It’s April, which means many of us are marching over to our closets to do a little (or a lot) of spring cleaning. This ritual, which used to be a borderline therapeutic process of purging clothing that no longer had a place in our lives, has taken a more critical approach in recent years as we began to learn what actually happened to clothing once we got rid of it. While the mental picture was that our gently loved clothes went onto donation racks and vintage stores, the truth is that much of the clothing that is discarded ends up in landfill piles. Eek.
This hard truth is what drove RE/DONE co-founders Sean Barron and Jamie Mazur to bring a circular approach to previously loved clothing. Combined with a desire to celebrate individuality while recognizing the heritage in classic clothing brands, RE/DONE was born as a Levi’s denim collaboration and has since graduated to partnerships with edgy luxe labels such as The Attico and glamorous fashion icons like Cindy Crawford. Peruse some of the chicest fashion spots in the world (Le Bon Marche, Net A Porter, and ahem, Miami Design District, among others), and you’ll find RE/DONE wares.
Upcycling and sustainability are at the core of RE/DONE’s ethos. In fact, RE/DONE’s impact on the fashion industry is one worth celebrating: since its launch in 2016, they have diverted 225,850 discarded garments from piling up in landfills around the world. However, you can rest assured the clothing produced by the RE/DONE has a specific, artisan, and custom revisioning–perfectly executed in Italian ateliers. At first glance, the clothes are casual, everyday basics, but anyone with a discerning design eye knows that RE/DONE transforms these vintage garments into unique, limited edition items.
Long story short–these aren’t your average hand-me-downs.
Stop into the fourth global RE/DONE retail location in the District and you’ll understand the brand isn’t just about upcycling vintage clothing–’cool’ is in RE/DONE’s DNA. The 1970s California-style interior (hello, blue linoleum) is expertly curated with design pieces from decades past, including an original 1951 Eames Surfboard Coffee Table. Beyond the interior design, visitors can browse the aforementioned custom clothing, vintage jewelry, and distinctly cool art and literature.
What can we say? It’s a vibe.