PIECES.  Sustainable, slow fashion can cost more money, but it’s worth it to save up and purchase just one piece that means a lot to us, has a clear story that we can retell, and makes the world a better place.

2. TRY NATURALLY DYEING CLOTHES.  We can use items from the earth (vegetables, fruits, leaves, etc) to dye our clothes, and they will most likely look better too!  See below.

3. STICK TO PLANT BASED FABRICS.  When possible, look for naturally grown fabrics in our clothing and home goods, e.g. hemp, linen, cotton.

4. BUY USED BOOKS.  When we’re looking for something that we can’t find at our local library, used books on Amazon or other book retailers are a good way to keep a book in circulation.

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Closed captioning transcript included in video.  Subscribe on YouTube.

Lindsey is someone who likes to focus on the detail.  She not only creates pieces that have unique style and notions, but she’s very into the detail of the fabric as well.  She works with organic, naturally dyed, plant-based fabrics.

Plant based fabrics come from natural materials.  They don’t use any type of synthetic input to create the material.  Examples of natural fibers include:

• hemp
• linen
• cotton
• bamboo
• rayon

The sustainability level of a natural fabric is determined not only by the fiber but where it’s grown, how it’s grown, and how it is processed.  This initial collection of Violet Revolt is made with 100% GOTS Certified Organic Cotton fabric.

I’ve been wanting to dye old clothing to give it new life since Katie Miles introduced the idea in episode 19.  Lindsey talks about dyeing her own clothing at home in the bathtub, and this got me really excited about doing it again.

Traditional dyes are often made with synthetic products and therefore toxic to our waterways.  But we can dye sustainable slow fashion clothing with things grown naturally in the earth, for example, avocado.

She talks about how we can go foraging in our back yard for new natural colors!  And when we dye with items that come from the earth, they naturally look good together with other clothes that are naturally dyed.  Making it easier to create a small capsule wardrobe!  A fun added benefit.

Lindsey recently bought two books off of recommendation to help herself learn more about dyeing.  She mentioned that she bought these as used books on Amazon, and I was thinking that is another easy way to make a difference: buying used books to keep them in circulation.

“Harvesting Color” by Rebecca Burgess (affiliate link)

“The Modern Natural Dyer” by Kristine Vejar (affiliate link)

Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases through some links on this page.  I only recommend products that I believe in and think you will enjoy.  Any money made goes back into For Animals. For Earth. to help us reach more people.  Thank you!