As a personal stylist for women, I spend my time pouring over websites, articles and all things style related. As a human being, I spend a great deal of time thinking about Climate Change. Yes, of course, consuming anything comes at a cost, especially clothing. I often think about the most extreme alternative- suggesting that women wear white cotton items until they start to fall apart, then mend them, then opt for something new. But, years of working closely with women of various income levels, sizes and lifestyles has shown me that abandoning self expression via our clothing simply isn’t going to happen. After all, we communicate so much about ourselves without saying a word- and that is powerful.

This doesn’t mean that we just throw our hands up in the air and consume away. In fact, the very small but real bright side, is that emphasis on the changing climate reminds us of our personal impact. We have an opportunity to express our creative side, communicate our values and be thoughtful about our environmental impact.