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The Federated Women’s Institutes of Canada – WI Canada (FWIC), is the national organization that provides a united voice for all Women’s Institutes across Canada while advocating for national directives in health, poverty, food safety, environmental preservation and community support.

Federated Women's Institutes of Canada
Federated Women's Institutes of Canada8 hours ago
Sustainable Style with Mindful Consumption, submitted by Brenda Devauld, BCWI

Building a Year-Round Wardrobe

For many of us, the changing seasons are a signal that our wardrobes need to be updated to match the season approaching. However, with growing awareness of the impact of fashion on the environment, we as consumers are trying to adapt to a different way of thinking when it comes to our clothes. So, the question is changing from “Do I need to buy some clothing to reflect the new season “ to ‘’ Can I have a wardrobe that works for all the seasons, and if so, how do I go about it?”
The answer is absolutely! We can have wardrobes that work for all seasons while still keeping our values of sustainability by planning and implementing some of the following ideas.

Core Wardrobe Essentials
Align With Your Lifestyle: Consider what makes you feel confident and comfortable in the clothes you already have.
Staples: Identify the staples in your wardrobe. These are the pieces that you wear most often and feel most confident in. These might be sweaters that you wear in any season, footwear that is comfortable, trousers or jeans, skirts or dresses that can be worn alone or with a blazer.
Colour Palette: Choosing a neutral base colour like black, grey, white, navy, or beige allows for mixing and matching of different items.
Mix and Match Pairing our clothes is one of the best ways to extend our wardrobes because it maximizes the clothes we have.
Accent colours: Choose accent colours that complement your base colours. Focus on the colours that you like and that suit you.
Layering: To accommodate temperature changes, layering is the answer. A sleeveless blouse worn in the summer becomes a great pairing in the cooler weather with an open sweater.
Accessorize: Using accessories like scarves, hats, jewelry, and bags can change our clothing to match the season. It is also a great way to emphasize the
Classics: try to focus on high-quality pieces that can be worn many times and can be dressed up or down
Quality Over Quantity: If you are choosing to buy new clothing choose carefully. It is better to buy an item that will last for many years, rather than one that will only be worn for a short period of time.
Fabrics: Choose breathable, renewable fabrics, like cotton, linen, denim, and wool.
Trends: Try not to get caught up in trendy clothing. It has been found that they are short-lived, and much of the “trendy” clothing ends up in landfills.
Second Hand Stores: Shopping at second-hand stores is fun and can lead to some great finds. Take the time to browse through the Thrift stores where you live; you never know what treasures you may discover.

Have fun! You are unique, and having a wardrobe that reflects you and your likes is a great way to express yourself. With key items and strategies, you can build a wardrobe that works well and transitions between the seasons. Happy Styling!!

Tip
Have you ever heard of the 333 Challenge? This might be a fun exercise to try alone or with others. This is a method where you choose nine items from your closet: three tops, three bottoms, three pairs of shoes. The challenge is to create as many outfits as possible using these three items. You can use accessories, but just not any other items of clothing. Try it, it might be an eye-opener!

Environment -Impact of Seasonal Clothing
Seasonal clothing can have a significant impact on the environment due to the fast fashion cycle, which emphasizes rapid production and consumption. Let's look at the issues this presents:
Fast fashion brands produce clothing in large quantities for each season, leading to an oversupply of
Unsold items often end up in landfills. It is estimated that millions of tons of clothing end up in landfills each year.
Textile production requires a substantial amount of water, energy, and raw materials.
The fashion industry is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions largely due to transportation, manufacturing, and the energy-intensive processes involved in producing garments.
Many seasonal clothing pieces are made from synthetic materials derived from fossil fuels. They do not biodegrade and are contributors to microplastics.
The fast fashion cycle encourages consumers to view clothing as disposable, with products seen as “outdated” after one season.
The focus has shifted to producing clothing of inferior quality and lower prices.

Addressing the issues of overproduction and seasonal clothing requires collaboration among consumers, policymakers, and the fashion industry. By making informed choices and supporting sustainable practices, we can help reshape the fashion industry. Our choices of embracing timeless fashion can help pave the way to a more environmentally friendly future in fashion. Every small step counts!
Federated Women's Institutes of Canada
Federated Women's Institutes of Canada8 hours ago
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Federated Women's Institutes of Canada
Federated Women's Institutes of Canada1 day ago
100 Voices: The Stories That Shape Us!
Submitted by Mary Harding, Junetown WI, Ontario

I was born in the 1940s in an industrial city in the Midlands of England. Money was scarce and my mother spent most of her days cleaning, cooking and shopping on a limited budget. Needless to say, growing up in these surroundings, I heard very little about the Women’s Institute. My impression, gleaned later, was that it involved country folk, and the ladies wore flowered dresses and hats and high-heeled shoes to their meetings. We’ve all see Calendar Girls – right?

Fast-forwarding many years, having married an Engineering Geologist, raised 3 sons, and emigrated to Canada from where we travelled all over the world to far-flung places in his job, we ended up in a small rural community in Ontario for our retirement, in an old farmhouse and 57 acres. The time had come for us to live the idyllic rural existence we had always dreamed of.

I joined everything I could, to make friends and be part of the community. I still remember my first WI meeting: I was determined to wear a dress – although not a hat or a high heels person, I may even have worn lipstick! -- I thought I would blend in pretty well. I soon learned that rural women in Canada, especially farmers’ wives, were not interested in my fashion statement, but welcomed me warmly, and many of them have become good friends over the almost 30 years that I have been a member. As I was introduced to them all, I noticed that many of them were related through several generations … it was a true community of friends, neighbours and family. And I am honoured to have been accepted as one of them.

It is indeed a “goodly thing to meet in friendship’s circle bright” – and “the good of all mankind” seems to be a way of life in the WI family.
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Federated Women's Institutes of Canada
Federated Women's Institutes of Canada1 day ago
Upcycle/recycle @pinterest
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