Wardrobe Theory Project Annual Subscription

Our essay segment invites a unique voice to share personal insights and reflections on their relationship with clothing and style. These essays offer readers an intimate, often nostalgic exploration of how the pieces we choose to keep – or rediscover – become often woven into the stories of our lives. Through thoughtful storytelling, each contributor delves into themes of sustainability, identity, and the enduring value of cherished garments, aiming to inspire a shift in perspective: from seeing clothing as mere utility or trend to appreciating it as an integral part of our personal histories and values.

In Issue 1, Ryan Lynch contributes his recollections and observations from being involved with WTP since its’ inception five years ago. No better voice could speak so eloquently in extrapolating the essence of why this publication exists.

Some call it the “s-word.” The “big S.” In context, these phrases recall corporate designers, technicians and marketeers talking about how – Sustainability practices, with a capital S – are all phony. For the sake of this generation, much of what’s been previously said and promised – as many “net zero” corporate missions have yielded – amounts to worse than nothing. What is corporate sustainability? We just don’t know.

What we do know: there are still brands and companies working to sustainably serve, sell, and scale their trades, projects and practices. Their existence – their will, process and art – is what WTP covers through "Sustainable Practice Spotlight" (SPS). So who else could better show us the answers to shared questions about our relationship to sustainability – either individual or corporate? With each SPS feature, the symbiotic impact of product, people and planet are at the forefront. No “carbon capture” promises – all straight SPS here.

For our first spotlight, we bring focus to the past for future lessons in sustainability. In a fast fashion-dominated landscape, the vintage shop owner isn’t just a trendy retailer, but the middleman between brand, person and a reloved product. Narrowing our view to the middle of America, the embodiment of ethical retail exists within the heartland of Des Moines, Iowa’s Dust Collective.

As a multi-purpose location for servicing vintage garments, home goods, and art, Garrett Cornelisons’ Dust Collective now offers upcycled collections and curated clothing customization repairs for mending. Moreover, Garrett’s mission strikes at what WTP hopes to achieve: shared sustainable knowledge and collective improvement through what we have in front of us.

“Lost Art” is a series of stories celebrating the services, businesses and trades that restore, renew and repair our things. With their expertise, they critically keep our clothing items and objects in use over time, promoting sustainability and intentionality with style and spending practices.

As the people who preserve, regenerate and redesign for us, tailors are often an under-spotlighted, underappreciated set of artisans. Running small, specialized businesses in tight quarters inside alleys of expansive, cut-throat corporatism, we take local tailor shops for granted. Across cultures and cities, tailors are the standard-bearers of dress – sharing and passing along generational knowledge, skill and taste for the curious sartorialist and the prom-suited teen alike.

Our first ever segment spotlight visits the two Vietnamese sisters who own and operate Gien’s Tailors, which has been in downtown Portland, Oregon since the 1980’s.

In a pinch? Need a quick fix for a sudden problem that won’t go away? You may need to see a doctor for that, but otherwise, bookmark this section. We’re at your service and can see you now! WTP’s "How To" guides will highlight simple, yet effective handiwork methods you can do today to update and prolong your clothing items. Combining utility and self-discovery – sometimes an easy hem or stitch repair can lead to custom garment alterations and new styles to discover – let’s remind ourselves that we’re never too old to learn new things, or see old things in a new light.

And hey, if you really need help with that clothing or sneaker project? Hit up a tailor or cobbler in your local area. We promise, they gotchu. For now, "How To" is here.

To start, we have built a guide to show you how to swap a shirt button. Whether it needs replacing, strengthening the current attachment, or customizing with your own flair – this may be the easiest way to start getting more hands on with your belongings – taking your relationship with them to the next level.

The wardrobe section is where we narrow each person’s closet down to their 50 most used and favorite/sentimental pieces – diving into when and where each piece was obtained, technical details, style insights, and why it means so much to them. Subsequently, we then go beyond documentation, curating the items to better understand and unpack each person’s system of dress. By providing analytics that show data and visuals that prove possibility.

Colin Behr is our first person of focus. He is a designer and artist who spent a decade working at Nike and Jordan Brand. As the founder of this publication, his personal journey in documenting his own closet began five years ago, and introduces the framework, or case study, for what this publication is trying to accomplish: become an analytical system or tool for, and celebration of, personal style.