U.P.Blog

Awareness days, weeks or months are of our more peculiar modern inventions. Pick any cause and you’ll see that the officially sanctioned allotment of time dedicated to that mission will be thriving with campaigns, events, fundraisers and initiatives, all aiming to mobilize and further said cause. They’re like Burning Man for Activists.

A project about daily change can’t stay the same forever, right? Well today is the day for that makeover. And it’s not just a design revamp, but also a categorical reorganization of the past 2 years’ adventures. Add to that a much-needed upgrade of our technology framework to accommodate for more flexible content updates, and presto…

The pieces in this collection seem to be inspired by the style of clochards. An upscale, classy clochard, however, that plays with a patchwork of different masculine fabrics coming from the coats, jackets and shirts of who knows who. Pants and overcoats are obviously oversized and worn with cardigans and tops of tricot wool and irregular shapes…

TEDxDubai 2010 | Sheena Matheiken on the birth of the Uniform Project and emerging models of social enterprise.

The Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation announced yesterday that Tara has been chosen as the winner of the EDFF Award of 2011, one of only 7 to win the 25k grant to present at NY Fashion week next month. StudyNY has been gaining significant traction in New York and London circles since its inception in 2009…

Sheena on BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour by Uniform Project

Forecasting trends for 2011, Ecouterre asked Sheena and Tara to join 28 movers and shakers in the ethical fashion space, including eco-model and founder of Source4Style Summer Rayne Oakes, Sarah Scaturro of Cooper-Hewitt, Brad Bennett of Commerce with a Conscience and Caroline Priebe of Uluru (who gets special browny points for quoting Buckminster Fuller)…

Coco Chanel invented it. Norma Kamali made it versatile. The Uniform Project gave it purpose. At U.P we believe that the iconic Little Black Dress is the ideal canvas that lets you embrace simplicity without compromising expression. This New Year’s Eve we invite you to join us…

We’re looking for an exceptional candidate to handle all aspects of U.P administration! You’ll be working directly with Sheena on tasks such as prepping photos for press, handling press relations, and managing accessory donations. Web savvy, basic photoshop/word/excel chops and impeccable organizational skills…

You’ve been involved with the Uniform Project for quite some time now. I approached you this April to revamp the Little Black Dress that I wore for 365 days and asked you to transform it into something new to be worn on Day 366. The outcome was incredible. Can you talk about…

Get a glimpse of all U.P coverage in the media both online and offline including video, radio, print and digital…

For those of you who purchased the Classic LBD in our organic cotton & silk blend, here are some care instructions for your dress. We did our own test on the dress and recommend hand or machine washing it in cold water and hanging or laying flat to dry, which keeps your dress in its best condition over time.

As you all know by now, the eBay Green Team has been one of our biggest supporters through Year 1 and Year 2 of the project. They stepped up yet again by arranging these monthly chats with each Pilot as they wrap up their fundraisers. Not only that…

We’re guessing quite a few of you who ordered the pattern did so to be able to change the dress to fit your specifications. There are a number of ways to modify the pattern, for example add length to the body or sleeves, make the hips wider, etc. If you’d like to make changes…

It’s award season @Mashable, one of our favorite sources for social media news, and we’re in the running for the Most Creative Social Good Award for 2010! Here’s where you guys come in. The cool thing about Mashable Awards is they’re handed out by popular demand. So, if you guys think we deserve this award…

We know our readers are clever and many of you are expert sewers and patternmakers, but in case some of you need a little guidance, we thought we’d do a step-by-step instruction manual via our blog so we can all make the dress together! Our proprietary fabric has been prewashed and…

It all started at our Fashion Week Party at International Playground. A group of fabulously accessorized girls showed up and were the life of the party. After some scouting, we discovered they made they were jewelry designers themselves and wanted to hold a fundraiser…

In theory, making a dress is a relatively easy concept. You buy a pattern, find the fabric, cut the fabric, sew the dress, add buttons or trims. Done. But producing a dress on a larger scale is a little more complicated than this…

The Uniform Project is experiencing remarkable growth in its community, and we’re now attending to strengthening our management team. In fact, we are looking for an operational leader to join our Company as CEO…

For the last week of her U.P fundriaser, the lovely social media ladies at Phoenix House invited Lesley to be their guest blogger! Read her thoughts behind choosing the cause and her own recovery process…

Duck into a random Chinatown basement where there’s a loud band playing in a room in the middle of a corridor. They sound better (or worse) than most of the wannabe punk bands you’ll hear in the LES, only ten years younger. It’s the intro to LuckYou, the first art show put on by…

In just a few days, the U.P will be kicking off Year 2 with our ‘Pilot Series’ – a monthly series of micro-challenges featuring 1 Dress, 1 Month, 1 Cause. Following Sheena’s yearlong reinventions of her Little Black Dress for the children of Akanksha, Year 2 of U.P will unveil a new face wearing a new dress each month, for a cause of their choice. And it all begins on August 1st!

We believe the only way to create a sizable and meaningful shift in consumption is to design products that are not only ethically sound, but also beautiful, imaginative, and inspiring. Hence we give you the new U.P LBD and our thoughts behind it. We designed this dress keeping in mind what we think a staple design should be: versatile, yet basically simple.

In the wee hours of Monday morning, Sheena and I boarded the Amtrak at Penn Station for a field trip to DC to speak at the World Bank. When Sheena first received the invitation from the Bank’s Youth to Youth Community, we were totally honored, but didn’t quite know what to expect from such a huge global institution. We looked into it a bit more and found…

We’re thrilled to announce that we are releasing a new U.P LBD and pattern in the next couple weeks! The new dress takes into account all of the feedback we’ve received from you, along with some surprise design features that we think you’ll love. Also, since one of our biggest challenges in producing the Ltd. Edition run was finding the right fabric, we’re developing our own sustainable…

Feel like having a little Sunday supper chat with Sheena and Tara St. James? PatternReview.com is hosting a live chat sesh with our ladies this coming Sunday. So jot down some of those questions you’ve been dying to ask, follow the simple instructions below and we’ll see you online!

What do you dress for? Seriously, think about it. Remove the preconditioned notion that it’s socially unacceptable to walk around sans clothes. There are a number of reasons, some functional and some frivolous: protection, attraction, deflection, association, decoration, tradition, I could go on. The consensus on our last blog post is that good design solves a problem. Adam Harvey, a fellow Brooklynite, technologist, designer and friend of ours…

We have an opening for a part time volunteer position for a front end coder to help expand our online platform for the Year 2 launch. We need someone with an eye for design detail (who will pay attention to the difference between a 10 and 20 pixel margin). You’ll be working with our software developer, Blue, on an application…

What do you want to be when you grow up? A doctor, teacher, fireman used to be the standard responses, but as the world’s needs evolve, so does how we meet them. Last Thursday we heard four women speak who have carved their own niches in the dynamic field of sustainable design. Sustainability is…

Imagine walking up a couple narrow flights of stairs into the attic to find the insides of your Grandma’s sewing box transformed into ethereal works of art. You’re surrounded by knitted body organs, framed human hair, self-generating salt-crystal necklaces, a fiber flotsom colony. Welcome to (Re)fashioning Fiber…

If you’ve followed U.P closely, you may have noticed a couple of sharp spikes in our fundraiser for Akanksha this year. Perhaps you’ve been wondering who the angel donors of the project were? Well, there’s been more than a few incredible contributors over the course of the Project (whom we can never thank enough), but we’d like to take the time now to give a certain donor a major shout out.

Picture this. Stillness in a room full of people. One pristine bell sounds … ding … and a figure walks through the room in a trance wearing indigo chain mail made of tiny hand stitched squares of denim, warrior paint on his face. It’s not a dream. It’s not reality. It’s Aki Goto.

In light of the incredible success of our Limited Edition LBD sale (sold out in a week!) and dress production now underway at our local factory (we’ll have more updates soon), we’ve been meaning to share with you some behind

On May 1st 2010, at the stroke of midnight, with a festive atmosphere in full effect, surrounded by friends old and new, Sheena slipped into a new dress, albeit one that was reclaimed, recycled, renovated and refashioned from a familiar favorite.

Sheena’s ever enterprising brother Sean, who has moved to Sydney for the year, has charmed us again by organizing a U.P party for all our supporters and friends in Oz. So if you are in Sydney this Sunday, please stop

When posed with the question, “What is sustainable fashion?” the industry has come to no agreement. As we look into producing our little black dress, we’re thinking long and hard about this increasingly important issue. Here are some thought starters from the Design Desk.

And what a first it’s been! On March 1st, all of you U.P supporters around the globe donned your own LBDs and blew us away with your commitment and creativity. What started as a little creative experiment has turned into

Sonia Tay, the woman behind the label and artist collective Snoozer Loser doesn’t have a designer profile. “That is so not me for a number of reasons,” she explains “I like the idea that each season I can morph my philosophy based on what’s going on in the world and my life.” She is definitely not a designer that fits any sort of mold.

A U.P/Shahpar collaboration has been long coming. We’ve been looking forward to working with this vivacious, vociferous talent for a long time now, so when Bahar agreed to donate pieces from her collection towards the U.P we were more than thrilled. As a special treat, here is a little self-made video journal entry from Bahar, to tell you more in her own words.

Another friend to the U.P, Helena Fredriksson’s ingenious pebble wrap necklace is one of our favorite staples. Hailing from Sweden, Helena heads the H Fredriksson label — modern, artistic and sustainably conscious, it’s inspired by the dark psychology of Bergman films and contemporary European painting. As you could probably guess, we’re terribly fond of its melancholic beauty.

The new kids on the block deliver on the hype. The Suno show was graced by all the fashion literati, from Anna Wintour to Susie Bubble. And the U.P represented with Sheena decked in Suno wear from head to toe. Thank you, Max and Sean. Wishing you continued success!

Another long-standing supporter of U.P, Scully is currently writing her Master’s thesis titled ‘Approaching Color, A New Curriculum’ at Brooklyn’s Pratt Institute. While working in the fashion industry, Scully was taken aback by a waste category that was either being ignored or overlooked. The waste in question was all material that was discarded due to indecisiveness of designers whom regularly failed to foresee their color palettes accurately.

Lika Volkova, the creative force behind SANS and a good friend to the U.P, is a true anomaly in the fashion world. Running SANS with Alessandro DeVito, who entered fashion himself by way of monitoring ethical garment factories around the world, the SANS team isn’t afraid of confronting the cold hard fact that garment production is inevitably harmful towards the environment no-matter how you slice it.

Eliza met Max Osterweis a few summers ago through mutual friends and they soon bonded over gin fizz cocktails and games of croquette. Max launched Suno in 2008, a fashion enterprise that we at the U.P are proud to support. You’ll see why. Suno was formed after more than a decade of collecting fabrics on Max’s visits to Kenya. The prospect that Kenya’s…

Tara St. James first wrote to us early last summer. And ever since our first meeting, Tara has been a steadfast supporter and good friend of the U.P. And over these past months our fondness and admiration of her talent is like that proverbial beanstalk that just grows and grows and grows. Study NY, Tara’s label, takes a no-waste approach to fashion whereby…

New York is moving full speed ahead against the elements, amping up for seven days of fierce. But if you aren’t one of the select few taking refuge in the tents, fret not, you can still get your daily dose of fashion fun at the Uniform Project. Follow Sheena as she features a select group of New York based ethical designers who are making waves off the mainstream.

When I first met Sheena in 2008, I had come to the conclusion that fashion made a better creative outlet than a meaningful career. At that time, I had made the decision to walk away from the fashion industry and the consumer culture it fueled. So when Sheena told me she was looking for someone who could make her a dress, naturally, I was hesitant…

Remember Sean’s marathon run for the U.P? This post is grossly overdue but we wanted to give you a full account of his run, a story that makes the hairs on our skin rise every time we hear him talk about it. Thanks to all the people who pledged for Sean’s run and fulfilled their promise, he raised $1885 in funds for the kids of Akanskha. Surgeon by day, squash pro and runner by night, here is the marathon story in Sean’s own words…

6AM and we were already on the road, driving out of Bombay, headed for the nearby city of Pune to visit that city’s Akanksha schools. We got in before 10, drank some delicious hot tea at the Akanksha office and set out for the schools. We first visited the K.C. Thackeray Videya Niketan school, which is merely 2 years old. Principal Shalini walked us through the school’s history, classroom structure, and overall pedagogical philosophy while the…

Thursday night would have been pitch perfect, if it wasn’t for my lousy sore throat. Regardless, I managed to share a few words and mingle with a dashing crowd of 100 plus people from the fashion frontlines of Bombay. It was a delightful sight of colorful saris and suits set against the exquisite backdrop of Bungalow 8, an 1857 building converted to an antiques store with a contemporary twist.

Our second day here and already on the road at 8am to beat the legendary Bombay traffic so we can sit in on one of the Akanksha center’s art classes. The theme of the day, ever so aptly and perhaps in anticipation of the U.P visit, was Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. The children were asked to go into the courtyard and gather waste that they could transform into art.

Late last night we landed in Bombay and this morning I awoke to realize I have completely lost my voice. Blaim it on transcontinental migration, from shivering cold snowstorm to sun-drenched seaside…or perhaps an overdose of that Goan specialty, Feni. whatever the case, I am now mute as a mule. The first day in Bombay was action packed nevertheless. We set out for Akanksha to be welcomed by an enthusisatic and excited staff.

Have you ever bought a dress you thought you couldn’t live without and then only wore once? Imagine if you had to put on that dress every day for one whole year. In our readily available, quickly disposable world, where the “must-have” threads we buy this week are landfill the next, the term “sustainable fashion” may not be an everyday part of the clothing junkie’s vernacular…

Mari De Monte not only has a great name but also has a heart of gold. She has kindly decided to throw us a Granny Chic Bingo fundraiser party this Sunday. What better way to spend a cold Sunday evening than in a cosy bar in cosy greenpoint, drinking Hot Totties and getting a head start on the tricks of Bingo.

Sometimes it’s like we’re living in a fairy tale. We’ve been blessed by the eBay Green Team again with some amazing new superpowers, allowing us to turn every dollar we raise into an additional dollar during this holiday season (or at least until we reach a $15,000 cap). So with our newly vested super-strength, we, the U.P take a Superheroine oath and pledge to use our new power in the fight for good, justice, and the education of youth in need.

Back in September while we were in London, we met Andy Hobsbawm and the gang at Do The Green Thing (whom you may remember as the brilliant minds behind Glove Love). We immediately knew we were around our kind of people— hyperactive busybodies working to steer philanthropy and sustainability away from the worn out, stodgy and preachy, towards something more artistic, humorous and original.

We’ve had an amazing influx of designer donations lately. One in particular has come at an opportune time… Halloween! Afterglow Cosmetics, an organic line of make-up created by Kristin Adams, has just reached out to The UP and we’re thrilled. Kristin had been creating make-up from natural and organic by-products for her friends and family for years and in 2004 she decided…

At the wake of tragedy, it is always difficult. After 3 days of silence, where the daily photos were suspended, we recommenced on Nov 13th. Moving forward should in no way suggest a diminishing of sorrow or respect. While fashion may seem frivolous at a time like this…

When fashion gets personal, there’s really no stopping it. Raffaele Ascione is the perfect example. His eye-catching designs, seen on Lady Gaga earlier this year, are inspired by memories and emotions. And the outfit he generously donated to The U.P will make for a lasting memory at The Uniform Project’s 6 Month Anniversary party.

Let The Uniform Project 6 Month Anniversary “AccesSoireé” begin! To memorialize the success of the first half of our Project, we’re calling all of our supporters to come party with us in a truly fabulous fashion, decked out to the nines. We’re bringing back our gal, Mary Nally, who brought you the first U.P Party in Galway, Ireland. This time, she’s throwing us the hottest dance party this side of the pond…

With this year’s New York City Marathon falling on the day after Halloween, many runners will be forced to forgo any late night trick or treating in order to wake up in time for the world’s most famous race. But not Sheena’s dear ol’ brother Sean. He won’t be able to trick or treat at all because he’ll be flying in from Heathrow on the late flight. But if you think any of that is going to stop Sean from running top speed through the 5 boroughs…

When CAG ‘Reinvented’ first told us her idea about taking on The Uniform Project challenge by wearing the same dress for a week, we were impressed. Then the Lady upped the anti. Not only is she going to wear one dress for a week, but she has challenged us to a LBD styling duel…

Starting October 7th, the eBay Green Team has launched a 2 week campaign to support the Uniform Project. For every person who joins their community of green shoppers, sellers, and collectors, eBay will donate a dollar to our fundraiser. To top it, each new member will be entered to win $5,000 to spend at eBay’s infinite vintage & antiques reservoir.

Sheena Matheiken is wearing 1 dress for 365 days, she explains how and why she’s doing it to CNN. See screen shots from the video and watch the full version at CNN.

Alongside 89 other nominees, the U.P has the chance to win the People’s Design Award at this year’s 10th National Design Awards gala in New York City on October 22. Please visit the People’s Design Award site and vote for us! Deadline is October 20th at 6pm EST. It’s so simple — just create a login, go to the U.P’s page and click vote for this design …

We wanted to keep you updated on the goings-on and happenings we’ve noticed while bashing around London Fashion Week. Here are some of our great finds from the Estethica Exhibit: We met with jigsaw puzzle piece fashion designer Mark Liu, and his Zero Waste line which utilizes a cutting technique designed to save 15% of fabric on each garment. He also told us about a new sustainable rating system, Blue Button by MadeBy, that focuses on production transparency and aims to evolve with the current concepts of “sustainability”…

Most women have a moment where they simply cannot decide what to wear. Sheena Matheiken and Eliza Starbuck are putting pay to that problem withThe Uniform Project . One dress for every day of the year…

In preparation for Sheena’s trip to Ars Electronica, our friend and designer Kathleen Scully collaborated with us to create a hot hot haute accessory. Working out of New York, her company Rifla aims to accessorize the conscientious bike rider with fashionably sustainable options. From MetroCard holders to helmet hats, Scully creates some super chic items we at U.P love…

Mary Nally, a friend of the U.P from Ireland, has promised us not only the first international Uniform event tonight in Galway, but is donating all of the fundraiser’s proceeds to the foundation’s cause …

Are you selling the dress? Are donations tax deductible? How did you get involved with Akanksha? Will the accessories be up for sale? Answers to all these questions and more. We will be updating this section as needed.

The Uniform Project has been nominated for the Grant for Change (G4C), a $10,000 award for those instigating positive change in their communities. The grant is sponsored by Nau – a Portland, Oregan based sustainable clothing company with a philanthropic mission. This grant will help us launch our non-profit foundation that will continue to bring you socially responsible creative projects such as the Uniform Project. Please visit the Nau site and vote for us! Voting is easy– All you do is log in and click the rating stars in the Rate/Share tab. Learn more, see other nominees and vote for us at the G4C site >

We (Sheena and Eliza) will be in London from Sept 8th-22nd promoting the project and the fundraiser. We would like to meet sustainable designers and vintage stores that may be interested in collaborating with us or donating pieces to the project. We are looking into holding a U.P meet and greet as well, more details on this to come. Please check the ‘U.P in London’ section of the blog for updates we will be posting while there.

GET INVOLVED: If you are interested in collaborating with us in London in any capacity – for Press, Fundraiser events, Accessory Donations or Designer Collaborations for London Fashion Week– please Email us >

One outfit for 365 days a year. Is this the ultimate exercise in sustainable fashion or an opportunity for creativity? Jane Southward reports. Sheena Matheiken has never thought of herself as a trendsetter…

In the upcoming months we are actively looking to collaborate on off-the-cuff conceptual ensembles for the uniforms. Think drama, humor, nerd-factor… grand outfits incorporating wearable technology, reclaimed and recycled materials. If you are interested, send us your ideas/sketches and let’s collaborate.

Uniforms are not generally associated with fashion, perhaps even less so with fun, but fun fashion is precisely what Sheena Matheiken, the pixie-sweet model at the center of The Uniform Project, has injected into this homogeneous genre of dress. Conceived with friend and former fashion designer, Eliza Starbuck…

If you think that Sheena Matheiken, the brains behind The Uniform Project, is a fashionista at heart — you’re wrong. What she does consider herself: a creative do-gooder and philanthropist with a keen eye and soft spot for wearing handmade, recycled and vintage pieces. It’s a skill set she’s using well as she wears the same Little Black Dress every day for a year to raise money for the education of impoverished children in India…

When it comes to the question of what to wear in the morning, Sheena Matheiken has it easy. Hanging in her wardrobe is a little black dress designed by her friend, Eliza Starbuck. This she has pledged to wear every day for a year…

We’re currently looking into finding the right organic fabric and an affordable manufacturer who aligns with our sustainability mission. When the dresses are in market, it will be announced on the U.P site and via twitter and facebook announcements. All proceeds after expenses will go towards supporting our non-profit mission.

GET INVOLVED: We are looking for investors to help us manufacture the dress in larger quantities via sustainable measures. If you are interested or know of parties that may be able to help, please Email us >

Rules stifle creativity and enforce conformity. Rules can do something else too: inspire creativity that thwarts conformity. Anyone who has observed a pack of kids in school uniforms will note the individualistic tweaks: rolled cuffs here, an accessory there; whatever loopholes in the sartorial rule book can be found are promptly…

If wearing the same outfit three — okay, five — days in a row is wrong, we don’t want to be right. But 365 days in a row? There isn’t a European shower strong enough for that. Fortunately, Sheena Matheiken, the genius behind The Uniform Project, has seven copies of the cotton black dress she’s wearing every single day for a year…

We’re all guilty of buying too many clothes. Now one woman has pledged to wear the same dress for a year – with a different twist every day. Sanjida O’Connell reports…