If you’re like a lot of people out there, you are ready to throw fast fashion on the scrap heap or at least have an appetite to explore that further.

Welcome!

We saw a stat on @citizen_wolf [a fantastic Australian-made ethical t-shirt brand] that 1 in 5 people have now started shopping more ethically and sustainably since the pandemic began. This is fantastic news, and the beginning of a new, beautiful movement in fashion. That’s 1 in 5 people who have said no to the slave labour, destroying the environment and animal cruelty of fast fashion.

However, for real change to occur, we need to see more people making the transition. And, if we don’t, we have all seen the reports that detail the environmental devastation we are likely to see in as little as 10 years. So, yesterday was the best time to start making a shift in how we consume.

Of course, educating people about the issues that exist and how their clothes are really made is part of the solution. But, if we’re honest with ourselves, we know that most people already know about this.

As we see it, the next step is helping people to make that leap. Because for some of us we know it’s important we take this step, but we feel it’s a loss to us.

We do not want to discount those feelings. Fashion is deeply emotional. It’s a representation of ourselves. And, with every piece we shop, we satisfy a need within us. It becomes part of us. So, the brands and pieces we regularly shop become very personal to us.

There are many reasons people may continue with their same shopping habits (and there may be more, so please feel free to share with us!):

1. They think that by buying less, but higher quality, they are still losing. Our brain loves to equate quantity with more, and better. Fast fashion brands play on this. The truth is, you’re only gaining by buying less, but better quality.
   
2. They think it’s unaffordable. Fast fashion has trained us that clothes need to be frequently replaced at high volumes. The truth is, if they are fast fashion, they do need to be replaced. However, if you are buying true quality pieces, they will last. You will not need to consume at the same rate and they will go further for you – this will actually save you money.
   
3. They don’t know where to start. It seems overwhelming and hard. We will help you with this.
   
4. Shopping fast fashion is convenient. Trust us when we say, only in this very moment right here. Only at the point of purchase. It’s inconvenient in every other way, including how often you have to throw out and keep shopping, and how it’s destroying our environment, well-being, jobs and community. Once you get yourself going on the new way, you will realise how exhausting the old way is!

So now we know that you are not losing, it’s not unaffordable, it’s easy to start AND it’s more convenient, let’s talk about how to transition to buying more ethically and sustainably.

Firstly, please focus on progress, not perfection.

Replacing an entire wardrobe in one go could be the most fun and exciting thing you can think of OR it can seem completely overwhelming. If you’re the former, great go for gold and enjoy every moment of it. If you’re the latter, please understand that you do not need to be perfect at this or do everything at once. Part of a transition is experimentation. Focus on replacing your wardrobe one quality piece at a time, try out new brands, try out new looks, don’t be afraid if you don’t get it perfect the first time. You are learning. Once you get a handle on it and you look into your wardrobe with love and excitement instead of shame, you will realise it’s the best thing you’ve ever done.

Also, if you really love a particular brand but you know it’s not as sustainable as you’d like, you don’t necessarily have to ditch it altogether. Just shop it less, and shop quality, ethical, sustainable brands more. Think of it as treating yourself to a little chocolate every now and again.

Do your research.

This can seem like a lot of hard work upfront, but do your research to find those little niche brands. Part of their appeal is that not everyone is wearing them, so it can take a little longer to find. Trust us when we say once you find them, you’ll never want to let them go though. Search Google, Instagram, ask around for recommendations, read websites. There is a lot of greenwashing going on. Avoid buying from places that manufacture in areas known for human rights abuses. Focus on those who don’t mass produce, and even have made to order models. Yes, you will have to wait a short time longer for your piece, but you can wear it in confidence that you’re being a great global citizen.

If a brand is not upfront with their manufacturing practices, avoid them like the plague. There is a reason they are trying to divert your attention away from that.

Look for transeasonal, timeless pieces.

Sometimes it’s fun to buy something a little on trend so don’t be afraid to do that every now and again. But for the most part, focus on transeasonal, timeless pieces that will never age and last generations. These are pieces you can wear for summer, layer for winter and style for Spring and fall. It’s amazing how different an outfit can look with styling as you take it through the year. It also means it’s always on trend because it’s timeless.

When it comes to kids clothes, high quality brands will last through multiple kids and still be beautiful enough to be packed away in their treasure boxes for if they have children of their own. You just can’t beat that!

Define what ethical and sustainable means to you.

While there are some blanket decisions you may make in order to shop more ethically (for example, vegan leather), please avoid fabrics you don’t love. For example, linen. If you hate the crinkle, and the ironing, don’t buy it just because it’s more ‘sustainable.’ It becomes very unsustainable if you don’t wear it because it annoys you. Sometimes it takes thinking outside the box to work out what sustainable means in your individual context. Instead, you might prefer cotton, or a cotton blend. And sometimes, pieces with a little polyester can hold their shape better and last longer. Yes, we need to consider what our pieces are made from, but we also need to consider how often we will wear and love them. The latter can also make them more sustainable.

We do believe that how we shop will become a reflection of our social reputation and part of our role in being a good citizen. The best time to start is now so you’re not left behind.

That wraps up our tips for how to begin your journey to ditch fast fashion. If you have any others, please feel free to comment on this blog, we’d love to hear them!

Happy shopping!

As we promised when we transitioned to our made-to-order model, we have continually evolved it [over a short period of time!] to make it as simple, convenient and fun for you.

Previously, we ran a pre-order window where we collected your orders all at once and made them all at once. This was a great model as it allowed people to plan for ordering from each drop. But, what it lacked was a true sense of flexibility. It meant customers had to be ready to order when we opened pre-order and many people missed out after pre-order closed. It also meant that customers who ordered early had to wait for everyone else to get their orders in before we could start making.

We’re pleased to announce we have now transitioned to a true made-to-order model where we make your order when you’re ready to order it [while stocks last].

Our New Made to Order Process

1. When you’re ready to order, simply order on our website like you always have
2. We will make your gorgeous pieces in 10 business days from when we receive your order [and keep you updated along the way like we always have!]
3. We will also offer an early bird order window. There’s no pressure to order by a certain date, but if you do order by our early bird deadline you’ll be rewarded with special Stella prices! After the early bird deadline, prices will revert back to our usual RRP.

While we encourage thoughtful shopping, by the very nature of our brand, our pieces remain limited and rare. We therefore still encourage customers to order as soon as they can so they don’t miss out.

You can now also order separates!

We will also be offering customers the flexibility to order separates; this is, tops, bottoms [bloomers, shorts, skirts, pants] or, full statement pieces if you wish [dresses, playsuits, jumpsuits]. This means if you want a lot of Stella, you can have a lot. Or, if you just feel like a little Stella to give your little loves wardrobe some pep, you can have a little. Simply look at the product description to decide what to order. For example, The Kelly Shorts are the shorts only, The Kelly Flutter Top is the top only, The Kelly Playsuit is the full outfit.

We would love to hear your thoughts on our new way of shopping. Questions? Feel free to email us at [email protected]

WHAT.

WHAT.

WHAT.

WHAT.

Yes!

While other fashion brands are all about trying to get you to buy MORE, we have decided to dial it back. Why? Well, the truth is you don’t need to buy more. In fact, you need to buy less. And we’re not going to tell you you need to do something when you quite simply don’t. I mean, call us crazy, but we’re genuine like that.

Also, something else we’ve noticed? People are exhausted from having to buy things that just fall apart, and make us feel ashamed. SO.MUCH.BUYING. SO.MUCH.THROWING.OUT. SO.MUCH.SHAME. And throwing out, and buying, and throwing out, and shame.

We’ve realised that thoughtful shopping is the key to happiness and we dig it.

We’ve been talking about this for a while, but now we’ve decided to show you. Because the truth of the matter is when you choose well and high-quality pieces, you need less, less often. But more than that, when you choose Stella, you get to create more from the outfits you buy.

Keen to know how? Read on!

We have created two scenarios below for you to see how you can wear Stella from AUD $42 an outfit all year round.

LET’S BE CLEAR.

It’s from AUD $42 an outfit for luxury, high-quality childrenswear that will not only last, be comfortable, and delight your little love endlessly, but will also be the envy of everyone else on the playground! (Note: also, can be passed on to siblings/friends/family, put in a keepsake box, or on-sold to someone else when you are finished!)

We’ve split our scenario’s into size ranges for simplicity, but bear in mind that often we have pieces that cross over all sizes too.

Scenario 1: Sizes 1-5

We’ve taken 3 statement outfits: The Evangeline Playsuit, The Juno Set (dress and playsuit pants) and The Carla Skirt and created 9 different looks using the kind of cute, staple pieces you likely already have in your mini’s wardrobe (or would be planning on buying anyway). Remember: while we’ve created 9 looks, you can create way more, especially if you already have Stella in your wardrobe!

Here you can see we’ve:

• • Attached The Evangeline Mushroom top to the DIVINE wine Carla Skirt for a new ultimate glam dress
  • Layered all the outfits for winter, and popped some leggings or socks on with The Juno for cooler days.
  • Paired the gorgeous pink satin playsuit bottoms of The Evangeline with a cute little cardigan (tights and boots are great too!)
  • Pop a different coloured playsuit pant on with The Juno, here we have paired it with the pink Evangeline playsuit pants
  • While the wine coloured playsuit bottoms in the Juno set don’t have buttonholes, fear not – you can still create new outfits with them. Simply pop on your little loves favourite leotard/blouse/studded bodysuit underneath the bloomers (or even the Juno dress itself) and, voila!

Note: If you threw The Indianna May Dress into the mix, we could also pair The Indianna May top with the pink Evangeline bloomers and the mushroom flutter top of The Evangeline with the floral Indianna May skirt! New playsuit and dress!

Total RRP for The Evangeline, The Juno and The Carla Skirt: AUD $378.

Cost per outfit created through mix and match, plus layering and styling pieces on their own: from AUD $42.

Scenario 2: Size 5-10

Again, we’ve taken 3 core pieces: The Fleur Jumpsuit, The Indianna May Dress and The Carla Skirt and created 9 different outfits. Again: remember while we’ve created 9 looks, you can create way more, especially if you already have Stella in your wardrobe!

• • Despite the fact The Fleur only has one button which deviates from the classic Stella two-button look, it’s still hugely versatile. Not only can you layer or wear it on its own, but the tailored, sparkly culotte style pant is super stylish when worn with a mustard cardigan (purple or dark grey would look lovely too)
  • The Indianna May Dress can be worn floral on floral, or floral on wine velvet by pairing The Carla Skirt.
  • You can also wear The Carla Skirt on its own, or the floral skirt on its own with your favourite little top.

Additional option: As with above, you could pair the mushroom flutter top of The Evangeline with the Indianna May floral skirt, or Indianna May top with the pink playsuit pants!

If you wanted you could throw in some bows as well – attach a bow to a collared shirt as a bow tie or to a hat! There are so many options it’s enough to make anyone dizzy, but the sweet little sketches we’ve done illustrate some examples!

Total RRP for The Fleur, The Indianna May and The Carla Skirt: AUD $466.

Cost per outfit created through mix and match, plus layering and styling pieces on their own: from AUD $51.

What about exposed buttonholes?

Never fear, we have a clever solution to ensure you always have a polished look. We have created special Stella Phoenix aged brass buttons that sit in lonely buttonholes to complete your outfit when bottom pieces are worn on their own (if you’d like to order some, get in touch!)

Shopping Stella is about thinking differently about your purchases. When you look at it from this perspective, not only is it affordable, but it’s a MUST HAVE. Yes, AUD $197 alone might seem like a lot for a dress to some, however when you realise:

1. 1. How easy (and frankly fun!) it is to get more out of your investment
   2. The quality and beauty of what your little love gets to wear and;
   3. The fact that our pieces are ethically made with love in Australia

One must ask themselves, why would you bother with fast fashion again?

Happy shopping (and styling!)

Ps. We’re always happy to help you with styling – just get in touch!

Stella Phoenix loves collaborating with others and has worked with many talented businesses, individuals and celebrities over our time. We receive a high volume of collaboration requests and have strict guidelines and policies about who our ideal collaborator is.

Stella Phoenix strongly believes in connection and referral by genuine customers who love our brand and pieces. This is because they understand the whole customer experience, from ordering, to the pieces themselves, to our follow-on customer care. We find that people who would order our product anyway are our ideal customers, and therefore, our ideal collaborators because they understand our value on a deeper, more intuitive level. We, therefore, prioritise projects with genuine customers and fans of our brand who already shop our products.

We are also very generous, and love supporting fellow complementary brands and businesses, including dressing little Queens for special events, so don’t be afraid to reach out and chat about how we can work together.

If you’d like to find out more information about collaborations or apply please email us at [email protected]

EEE! The rumours are true!

Stella Phoenix has just stepped into the accessories arena. But, not any kind of accessories. Luxury, high quality, 100% Australian premium merino wool and soft bridal tulle bows. With sparkle of course. For glam little Queens.

These stunning bows have been designed by the Stella Phoenix team and exclusively hand-made with love in Australia by our friend, Kirsty @feltinbloom.

If you’ve been following, and shopping, us for some time now, you will have learned that we are serious about our values. We want to have a positive impact on the communities we work with and serve. This is why we have implemented our Mindful Fashion Plan. It’s why we are 100% Australian made. And, it’s why we painstakingly ensure all the details are just-so for you and your little loves.

We have been thinking about accessories for a long time, however, we did not want to compromise on our values. When the opportunity came up for Kirsty to make our exclusive, luxury designs, we thought it was the perfect fit!

Kirsty is a Mum to two beautiful kids, a boy aged 3 and a girl aged 4. She is married to an incredibly supportive and amazing man. In her day job, she makes chocolates (ummm, don’t forget who your friends are when there are spares!) but by night she is making beautiful felt creations – by hand (chocolates and gorgeous bows, what’s not to love?!)

Kirsty shares our values of making stunning treasures that never compromise on quality and are ethical. We have created a design that aligns with our enduring philosophy: simple, yet clever. As with everything, we’ve gone full ultimate bow – and we’re sure you’ll appreciate that!

We have no doubt you will love our gorgeous bows as much as we do. In fact, you’ll probably never look at bows the same way again!

On a scale of 0 – WOW-EE, how excited are you? We are so grateful to Kirsty for coming on this journey with us.

Shop our first release of Amelia Bows here.