Kristy Powell never has trouble deciding what to wear in the morning because she’s vowed to wear the same dress every day in 2011. Powell’s One Dress Protest was inspired by years of feeling she had to look a certain way, so she's following in the footsteps of the Uniform Project’s Sheena Matheiken — she even bought the identical dress.

 

But Powell’s protest isn’t just about challenging concepts of beauty, identity and fashion: “My message is that the way we consume now is harmful to our sense of self and unsustainable for the environment." While she admits that she’ll always have a soft spot for her jeans, she’s been enjoying her project — except for when she shrunk her first dress by 4 inches.

 

Powell says she hopes to inspire others to begin making practical changes in their consumption habits. “If we consume quality, ethically and sustainably crafted items, our overall consumption can be drastically reduced, and our carbon footprint is substantially cut, too.”