H&M: Conscious Collection

 

Earlier today I stopped by the H&M at 42nd and 5th to check out the release of the conscious collection which sports more sustainable environmental, social and economic choices. What translates into the clothing goes beyond the use of organic fabrics including cotton, linen and hemp - and what you don't see on the care tag is the reduction in water consumption during production, philanthropy, educating workers on their rights and higher quality control standards.

The collection is made up of button ups, Ts, shorts, pants, a blazer and some accessories.  Nothing tops $49 for menswear with Ts and button-ups starting at just $10 a pop.  I wanted to check out this blazer with contrasting color on the lapel but alas, they were all sold out at the location I hit up.  

Out of all the pieces I saw,  I took a definite linking to the shorts.  At $30, they're a slimmer cut with the slightest bit of stretch and made up of 50% organic cotton.  I've been looking for mint colored shorts for ages and haven't found one I liked until now!  I ended up liking the fit of the shorts so much I picked up a second pair in navy.

Menswear this spring has been all about colored bottoms. Truthfully, I never thought I'd be into it - but things change.  It all began a couple of months ago while editing my closet, I realized that the last 7 pairs of pants I bought were black.  That same weekend, I consciously decided to break that pattern and picked up a pair of bright red pants.  Honestly, trying them on in the store was kind of daunting for some reason and even after taking them home, I wasn't completely sold on the idea.  But, after taking the plunge and heading outside of my apartment with my new pants on, I knew I was hooked.  If you're thinking of giving colored pants a go, here's a few things to keep in mind:

• keep it simple up top - no one wants to look like a bag of skittles vomited on them.  Basic Ts (black and white) work wonders. 
• if you're debating on which color to start with - red is probably your best bet
• feel free to roll your pant legs up - not too much, but shortening the proportion of the pant and breaking up the color of your pants, leg and shoe works really well
• have fun with it!