About Me
Hello! This is Threads of Eden!
I’m Laura.
Do you love the Garden? And by that, I mean, the animals, plants, soil, the whole Earth? My mission is to create clothes for you that do good for the Garden, instead of causing harm. Bonus #1, these clothes are good for your health! Your skin thanks you. Bonus #2, they are so cute, you will not miss the old toxic plastic “threads.” Subscribe and see the new styles as they come out, starting in late 2024!
I didn’t always worry about the earth or health, although I did always love fashion. My journey began as a fantastically wild, fancy-free maverick of a child who flounced between pioneer fashion and the Spice Girls… if only I was allowed to dress that way (I was not.) By the time I was 13 I had discovered that designing fashion was a real job. I knew nothing about sustainability, and just played with visual concepts.
Growing up in Spain, I was always outdressed by classic minimalists, but I liked pushing artistic boundaries. Make it fun, even if it isn’t conventionally beautiful. Flaming orange bell-bottoms with 5 other prints, colors, and textures in the same outfit? My teenage self ate it up like a triple chocolate meltdown lava cake.
As I grew up, I changed my tune and began to apply health as a universal concept from food, to skin, to soil, to air, and beyond. The Garden of Eden was my inspiration for clothing that is natural, good for the body, good for the environment, and inspired by the natural botanical beauty as far as the eye could see. The world was so perfect back then that people didn’t even need clothes. (Spoiler alert: if you are looking for a nudist community, welcome! I will make you the most silky-smooth garments that will feel like a hug; but are not inspired by The Emperor’s New Clothes.)
The world has fallen a long way since then, with people not caring about taking care of the Garden. Believe it or not, the Bible lists taking care of the Garden as the very first instruction given to man. (Genesis 2:15) Whether one is a liberal atheist, far-right Baptist, or something else, can we agree that the earth we live in needs to be taken care of? Industrialization has pumped untold quantities of filth into earth and sea, making many parts toxic to wildlife and people.
The fashion industry is, embarrassingly, the 2nd most toxic industry in the world, after petroleum. Plastic-based clothing is the worst culprit, from its inception by harsh chemicals that pollute the poor countries who are forced to carry the industry; to your largest body organ that undeniably ingests a shocking amount of plastic (Yes, your skin will do that!), to the garbage dump where it will rot slowly for generations; and it won’t be your own county’s garbage dump, either. Most likely it will be sold to the lowest bidder and live longer than you or me to pollute the air, soil and water somewhere like Ghana, India, or a host of other underprivileged destinations.
Natural fiber clothing, like organic cotton, wool, hemp, etc. is making a long-awaited comeback. It is good for the skin, but we need to find out what we really like as consumers, and make lasting choices. Buy better, wear that piece into the ground, and then compost it into fresh, new soil. As a designer, my first thought is to buy better, buy less, and find out if we already have what we need prior to shopping, preferably in natural fibers. Make it healthy. Make it sustainable. Make it high quality, comfortable, and cute. A little classic minimalist, a little bohemian, and a little more maverick is the sauce that keeps my fashion machine running.
So, my 1st advice is probably going to be- just don’t buy it! Be content with less. 2nd, upcycle; reuse and rescue a garment from certain death. 3rd, buy a better quality sustainably sourced garment that you really LOVE, and you will wear it until it dies of old age. Love yourself, love what you wear, love the Ones around you, and love the Garden that we were asked to take care of.
Cheers,
Laura