17.10.10

Prettified Organic

collarcontest2

collarcontest4

I was fortunate enough to receive a pretty little package all the way from the UK the other day. Inside were two collars made by the London-based line Beaumont Organic. They had gotten in touch with me the week before to invite me to participate in a styling contest and, after I got a bit more acquainted with the brand and designer Hannah Nicole's stance on the importance of promoting organic cotton, a cause I very much support, I knew I had to say yes! (Did you know that cotton is by far the world's "dirtiest" crop, covering 2.5% of the world's cultivated land but using 16% of the world's insecticides? That shit is toxic.)

I decided to wear my favorite collar with one of the amazing dresses that recently arrived from Pistenine Vintage. The dress is actually by Young Edwardian, but I think it must be from the 80's or early 90's, as I'm used to seeing more romantic, 70's peasant-style pieces from the brand.

Anyways, please leave a comment letting me know what you think! The deadline for submission is, ahem, tomorrow--oooops! If I'm gonna win this baby, I'll need all the positive affirmations I can get ;n )

24 comments:

A Little Brighter said...

ahhhh! amazing! They look vintage too (which is always the best)The orgranic side is always such a bonus, now if only chain stores did the same!
That dress is so so pretty! I have been addicted to that navy + white polka dot pattern, gosh!

Kellie said...

Perfect outfit! The collar looks adorable with the polka dots, and I love red socks! Good luck with the contest, I hope you win! :)

Jacky Jazzowl said...

I love, love that dress and the collar is so adorable! I think it adds the perfect amount of whimsey on a grey fall day.
<3

marissa (stylebook) said...

nice stems, lady! the collar totally belongs with that dress. and i'm in love with the other collar they sent!

anabela / fieldguided said...

Dang, I love it! I'm really into the removable collars! I've been making some myself but these are too cute with the little gathers! I love the way you've worn it; it looks perfect with the dress, like a little stole.

Gillian said...

Those collars are amazing! (but those cotton statistics are terrifying!)

elisabeth said...

Pesticides largely reduce the number of malaria-related deaths throughout parts of Africa... so it's really not as black and white as you make it sound. "organic" cotton is a western ideal that ultimately results in the death of a lot of babies (and adults) who would benefit from their homes being sprayed but pesticides, but instead this is prevented by governments who profit from the business of western corporations coming in to produce organic crops to bring back to the US and other places

My name is Giacobba said...

amazing outfit! love the collars!!

thousandflower said...

elisabeth, there is a huge difference between carefully spraying a swamp to get rid of malaria carrying mosquitoes and the use of pesticides and herbicides in agriculture, particularly in the third world where a lot of dangerous pesticides are dumped by the first world and where they are not used with the care for safety that they are in this country.

thousandflower said...

P.S. love the collar and the cotton.

Ringo, have a banana! said...

Elisabeth: I'm sorry...I fail to see what cotton crops being sprayed with pesticides and houses being sprayed with pesticides have to do with each other? Unless these people are living in or near cotton fields? I'm in no way claiming that there aren't practical and, more importantly, responsible applications for pesticides/insecticides. But I find it hard to believe that most of the pesticides and insecticides sprayed on cotton crops are done so with the best interest of said babies primarily in mind...Feel free to prove me wrong though.

I also understand that the organic industry, just like any other industry, is fueled to a large extent by people who want to make money. There are always going to be people who want to profit off of a marketable "ideal" or "lifestyle" and again, the organic industry is no exception. But it's also an industry, and a movement, that does an incredible amount of good in the world, for the world. I don't feel like I've claimed it's a black and white situation in the all of two sentences I wrote on the subject. I provided some facts, which I took from this site:

http://www.ota.com/organic/environment/cotton_environment.html

These numbers were actually some of the lower ones that I found on the subject--others claimed that cotton crops use as much as 25% of the insecticides worldwide. Also, argue what you will but that shit IS toxic. It's nasty stuff, and while it's great that it kills mosquitoes, it also kills an awful lot of other stuff. Pesticides and insecticides may kill malaria carrying mosquitoes, but they can also cause all sorts of sicknesses themselves, especially in undeveloped countries or rural areas where proper safety equipment and procedures are not used during application and storage.

Having grown up on an organic farm, this is a subject that I feel pretty strongly about, though I certainly do recognize that it's not a cut and dry situation. If you're interested in speaking more about the subject, feel free to send me an email and we can talk further (as I've already turned this comment into a short novel!)

Ringo, have a banana! said...

Haha, thanks Mom--you beat me to it!

Eva said...

You look lovely! The collar goes so well with the polka dot dress :-)

Hannah said...

You look great! Those collars are cute.

Mei-li said...

aaa it's so cute, it's look so soft you look so pretty in this little dress !!

hannah, heart city said...

i love how you've worn the collar! lovely look :-)

Zoë said...

totally agree with your sentiments about cotton girl, can't believe some peoples shocking ignorance. i try to buy organic cotton when i can and even ration those cotton faces pads, etc!

LOVE young edwardian! eee! and i really like how you're styled this, love the clash of patterns.

kathy said...

Love the collar & dress combo!

I think it's great to support any companies that use and promote organic cotton. I am slightly wary about high street brands that create a small 'organic' range, and then still mass produce mountains of non-organic clothes at the same time....saying this though we had someone come to talk to us at work about organic cotton production. As non-spraying leaves the cotton crop unprotected against all the nasty bugs the company will normally have to pay the farmer in advance to ensure that no pesticides are used. That means you have no guarentee of how much of the crop might be left to make things with at the end and so it's not a great solution for large international companies. x

Sarah/sherbet tone said...

I so rarely buy new things, but this is so an important issue! I really do appreciate you bringing it to light here, Siri! And you look just so lovely!

Jenny Morris said...

perfect photo! i have such a hard time finding cute collars on dresses, perhaps its time to add them on myself! i love how this collar adds a vintage touch to anything.

fashionmademefunky.blogspot.com

Lucy said...

Oh cool I was going to this! I should have done but was moving house darn it.I think theyre very pretty collars which don't just embellish but can b embellished themselves with other bits and bobs. I really like the arrow necklace above! X

BB said...

i just stumbled upon your blog and am following you on bloglovin'! i'm such a smitten little kitten with your style and blog ...

can't wait to see what you post next!

from a fellow bargain-lovin' blogger,

bex.

Rizie said...

those are adorable! now i have to get my hands on one!

Anonymous said...

You're so pretty! And this combo is super cute.


My version of the same challenge is here http://bit.ly/cDNXuv - but I was too late to enter the competition I think, whoops!

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