the uniform project

Today I discovered The Uniform Project. Last May, a woman named Sheena Matheiken in Brooklyn, New York has pledged to wear the same dress for 365 days to raise money for the Akanksha Foundation, a grassroots foundation that funds uniforms and school expenses for underprivaledged children in India. So far she has raised just under $70,000.

One dress, 365 different ways. How does that work, you ask? Sheena enlisted the help of her friend Eliza Starbuck to design and make a multi-season, functional dress. The result was a simple black shift dress that can be worn back to front and as an open tunic. She has one for each day of the week and through some seriously clever accessorizing and layering, Sheena is doing exactly what she set out to do: wearing one dress for one year. One great feature of her website is that she's providing proof that she is indeed wearing the dress every day. She posts a photo of that day's outfit and tells the inspiration and the provenance of the accessories she's used. Its incredible some of the looks she's put together. I've put some of my favorites below.

There are only two months remaining in her quest, and it will be interesting to see what she does when her time limit is up. Will she continue wearing her LBD or will she be tired of it and looking for the next philanthropic fashion adventure?

Day 61 with vitage suede belt and shoes from esty.com

Day 123 with thrifted denim jacket, vintage trillby and Laredo boots, & donated jewelry. There is something so very Lisa Bonnet about this outfit.

Day 233 with handmade tiered ruffle dress, wool scarf and vintage gloves & granny boots

Day 258, in Pune India with kids who have been helped by the Akanksha Foundation;

Check her out at www.theuniformproject.com