F I E L DWO R K
That’s a Wrap Designer Lily Forbes Shafroth’s unisex robes, made in collaboration with Indian artisans, bring both a story and a conscience to fashion.
FASHION IS OFTEN THOUGHT OF AS A PRODUCT OF STORIED CAPITAL CITIES. While New York, Paris, and Milan command much of the attention, the industry thrives in towns far beyond their horizons; 26-year-old Detroit-based designer Lily Forbes Shafroth is proof of this wide geographic reach. In September, Shafroth will unveil a line of handwoven silk robes that mark an inflection point in her unisex clothing label, Lily Forbes, her 18-month old firm that has to date produced garments only of vintage silk or handwoven cotton. The new collection’s vibrant custom textiles—woven and dyed in Bihar and transported to a fair-trade production house in Delhi, where they’re
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cut and sewn—are fluid, skillfully made garments that reflect Shafroth’s singular dedication to responsible fashion. Her collection is the result of years of ups, downs, and research. Raised in Colorado and Washington, DC, by a wildlife-conservationist father and social activist mother, Shafroth learned about environmental and human rights issues early on. In 2015, as a geography student at UC Berkeley (where she spent a semester abroad studying fashion at Central Saint Martin’s) with a minor in global poverty and practice, Shafroth took a two-month research trip to Varanasi, the Hindu pilgrimage city on the Ganges known for its opulent silk saris and »
COURTESY LILY FORBES
SEAL OF APPROVAL
By SHYAM PATEL
