Fall into the (Organic) Gap

Back when I was a teenager, one of my first jobs was working at the Gap.   Correction: The Gap Outlet.  I was first put on the cash register to ring people up and was quickly moved to the lowest of jobs: greeter.   You see, the Gap Outlet would have specials all the time, like 20% off sweaters.    But when people would come to my register, I would hold a heavy sweatshir upt and be like, "well, this is LIKE a sweater, so I guess it's 20% off."    Pretty soon, customers would wait in line just to be at my register.   And that didn't go well with the managers.

Anyway, I strolled into the Gap store recently and saw a rack of 100% organic cotton t-shirts in the men's section.    How great, I thought.  Gap going organic!    But when I tried on a shirt, my reaction was this: Eh.

The shirt seems different from their classic t-shirts.    The color looked dirty; it's a beige-y, natural color.   And it was the only item in the store during their Big Summer Sale that was still full-price.   Who pays full price at The Gap?

It reminds me of the RED campaign Gap is a part of.   I bought some RED items to support the cause but I quickly donated them back to charity at my local Goodwill.   I'm a Gap medium sweatshirt, but the Red sweatshirt was cut strange.   It was bigger and smaller in all the wrong areas.   

I just wish The Gap used the same patterns for their classic pieces for their "cause-related" pieces, like the RED items and the organic t's.    Then, we'd be talking.  Correction: shopping.

What do you think?   Shouldn't organic come in nice colors, cuts and style to really work?

Comments

[JanaMay]

I agree with you there. I don't understand why they can't use the same patterns for the organic lines as they do for the conventional cotton stuff. And why do all the organic cotton item have to be BEIGE?
Doesn't hemp fabric comb out to a lovely milky white colour?
Oh sigh! We'll just have to come up with our own I guess!

[Brandi]

Yes, the shirts should have the colors and the fit just like conventional cotton. I found some tees at Sam's Club that are 95% organic cotton and I bought a great fitting white one and they had many other colors too. Also, they have some cute organic cotton tanks with fun designs and sparkles on them.

[gina]

i completely agree. one should be able to find organic shirts and such in fun colors along with a nice crisp white.
i do hear that wal-mart of all places has come out with a whole organic line. i have not been to see if this rumor has any validity. i wish more stores would come out with organic clothing lines. i am happy to hear that the gap is starting go this way, however it sounds like they need some help.
at least it is a start.

[christopher drummond]

I love your site and what you are doing for the environment. If you get a chance, check out my new makeup at www.christopherdrummond.com. It is vegan,organic and all natural...the stuff dreams are made of! Oh, and it's goregous!!

[mel24]

I too tried to buy Red at the Gap and the fit was awful. I did buy some organic socks at Wal Mart that are nice. Hopefully organic clothing will soon become more mainstream AND more fashionable with many colors and styles.

[Elizabeth]

My guess would be that those in charge of the global Red campaign don't allow clothes related to the cause to be manufactured using child labor... as Gap has been accused in the past.

[Kate]

Hello! I have to say, I do enjoy your site. Thanks for sharing. It's always good to stumble on something green + creative.

Upon reading this post I thought I'd put these links out there regarding Project (Red)-- a noble idea, in theory:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/2007/03/shopping_and_donating_are_diff.html

http://www.buylesscrap.com/

[Kate]

Hello! I have to say, I do enjoy your site. Thanks for sharing. It's always good to stumble on something green + creative.

Upon reading this post I thought I'd put these links out there regarding Project (Red)-- a noble idea, in theory:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/2007/03/shopping_and_donating_are_diff.html

http://www.buylesscrap.com/

[Elizabeth]

One of the great things about the Red campaign is that the garments are manufactured in Africa providing badly needed jobs. Africa needs jobs and industries - not just cash.

As for organic tees - the reason they are "beige" is that is the natural color. One of the most toxic elements of fabric manufacturing is dyeing. You cannot achieve bright colors with any of the less toxic dye materials. There are plenty of organic clothes in the market that are dyed/printed using remarkably toxic chemicals. It's rather ridiculous.