fiftyRX3 was a project in style and sustainability. It consisted of a photo documentary of what I wore everyday for a year with a goal of averaging fifty percent sustainability based on the environmental mantra 'reuse, reduce, recycle'. There was also exploration into the relationship we have with our clothing and how others perceive who we are through what we wear.

Additionally, to visually comment on ideas about consumerism, waste and life cycles in design, I included my own experiments with recycled design. The first was a dress made out of umbrellas that were collected from the streets of NYC. The dress inspired a competition to design a better umbrella and was featured in I.D. magazine.

Promoting and sharing ideas about sustainability in the apparel industry also became a big part of fiftyRX3. Retrospectively, it was an ideal year to document the emerging eco-fashion scene, but when I began I was skeptical that I might find enough to comment on throughout the entire year. Indeed, the paucity of good, green apparel design is what drew my interest in this area to begin with. However, 2006 saw incredible growth in this industry from a host of new young designers to larger corporations such as Wal-Mart and Levi's entering the marketplace.

As I furthered my understanding of sustainability over the years and embraced a myriad of ecologically sensitive products from compact fluorescent lighting to organic food, I had come to find that getting dressed while retaining a sense of style was my biggest eco-lifestyle challenge. My intention with fiftyRX3 was to explore sustainability in fashion design while also shattering outdated images of what green design means. In many ways, I also took on the role of a green fashion promoter and advocate. Many readers have written in over the life of fiftyRX3 to say they have been inspired to make changes in what they wear. That is my greatest compliment.

Thank you for following fiftyRX3. Please visit me at danyelle.org from time to time.

Highlights from the project follow...

umbrella dress


organic cotton men's shirt dress * umbrella bag


organic cotton men's shirt dress * 30-minute t-shirt dress * umbrella jacket


30-minute t-shirt dress


Indian sheet dress


anti-pattern cashmere dress


convertible cashmere dress

Excerpts from the photo documentary:

November 2005
This was the first picture.

reused: Levi's corduroys (cut off at knee), vintage Ferragamo boots, gray leather jacket, tan silk scarf (which is a belt from a vintage Adele Simpson dress I have), braided rug bag.

the rest: black cashmere v-neck sweater from Vince. This sweater was an investment in a classic that I will likely wear for years to come, the type of items I look for when buying new.

New Year's Eve 2005
One of the shots before I went out.

reused: skirt, silver shoes, hat, beaded cardigan, silver beaded clutch.
the rest: Michael Kors sparkly tights, Calvin Klein top.
jewelry: It was important to me to wear some special pieces. The cross was a gift from a client. I worked for ten years (and am still working p/t) as a pediatric therapist, I worked with this little girl for two years, a very tough case. Her parents were from Malta and bought the gift there. Months after the case ended I received the cross in the mail with a note expressing their appreciation. I am not religious, but I wear this at different times because it has a lot of meaning for me. The bracelet was the first piece of jewelry my father ever gave my mother. It is a Mexican bracelet that I love. The silver beads were a gift from my mother and the black pearls my father brought back from a trip as a gift for my mother. It was nice to have reminders of my family with me. The ring is an antique that was a recent gift.

January 2006
Taken at patternmaking class.

reused: coat & bag (not seen here), Ferragamos, beads (from my Mom and the flea market), sweater.
the rest: Zara jeans (with some miles on them), embroidered top bought at the market in Oaxaca years ago.

February 2006
I include the first photo here to reiterate that this was not a vanity project. Hair just cannot do what you want 365-days a year.

The second photo is of some of my favorite pieces. I love the wool dress I am wearing by Goldworm, although I only pull it out occasionally. On the other hand, this coat and Tuscan hat were staples of my winter wardrobe.

reused: everything

reused: everything

March 2006
This photo was taken by a good friend. Occasionally my friends appeared in my photos and often they were subjected to taking them. Retrospectively, and had I premeditated the project more, I might have bought a tripod sooner and done a shot in the same place daily. However, I also like the fact that place is included in the photographs. Additionally, most of the shots were taken by strangers, which forced me to enter into a dialog about the project that was often interesting.

reused: boots, bag, belt.
the rest: jeans (close to 10 years old, see you keep those skinny jeans around long enough and they come back in style), white embroidered blouse bought in Oaxaca, Cynthia Rowley suede jacket (okay, I'm not going to argue that suede is a byproduct, but I have had this 5+ years as well), turquoise necklace.

April 2006
These photos to represent the mundane times like being home sick in sweats and a t-shirt or having to pick up toilet paper on my way home at 2:30 in the morning.

reused: necklace, bracelet, ring, grey slip, white linen dress, silver leather shoes
bought new: sweater coat (one of my four guilty purchases this year), purse


reused: I knicked these white sweatpants from a donate pile while visiting my sister.
gift: this t-shirt was part of a gift bag from my friend's wedding.
the rest: black flip flops

May 2006
One of the nice things about the project was that it introduced me to so many great people in the "green world" and I went to many events throughout the year. Here I am at hauteGREEN.

reused: leather jacket, Ferragamo boots, braided rug bag
reduced: del forte organic cotton jeans, Majestic t-shirt
the rest: Vince cashmere cardigan (their sweaters wear like iron. I will have this for a long time), silk scarf

June 2006
This was the original incarnation of the 30-minute dress, as with some of the other recycled projects, it was modified more later.

reused: bag, shoes, beads, ring, bracelet
recycled: dress

Today my lunch plans got pushed back a half hour. With the extra 30 minutes on my hands, I decided to challenge myself to make a dress in that time to wear to lunch. I had these t-shirts that were in a swag bag. They were packaged compactly and wrapped in plastic. In fact, I didn't even know it was a t-shirt until I opened one. The packaging gave the material and interesting crinkly effect that I liked, but the shirt was huge and had a big logo on the back, which I've since realized is Bank of America's. I cut the sleeves off and have been wearing it mostly around the house with plans to open the other one and sew both fronts together in some type of dress or tunic. However, today when I opened the other t-shirt to complete my 30-minute project, this one was a small. Hmmm, what could I do? I cut off the neckribbing and sleeves and turned it inside out, then cut off the bottom of the larger t-shirt and sewed it onto the bottom tucking it in a few places to fit it in... no time for shirring! The result is somewhat flapper-esque and very comfortable. I won't win any sewing awards, but it was done in 30 minutes and worn to lunch.

July 2006
In July, to add dimension to the project, I began asking people to answer questions about my clothing and about me based on my clothing. Here are some examples of how they responded.

reused: necklace, shoes, bracelet, bag
reworked: I bought this linen dress from Zara about 12 years ago, it went down over my knees. About 4 years ago I chopped it off, about 2 years ago I hemmed it!

based on my outfit...
I am a...
small boutique owner
what is my age?
33
do my clothes say anything about my personality?
organized, detail oriented, sophisticated
how much did I spend on this outfit?
$200
participant was a...
27 year old female yoga teacher, personal trainer, actor

reused: dress (from flea market yesterday), bag, belt
the rest: Mascaro suede kitten heels, light weight silk dress underneath (easily 15 years old from Tweeds)

based on my outfit...
what would you say I do for a living?
clothing, art, something left brain
what is my age?
18 -45
do my clothes say anything about my personality?
kooky ("great!", I said. he said, "I don't know, you just told me you are wearing two dresses.")
how much did I spend on this outfit?
no idea
the participant was a...
29 year old male who designs t-shirts

reused: top, shoes, bag
reworked: pants chopped off

based on my outfit...
what would you say I do for a living?
creative, writing, music, something mellow
what is my age?
late 20's - early 30's
do my clothes say anything about my personality?
relaxed, you have no accessories, not trendy, creative, you have your own style which evolved and you are comfortable with
how much did I spend on this outfit?
shirt probably most expensive and pants least expensive, shoes could go either way, they are either vintage or expensive, the bag isn't store bought (my note: the pants are Marc Jacobs that I chopped off and the shirt I won on ebay for $7 before shipping)
you are a...
26 year old female about to begin medical school and a 25 year old female working for a non-profit promoting the sustainable development of Red Hook.

reuse: vintage Missoni silk jersey dress (that apparently has part of the hem coming undone!!), suede and leather bag
the rest: Chie Mihara shoes

based on my outfit...
what would you say I do for a living?
freelance journalist
what is my age?
34
do my clothes say anything about my personality?
local style, left of center politics
how much did I spend on this outfit?
$240/ $65
you are a...
26 year-old male freelance musician and 26 year-old male freelance writer


August 2006
For two weeks I didn't take any pictures of myself in my clothes.

worn 7.31 - 8.12

September 2006
coming into the home stretch...

reused: jacket, shirt, bag, scarf
local: Maria Cornejo pants made right here (she also utilized bamboo in this collection), Lisa Nading shoes made here (always crowd pleasers, I've had these for years, they have an amazing construction and solid wood heels, unfortunately Lisa no longer designs for the company.)

October 2006

Sometimes when I get trend overload I need to pull on something contra trend... wide leg, pointy toe, preppy vest.

reused: navy flats, scarf, vest, bag
the rest: Theory jeans, white t-shirt

November 2006
This was the last photo taken by another person. Often the street shots were taken by strangers, but this was taken by someone I met through this site due to common interests, which has happened a lot over the year.

reused: 20's silk velvet dress, slip, belt, necklace, ring, purse, boots
the rest: cashmere cardigan

The last photo... I finally bought a tripod.

reused: wool print dress, boots, bag
the rest: Ulla Johnson cardigan

eBaybes™ became a regular feature on the site. I found the pictures interesting for several reasons. The whole phenomenon of selling second-hand and vintage clothing on eBay seemed to begin circumventing traditional fashion media and advertising when the sellers became quite good at editorializing their wares. Tracking sellers over time, it was easy to see trends trickling both up and down between street and industry. However, the fact that most sellers are not professional models, but more likely the girl next store, lends an interesting self-portrait quality to the photos and provides a realness beyond most editorial spreads. Click here for a selection of images from the eBaybes™.