What We Wrap Ourselves In Matters

A reflection on how clothing touches the body, community, and environment

Before my path led me back to traditional Chinese medicine and the healing arts I was raised with, I was a young woman working in the fashion industry in Los Angeles. What I witnessed on those factory floors left me shaken. The promise of fashion was freedom of self-expression and artistry… yet the reality on the production floor gutted me. When I left the industry, what I saw stayed with me.

Years later as a mother, even with organic food, filtered water, and natural baby products, my children struggled with itchy skin and rashes. I began replacing synthetic fabrics with soft, natural ones ~ and their skin responded. When I did the same for myself, I realized I had never actually been comfortable in my own clothes.

In traditional Chinese medicine, the Lung governs the skin and its pores ~ our first interface with the outside world, and a pathway into the body. Natural fibers honor our skin’s need to breathe.

This doesn’t have to mean overhauling your wardrobe or spending a fortune. The industry doesn’t make it easy for us, but here are some of the things I’ve been attempting over the years in my own life. Thrifting designer pieces has allowed me to buy things I truly love in natural fabrics ~ like silk, wool, linen. I try to fill in the gaps with basics I’ll wear for ages that feel good and are ethically made. Those are the brands I save for, and hit when their sales come around.

I long for clothing that lets us breathe ~ breathe into our freedom of expression, and the art of dressing who we envision ourselves to be ~ while honoring the hands that craft it and the Earth that provides its materials.