First Day At Work
Middle school art teacher Julia Mooney was really looking forward to her first day at her new job. She had recently accepted a new position at William Allen Middle School in Moorestown, New Jersey.
Hoping to create a good first impression, she wanted to dress nice for the occasion. With this aim in mind, she planned on wearing a brand new pebble-gray dress that she had ordered just a few days ago. However, never could have she imagined the controversy that her dress would eventually spark…
She Looked Great
Such was her anxiety about her first day at work that she could barely get any shut-eye the night before. The following morning, she woke up earlier than usual to get her two kids ready for school.
Before heading off to school, Julia looked at herself in the mirror making sure the dress fit properly one last time. The fact that it looked great on her was a major relief, especially considering it had cost her a whopping $50!
Boiling Heat
After exchanging a few words with the headmaster, Julia introduced herself to her new 6th and 7th grade students. The kids seemed to like her and everything was going smoothly... until she noticed that the temperature was beginning to rocket.
Julia hadn't expected the day to be that hot. At first, she strategically placed herself right beneath the air conditioner, but truth be told, it didn't help much. Before she knew it, her skin was flushing and she was sweating buckets.
Lousy First Impression
Julia started feeling embarrassed once her shirt started to moisten. She tried to carry on with her class while fanning herself with a textbook, but all she could think of was the sky-rocketing temperature.
As the day went by, the heat grew more unbearable. She series of new classes and introductions seemed endless. No matter how hard she tried to make a good impression on her teenage students, she was blowing it.
Ice-Cold Shower
After a few hours that seemed like days, the school day finally ended. Feeling nothing but relief, Julia rushed to her car, counting the minutes left for her to reach the shower.
Because of all the sweat, her dress had basically glued to her back like a wet handkerchief. After taking an ice-cold bath, she scrubbed her dress in the kitchen sink and left it to dry. But why was she so worried about her dress drying so quickly?
One Of A Kind
The following morning, Julia drove to school hoping to make a better impression on her students. However, it wasn't long before they realized that Julia wasn't like any other teacher they had.
As we all know, 13-year-old kids tend to be extremely observant when it comes to body image and the clothes that everyone wears. This being said, most of the class couldn't help but notice something funny about Julia's fashion choices.
Whispers
The kids remembered that Julia wouldn't stop sweating on their first day of school. However, in spite of that, she had chosen to wear the same exact dress the following day!
Julia noticed that many of the kids were whispering behind her back, probably commenting on her dress. However, feeling determined, she soldiered on and carried on with her class. Unsurprisingly, it wasn't long before Julia became the talk of the town...
Teachers Were Concerned
For some strange reason, Julia wore her signature gray dress every single day of the week. She soon grew used to the fact that wherever she went to, there would always be kids whispering behind her back, probably commenting on her fashion.
It wasn't long before the teachers started doing the same. In fact, by the end of the week, some teachers had started growing concerned. What if Julia was struggling to make ends meet? What if she really had no other decent outfit to wear?
What's The Deal?
But it's not like Julia didn't notice how uncomfortable she was making everyone feel. "I’m walking down the halls and they’re like, ‘Is she still wearing that dress?”, she recalls.
But even though her students made the greatest of efforts into looking the other way, by the end of the third week they could no longer hold on to their curiosity. The time had come for them to speak their minds and just be straight to her.
The Awaited Question
On Julia's fourth week of school, her students finally asked what everyone was dying to know but nobody dared mention: what was the deal with that gray dress? Why wouldn't she take it off?
As it turns out, Julia had been impatiently waiting for the kids to ask her this very same question. But while the kids thought she was just crazy, they never imagined that their teacher had a plan up her sleeve.
It Was All A Plan
It happens to be that Julia had planned on wearing the same dress from the very start. “I needed to pick a dress that was going to be versatile because I’m going to be wearing it through the winter, and when we started the school year it was 90 degrees,” she admitted.
However, when her students finally asked her why, instead of giving them a straight answer, she told them to look her up on social media and check her Instagram account. But why?
The Instagram Account
The first post on Julia's Instagram page, which is precisely called @OneOutfit100Days, read the following: > "For at least 100 days I'll be wearing this dress, through ceramics projects, blizzards, whatever".
"Boring? Sure. I love to express myself through what I wear as much as the next American. This is a challenge", it continued. But why was she doing this, one may wonder? The answers were fourfold.
Time-Saver
The first reason was practicality. Basically, wearing the same clothes over and over again saves a great deal of time. If you have two toddlers to look after, then opting for a minimalist lifestyle definitely adds up.
In other words, not having to worry about what outfit to wear meant having more free time to spend with her kids. However, there were other deeper reasons, too.
Taking A Stance Against Fast Fashion
As it turns out, Julia was also an advocate of slow fashion. I know what you're wondering: what on earth is that? Also, if there's such thing as "slow fashion", then what would "fast fashion" be?
Fast fashion refers to cheap and stylish clothing that is cost-effective, but that at the same time has a relatively short lifespan. Slow fashion, on the other hand, refers to good-quality clothing that lasts longer. Many people are worried about the fact that fact fashion has become the norm, mainly because it's directly related to another troubling issue.
Employment Rights
Since endless amounts of clothing is produced each year in order to satisfy the increasing demand for cheaper goods, many companies employ underage workers, paying them way below the minimum wage.
As Julia clearly states, "We demand lots of clothes cheap, so retailers have to produce in foreign factories where US labor laws don't protect workers". Therefore, opting for slow fashion items is a way of promoting not only higher quality but also fairer labor practices. But the problem doesn't end there...
Detrimental Environmental Impact
Apart from the social aspect, it's equally worth mentioning that the fast fashion industry has a detrimental effect on the environment. The rapid increase in the demand for cheap clothing not only depletes the planet's resources, but it also enhances the emission of greenhouse gases.
In this sense, the manufacturing of a polyester T-shirt emits twice as much carbon dioxide than a traditional cotton shirt. Bearing this into account, Julia had chosen to wear a fair-trade dress made by a slow-fashion British company called Thought. Now, how did everyone react to her plan?
Is It Hygienic?
Many people would react with disgust whenever they found out that Julia wore the same outfit every single day. The way they saw it, doing so was not hygienic at all. Here's what Julia has to comment on the issue.
"I just tell them: this is not a project about hygiene. I wash it as needed. I come to work clean. Lots of people wear uniforms and they are not assumed to be dirty", Julia points out. But what was her last reason?
Defying The Hegemonic Culture
Julia also believes it's important to question the hegemonic culture based on image. "Do we really need so many new outfits? Are we just perpetuating a culture that defines us based on what we're wearing rather than what we're doing?", she questions.
"What if we spent our energy trying to BE good, interesting humans instead of trying to LOOK good and interesting?", she adds. Now, did her viewpoints strike a cord with her students?
Following Her Steps
While many people on social media were shocked by the teacher's message, most of her students were greatly supportive of her views. Now, all of them follow her on Instagram and love sharing her videos.
Before she knew it, some of her pupils began following her steps by wearing the same clothes over and over again. By the end of the school year, 17 teachers and students had joined her cause. And guess what?
The Talk Of The Town
Once word came out all over town, a few local news stations reached out to Julia hoping to interview her. "To wear the same thing every day is uncomfortable because we have this deeply ingrained cultural expectation to change every day. It’s weird, but because it’s weird it’s making us all think", she said in one of the interviews.
What do you think about the art teacher's plan? Would you be up for the challenge of wearing the same pieces of clothing for 100 days straight? What are you waiting for?