Sarah Marie Day, founder of online sustainable magazine Luméra Mag

Very unexpectedly, I accompanied my husband, Andrew Day, who’s a photographer, for a photoshoot at Spring Place during Fashion Week in 2019 and I walked into a panel discussion about sustainable fashion hosted by Dana Thomas, interviewing Amber Valetta, Philip Lim and the dean of Parsons.

I had learnt about the fashion industry’s sustainable issues in university, but had never warmed to the topic because it was always talked about in a way where it was more problem oriented. In this discussion they were talking about solutions, which I found very inspiring.

It was so inspiring that afterwards I started looking into slow fashion brands and what solutions were out there. I realized that there wasn’t really a gathering place for that - there wasn’t a place where you could go and that would show you for instance, “these are 15 amazing sustainable brands”.

So the initial idea was to create a space where as a consumer you can find those sustainable fashion solutions very easily so you can make better purchasing decisions and have easy access to them. That is where the name Luméra comes from, “lumen” from light, as shining a spotlight on those solutions, on those brands, on those rental platforms, and making them easy to see.

I felt the need to speak about it and my own consumption changed. I stopped buying any fast fashion items, even those mid-range brands such as Maje. In the beginning of your twenties, you kind of shift from Zara and COS and you can afford other brands, but when you look into it, it’s the same fabrics, the same factories, just a different marketing. It’s so upsetting.

I started to sell a lot of items I had because once I started looking into the quality, and once I started learning about fabrics, I didn’t like a lot of garments I’d bought in the past. Also, I had studied fashion design so it went hand in hand. I would learn about fabric composition, all those things, so I was able to tell quality really well. So, when I stopped buying Zara, it was honestly so easy! I remember a couple weeks later I would go back and walk through a Zara store and thought “none of this stuff interests me anymore”. It just doesn’t do it anymore: I can see the fabrics aren’t good, I see all the polyester, I can see the finishings aren’t great, and I know it's not going to hold up for a long time.

It took a while to find a good amount of slow fashion brands with which I felt like I could achieve the same aesthetic in a sustainable way. I love fashion, I love getting dressed, I love fabrics, I love that whole universe! It’s very important to me to still be able to express my style in a more conscious way. So finding a way to dress stylish, chic, effortless - without buying the mass market items - it took a lot of research to find those solutions. You also realize that some items are much harder to find - finding sustainable shoe brands for example is much more difficult.

After the panel talk, I bought the host’s book “Fashionopolis”, which was a big factor of education for me. I also read “The Conscious Closet” by Elizabeth Cline which is really focused on how to achieve a sustainable wardrobe.
I watched a lot of documentaries like “The True Cost” and videos on Youtube.
A large part of my education was also when doing research at university. I studied fashion design in Paris and then fashion journalism in Germany and we had many topics on sustainability so I learnt a lot writing papers for university. I wrote my bachelor thesis about this topic as well.

We just redid the website with a new brand directory to make it easier to find good brands at one glance and we’re now adding one new brand per month. The goal is to introduce our readers to a big selection of brands and tell their founding stories! Like we did in our facettes studio interview. Expanding the brand directory is a huge topic, to include more men’s brands and we’re thinking to expand to clean beauty and conscious interior brands.

Our editorial team is also playing with the idea of having a podcast to have conversations with people who are in the sustainable fashion universe.

I’m all about investing into quality pieces, that’s definitely my approach to getting dressed: less is more, quality over quantity, and loving the pieces that you have.

I think I buy a lot of elevated basics that you can mix and match with each other. I definitely have a color scheme that includes more neutrals: dark blue, red, white, beige - colors that you can easily combine with each other. But I also try to make it more interesting by choosing pieces that are more elevated, with interesting finishings or details. And I avoid synthetic materials. I’m looking for special pieces that will make you feel good when you wear them.

I love mixing feminine and masculine styles, that’s what I feel most comfortable with. I like tailored pieces that are traditionally menswear pieces, like a nicely tailored suit or vest - that’s why I love your brand! I like to mix them with more feminine pieces like a silk slip dress or a skirt, or a nice silk camisole. I like mixing soft, feminine materials with sharp, masculine tailoring. I think contrast is what makes an outfit interesting.

I try to achieve an effortless chic aesthetic either by wearing an oversized blazer over a silk dress, or wearing it over a mini dress, so that the blazer is longer than the dress - I think that’s quite interesting. I also often wear a blazer with classics, such as a t-shirt, tank top or anything denim to create a contrast of preppy and easy-going.

In Germany everyone is dressed in a similar way I would say, it’s not as creative as what you would see in Paris, New York or London. So, living in cities like Paris or New York during my 20s has brought me closer to my own style, because I feel I can wear whatever I want. You can express your personality more through style without others raising an eyebrow. So if anything, living in New York I can truly express my personal style.

There’s 3 things I can recommend to everyone: a lint roller, an electric fabric shaver (I use the one from Swedish company Steamery) and a steamer or an iron. Use them in this sequence. I’d also recommend always checking the labels, the manufacturers tell you how to take care of your clothes on there. Make sure you don’t wash certain fabrics too warm, or iron them too hot. Having a good dry cleaner and a good tailor are also very helpful! Find your go-to for that by trying out different ones in your neighborhood or ask friends and family for local recommendations. Sometimes we don’t wear our clothes because they’re in need of small alterations, like a hem that is too long, or the waist isn’t tight enough, and those things can be fixed very easily!

I’m always cold, so you’ll see me in cashmere sweaters a lot. A sustainable brand I love, mycashmere, does beautiful sustainable and recycled cashmere.

Classic, timeless, minimalist.

My Cartier watch that I wear everyday. My mom gave it to me and I love it so much, it’s definitely a piece I would give to my daughter one day. I think that anything you own and that you love so much you want to give it onto the next generation is worth the investment. For example, I have a dress from my mum, a little black Dolce & Gabbana dress she wore for her 30th birthday. As her daughter I get to wear the same dress for my 30th birthday, that’s the beauty of buying things that are quality.

" come and get your love " by Redbone - I like the old classics. Currently I'm also listening to " misses " by Dominic Fike, it's a fun song as well.