It would be nice to imagine that all the clothes in our closets and dressers — let alone the endless items lining the shelves of countless retail shops — spring forth fully formed. Or, if that fantasy goes too far, to at least believe that our clothing is manufactured with some level of respect for
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Within minutes of stepping onto McGee Island off the coast of Maine for a writing residency, I learned through a phone call that my son, Manuel, my only child, had died. Dogged by alcohol, cough syrup, schizophrenia and half-cured pneumonia — he left the hospital against medical advice — he succumbed in his room at
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The Big Favorite wants to redirect our worn out panties, briefs and bras into the zero-waste economy — but there’s a catch. Used polyester-infused underwear is not currently suitable for recycling. With no place left to go but the trash can, undies join the estimated 11 million pounds of textiles dumped in landfills yearly. In
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On the fourth floor of the Bok Building, a handful of students are gathered in the airy, white-walled workshop space at Weaver House. Each person sits at their own floor loom, a large and elegantly complex machine constructed from blonde wood, strung across with fibers. The mood in the room is one of concentration, each
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In a women’s recovery home for addiction, a volunteer offered to wash Rhonda Richardson’s laundry for her. After seeing that Richardson owned only a few worn pieces of clothing, the woman gave her a voucher for free clothes from The Wardrobe. Little did Richardson know, she’d find both confidence-boosting outfits and a support group at
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Ashani Scales is the type to take the expression “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” to heart. In 2021, Scales went on a thrifting hunt for a quilted blanket she could turn into a coat. Having recently started sewing again, Scales was searching for soft, easy-to-manage fabrics that would keep her warm. After a
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A keen observer can sometimes hear a “boom” over the row houses on summer evenings in Philadelphia. The sound marks a male common nighthawk defending his territory, flexing his wings as he dives. The insect-eating birds nest on flat, gravelly surfaces. These can be bare patches of ground in a forest, but they can also
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For thousands of years, people used organic materials like plants, insects and minerals to create dyes. But in 1856, an 18-year-old chemistry student named William Henry Perkin changed everything. While attempting to create synthetic quinine using coal tar, Perkin accidentally developed mauveine, the world’s first synthetic dye. His invention of the rich purple hue unlocked
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Philly AIDS Thrift has all kinds of patrons: teachers, tourists, college students and on occasion, celebrities like singer Miley Cyrus and Eagles players. As manager and longtime employee Adam Proctor puts it, the nonprofit thrift store attracts “every kind of person ever.” Located at 710 South 5th Street, Philly AIDS Thrift has an eclectic, artsy
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I just bought a sweater. After reading “Worn: A People’s History of Clothing,” by Sofi Thanhauser (interviewed in this issue), I went online and found a second-hand gray wool henley originally sold by a company with a reputation for well-made clothing. I wanted something I could wear this winter and for many winters to come;
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