297

 Uniform

Every day, I wear a uniform. It's not something I have to do, but I choose to do it for many reasons. There is an ecological reason. I want to take part in opposing overconsumption and normalising mindful consumption instead. There is a spiritual reason. I want to focus on spiritual growth and free up energy for that. I don't want to spend time on shopping for clothing. There is an aesthetic reason. I like neutral colours and how I look in casual, simple clothing. I want to wear my favourite outfit every day. Because I live with an autoimmune skin condition, I want to feel safe with the fabrics my clothes are made from. 

Every day, I wear sweatpants (or shorts in spring and summer), a basic top (sleeveless, a t-shirt, or long-sleeved) and an oversized linen shirt. Some of those basic tops belong to a fellow human. At times, I don't wear the shirt. At other times, I don't wear a basic top. I don't own dresses and skirts. I wear my uniform when I teach, attend meetings, conferences, workshops. I wear it when I travel, when I go shopping, go out with my fellow human or a friend, and relax at home. Most of the items I wear are made from organic cotton. Some are made from linen and a few items are made from bamboo viscose. On my journey of extreme minimalism and wearing a uniform, I notice that bamboo viscose ages much faster than organic cotton and linen. Linen lasts a very long time. 

Apart from those items, I have a large woollen scarf, a jacket, arm warmers, 2 hats that I share with my fellow human, and many tote bags. The tote bags are made from organic cotton, and one is made from certified linen. I also have 3 pairs of shoes. 

My fellow humans such as colleagues, friends and family notice rather quickly that I wear the same outfit every day. Over time, they came to understand my reasons. I don't experience judgement from them, but I've certainly experienced judgement before. When I just started working on my PhD in 2016, there was a male PhD student who said that I was not doing enough to come across as attractive. What he said was true. The reasons behind my decision to wear a uniform are only the ones I mentioned above. 

There are many ways in which my wardrobe could be improved. I strive to avoid plastic in my personal life. I understand that it's impossible to live completely without plastic. Even the laptop that I use for my work contains plastic. But clothing is one domain where I could potentially practise avoidance of plastic or synthetic materials such as polyester. While almost all my clothing items are made from organic cotton, linen, and bamboo viscose, the jacket is made from polyester. One pair of sweatpants contains polyester too. 

My clothes are not made by small businesses. None of my clothing items are fast fashion, but none of them are hand-made either. 

As for colour, I wear clothing in off-white and different shades of beige. There is one item in grey, and one in black. I would have preferred to wear undyed clothing only as I much prefer how cotton and linen look naturally. Some of the tote bags that I live with are made from undyed cotton, and they are beautiful. 

Wearing off-white and beige feels calming to me, and I can wash all my clothes together. In fact, I can wash my whole wardrobe in one go. I use unscented laundry sheets to wash my clothes. 

At times, my fellow humans felt that I needed to try something different, wear something else. So they gave me clothes as gifts for various occasions. I always try to communicate that the way I dress is part of my ecological, spiritual and aesthetic practice, that I don't need more clothes or anything different. I gave away all the clothing that I received from my fellow humans. Though those were beautiful pieces, I felt that someone else would benefit from having them more than I would. 

When it comes to clothes, I avoid any other colour apart from off-white, beige, and grey. This is because I'm very happy with the colours I wear. I am not interested in fashion, what's in and what's not. To me, ecological considerations are always in, or at least they should be. I also avoid patterns. This is something I have never felt drawn to. I also avoid anything that feels not entirely necessary to me, such as zips and various decorations. I think fellow humans should feel free to wear clothes with such details, but I personally prefer simplicity in my everyday life. I avoid logos and writing on my clothes. I also avoid anything that requires special care such as dry cleaning. I began to avoid optic white and black colours in my clothes because I felt that they are high maintenance and don't last as long. Optic white clothes discolour, and black clothes fade. I always wonder what happens to those pigments that are washed off into the water when I wash black clothes. 

There is no particular clothing business that I recommend. I'm a researcher of sustainability in business, and unfortunately I haven't yet come across a business that is small, fully transparent, focuses on basic, durable, wearable clothes made from natural and undyed materials.

I do not shop second-hand. It's certainly a sustainability practice, and I don't oppose it. But personally I don't enjoy shopping and I look for particular characteristics. I usually repurchase clothes from the same companies, and I don't do it often. When I can, I repair imperfections. At other times, I let those imperfections be. For example, there is a coffee stain on one of my linen shirts. I find it very beautiful. 

296

Magic in everyday life

As I was re-reading my book manuscript, I was contemplating a conversation I had with a businessperson from whom I learned in the process of writing the book. We talked about clothing and the desire that some humans feel to dress differently. I don't have this desire within me. I love wearing a uniform, the same outfit every day. This is not something I have to do, but rather I chose to do it. I wear the same outfit when I teach, attend meetings, walk, travel, relax at home or elsewhere. At times, I feel that I want to try something new, but it's not in the domain of clothing. It's not even in the domain of accessories, hair styles, or home décor. When I want to try something new, I usually try a different ingredient or simple food. Recently I tried a blue smoothie made with blue spirulina. It was made with water, banana, rice milk, and salt, and it looked magical. Some month ago, my fellow human and I bought some yellow carrots and colourful tomatoes. This desire doesn't manifest often, perhaps every few months. In terms of sustainability, trying different ingredients feels safer and gentler to the Earth, as I don't invite new objects into my space. 

Apart from the smoothie, another magically beautiful object I encountered was a stone. I found it when I went for a walk on Amager beach here in Copenhagen. There are plenty of stones such as this one on that beach. I don't have any decorations at home, but at times I bring home something beautiful from nature. It could be a stone, a shell, or wild flowers. Around Christmas, it can be a small branch of a fir tree. I return these gifts to nature eventually. The only stone I haven't returned to nature yet is the one I brought with me from northern Sweden. It's the only sentimental item that I have, and I will keep it for now. At times, I bring a stone to my office. Sometimes I even take them with me to meetings. From various non-anthropocentric philosophical perspectives, a stone is a fellow being. When my fellow humans (especially those just starting) in academia, especially women, ask me what they can do to feel more confident when they face someone from whom they expect criticism or even disrespect, I tell them what helped me. I would bring a stone with me to a meeting. It reminds me that there are millions, even billions, of beings in the world, both human and non-human. The fellow human from whom someone may expect criticism and disrespect is just one of those beings. It helps me put their words into perspective and transcend something that is said in an aggressive and disrespectful way.