a basic. blog

all articles 2021 style a basic shop birmingham basic. birmingham basic. blog being better for black history black herstory black history month black history month feature blog choosewellmakeitlast diversity ecofashion elizabeth singleton ethical fashion ethical fashion blog ethical fashion blogger ethical products ethically-made clothes fashion but make it ethical fashion for good gabby holloway kaarem ourcustomersarebetter paloma wool people over profits qualityoverquantity reggie collier shop local shop small shopgirl slow fashion slow fashion blog slowfashion blogger sustainable style thought leadership tracey kennedy valerie collins thomas wemadeyourclothes what do you think what to wear in 2021 what we're wearing in 2021 whomademyclothes whomadeyourclothes

a basic. blog

back to the basics - reopening our shop

by Lacey Woodroof on Dec 02, 2021

basic. recently had her 5th birthday, so i’ve been in a period of reflection about where we came from and where we’re headed. it’s funny how life works sometimes, isn’t it? we launched basic. at about 1 am from the basement of our old house; and right now, during this in-flux period of construction before our reopening, i’m writing about half a decade with my company…again from a basement while it’s dark outside. before basic., i was a wreck. my career made me feel dishonest, my family was in distress, and i couldn’t see a way out of the life i was living that i never thought i agreed to. it felt impossibly heavy. then one night i was reading a recipe from a food blogger (i wish i could remember who it was, but it was a random recipe from a @pinterest search, and i didn’t save it), and she mentioned a documentary called @thetruecost and how impactful watching it had been for her journey in conscious consumption. with that, my trajectory shifted. @thetruecost changed my life. it’s one thing to have vague awareness of a humanitarian crisis that feels far from home (it’s not that far, by the way)— and it’s another entirely to see it. i began looking into how and where the things i’d been buying were made, and i read about margin-padding strategies major corporations used to increase their bottom lines at the expense of human capital. i listened to accounts from garment workers from LA to bangladesh, and i looked at reports of the physical, psychological, and emotional abuse within garment factories all over the world. as a result, i evolved as both a person and a consumer— and i realized i like creating space where other folks can learn and evolve too. basic. launched as an ethical fashion online-only + popup retailer, and we’ve expanded to a site, a shared shop with @honeycreeperchocolate, and a couple outposts. we’ve had a lot of wins over the years, and we’ve been knocked flat out a couple times; and i’m grateful for every single day of all of it. while it can be a burly process (hello, pandemic), growth isn’t possible without the growing. we’ve always tried to be a brand trying to do the right things for the right reasons, and we actually do give a (whole lot of) damn. with the help of every customer, we’ve been able to give money and/or in-kind donations to more than 20 organizations including @thearcofalabama, @bibandtuckersewop, @maranathanacademy, @yellowfund, @ejiorg, @campsmileamile, and @unitedway. beginning in 2019, we’ve donated $5 of every sale (including from our preowned @back2_abasicshop) to the @southernpovertylawcenter and @humanrightswatch— and we recently modified that to 5%. we’ve partnered with @alabamachanin, @yellowhammercreative, and @linguafranca on collaborations that support causes in which we believe, and we’ve advocated for better working and living conditions for all people since we hit ‘LIVE’ on our site 5 years ago. thank you to everyone who has been a part of our story thus far. small businesses are only as good as the community that supports them, so we’re fortunate to have the actual best. as @abasicshop reopens in our education-centered new space with @honeycreeperchocolate, we’ve refined and refocused our strategy around the same clothing ideals upon which we were founded— ethically-made, staple, transitional garments that feel just a bit more than basic. after these past few months apart, friends— we are so happy to welcome you back in. see you soon, lacey ps— basic. wouldn't be possible without our team. a big fat huge thank you to maggie and gabby for all they do.

a basic. blog

down the rabbit hole

by Lacey Woodroof on Apr 30, 2021

a little over a year ago, a rabbit hole opened up, and the world fell into it. ever since, we’ve been on a topsy turvy adventure of fear and pain and enlightenment and horror and awakening and hope, and very few have emerged unscathed. if the cheshire cat wasn’t already correct, it certainly is now— we’re all mad here. we when first conceptualized this campaign, we imagined a vivid shoot that would spotlight individual characters + the folks who created their looks. we pictured a grande version of our style wars (check reels if you’re unfamiliar), and each team would design a character to be voted on by our community. as we explored further the scope of the message we wanted to share, though— things evolved. our conversation began with highlighting the individual over the group, but we came to the conclusion that both stories are equally important. with the characters, we can examine mental wellness, personal accountability, and self-acceptance + highlight killer local talent in the process. the group allows us to speak to a society that embraces our differences and sees value in who we are as a part of the whole— a society we’d desperately like to exist in. as we enter mental health awareness month, whether the images help you feel seen or the info that comes with them leads to personal growth, we hope this project moves you in some way. xoxo, lacey + maggie + gabby *** a special thank you to the wildly skilled folks who collaborated on this wonderland in birmingham. your ability is bonkers. photography: @alyssarosev creative direction: @abasicshop floral + set design: @hollymcarlisl floral assist @colewter white queen styling: @forecastsalon + @brittany_forecastsalon + @billyhalliday_forecastsalon + @eyesofwise + @lindsayhisey_forecastsalon + @hollymcarlisle (floral headpiece) cheshire cat styling: @alex.smith.hair caterpillar styling: @psandersmakeup + @colewter (mushroom accessories) white rabbit styling: @vivantleivida + @moe_forecastsalon + @hollymcarlisle (foliage ears) mad hatter styling: @brittany_forecastsalon + @alex.smith.hair + psandersmakeup + @hollymcarlisle (boutonniere) march hare styling: @psandersmakeup + @brittany_forecastsalon + @alex.smith.hai *** props: @dreamerssupplyco, @magiccityorganics, @honeycreeperchocolate, @mythomenagerie, @ritualshelter, and @studio.264 models: @tylerhatcher, @_sa1nt, @prashant.yay, @damagedbread, @lotusthedoll, @samrathecurator, @reggiees.world, @bangimages

a basic. blog

designer spotlight— ajaie alaie

by Lacey Woodroof on Mar 18, 2021

designed in crown heights, brooklyn. made in accredited factories in india and peru. ABOUT THE BRAND: daniella samper launched her line, ajaie alaie, in late 2015 after graduating from the esteemed fashion institute of technology. from there, she put her own multicultural beliefs about life and style to work. daniella focuses on the integrity of her designs. she has mastered silhouettes that feature thoughtfully considered detailing accentuated by a tiny bit of unexpectedly fun drama. life and passion translate through the effervescent spirit of her garments. ajaie alaie is mindful about its carbon footprint. they source a large portion of their fabric through deadstock avenues, and any additional fabrics used are linen, silk, organic cotton, alpaca wool, tencel, or cupro. dyes are ASO free, and they place a heavier emphasis each season on using an air dye process that eliminates water waste in its production. no receipts or printed invoices accompany their shipments, and all packages are mailed in recycled boxes. each ajaie alaie garment comes individually wrapped in a mesh bag meant for your personal laundry or vegetable tote use, and each piece has a weighted magnet in it for balance and stability in our everyday lives. daniella lives with her husband and their dog in brooklyn. WHY WE LIKE IT: there are a lot of reasons to love ajaie alaie, but what initially sparked my interest was the brand’s retro femininity and use of unusual deadstock fabrics. daniella is not only an incredibly cerebral person who is intensely focused on her company’s global footprint, she’s also just a crazy talented designer. every pleat has a purpose, and her ethereal, playful designs are really, really fun to wear. she’s got the 60’s housewife meets modern muse down to a science, and she marries the two seamlessly. one of the most important qualities that i look for in a designer is the willingness to continue learning and evolving. i seek out brands who are actively looking to improve upon their own production practices and build safe, collaborative workspaces. the entire ethos of ajaie alaie is self-love and the empowerment of others while also being mindful of the world around us. daniella’s thoughtfulness in regards to her seamstresses, employees, the environment, and humankind at large speak volumes about her character. we feel fortunate to be a small part of her world.

a basic. blog

badass bham womxn campaign

by Gabby Holloway on Jan 30, 2021

the badass womxn campaign is an ongoing project that evolved from a desire to couple sharing stories of cool folks doing cool things with building content that felt authentic for basic. we wanted to elevate the voices and causes of people we admire, and we also wanted to photograph our clothes on real people with real (all different!) bodies + real lives. as it turns out, it’s a helluva lot more fun to get a group of good womxn together to play dress up and take pictures than it is to pose the same person over and over again.

a basic. blog

a basic. reintroduction

by Lacey Woodroof on Jan 28, 2021

basic. is a human-centric + progress-oriented slow fashion platform founded on a strong belief in the ‘basic’ rights of all people (get it?). the small indie brands we stock produce ethically-made staple garments within transparent supply chains because we want to know #whomadeourclothes— and we want you to know that, too. we believe that clothing should make a person feel as good on the inside as they do on the outside because folks, it’s cool to care.

a basic. blog

what we're wearing in 2021

by Lacey Woodroof on Jan 13, 2021

so, what we’d encourage you to wear in 2021 is whatever the hell you want to. take this year to be intentional with your wardrobe as it relates to your life— figure out what feels good on your skin and fits your body comfortably, determine whether what you’re wearing moves right for your lifestyle, and identify what makes you feel confident when you put it on— and then dress accordingly. it sounds like a line, but we find that folks do actually look the best in clothes that make them feel the best. wild how that works, right?

a basic. blog

the more you know - rosa parks

by Lacey Woodroof on Aug 06, 2020

she’s often painted as a timid seamstress who quietly refused when asked to change seats for a white man, but rosa louise mccauley parks was in fact an educated and seasoned civil rights activist who’d already spent a lifetime challenging white supremacy. by the time of the montgomery bus boycott, she’d served as a secretary and youth counselor for the naacp, worked tirelessly for justice for black women victims of white brutality and sexual violence, fought for the freedom of jeremiah reeves and other wrongfully convicted black men, and pushed for the desegregation of public spaces. she wasn’t new to the fight to dismantle oppressive systems, and for the entirety of her life, she never left it.

a basic. blog

poolside pride - a slim aarons-inspired celebration

by Lacey Woodroof on Jun 30, 2020

on june 28th, 1969, new york city’s stonewall inn was raided. with the throwing of what is referred to as “the shot glass that was heard around the world,” marsha p. johnson began what would be a series of riots and protests that catapulted the LGBTQ awareness movement to a new level, empowering others to stand up for their civil rights. the following year, on the anniversary of the stonewall riots, demonstrations in major cities across the US began. parades and demonstrations promoted visibility of the LGBTQ community, helped raise awareness of AIDS and gained support for marriage equality. media coverage of these events helped accelerate the movement, and it began to transition into the beautiful celebrations of love and life that pride month is today.