Brooklyn’s Sustainable Design Boom: 10 Eco-Friendly Designers To Know Right Now
Tara St. James of Study NY
study-ny.com
After working in the denim industry and launching an eco-friendly mass-consumer line in her native Montreal, Tara St. James decided to expand her reach and in 2009 launched Study NY, a sustainable line of streamlined basics she describes as “all [she feels] is missing from the fashion industry.” The line incorporates eco-friendly materials, domestic production, and collaboration with artisans, among other sustainable practices. St. James (who’s now based in Williamsburg) explains, “I’m still learning about the process every day and I hope to continue doing that with this collection always, allowing it to take me wherever it needs to go.”
She’s also happy to debunk the myth that eco-friendly clothing equals unaffordable clothing. “There is a stigma that sustainable fashion is more expensive but in fact that’s not really true,” says St. James. “The main reason it seems that way is because most sustainable designers work on a small scale and don’t benefit from the price breaks at fabric mills and factories who order large quantities.”
With a background in menswear design and a list of inspirations that includes Sol Lewitt, St. James calls Study NY as an opportunity to “make clothing [she wants] to wear, and [wants] to see others wearing.”