If you’ve been following me for any period of time then you probably know I HATE laundry. I hardly ever wash my clothes because I A. hate it and B. like to think that I’m doing my part for saving the environment.
I love getting to justify my laziness with saving the planet. I ONLY wash clothes when they stink and by following a few simple rules, that hardly ever happens.
I can’t wear the same shirt back to back
I spray it with my homemade Febreze
It has to air out between washes
The reason I don’t normally wear the same shirt back to back is because giving the fibers space and time to breathe between wears keeps the washing down.
However, Icebreaker sent me one of their tees, and challenged me to throw my rules out the window. They challenged me to try and wear the same shirt for seven days straight to see if it could hold up without washing.
And, well, Icebreaker - challenge accepted.
about the shirt:
I was sent the women’s cool-lite solace short sleeve scoop tee in sky blue. It was shipped to me in a small cardboard tube without any plastic packaging.
The shirt is made from merino-wool which is anti-bacterial, anti-microbial and rockstar for temperature regulation. Wool has been my favorite natural fiber for a very long time.
Icebreaker has a very strict animal welfare policy that ensures a healthy, low stress quality of life for the sheep.
I know there have been some questions about the ethics of wool, but sheep have to be sheared or else they’re at risk for over heating, immobility and at risk for infections from urine, feces, and other materials that can become trapped in the wool.
Of course, this isn’t to say that all wool producers treat their sheep with respect so you still have to be careful which farm your wool is being sourced from, but I do not have a problem with wool if it comes from a small family farms who treat their sheep with care!
Icebreaker produces a transparency report every year that covers everything from social responsibility, worker safety, animal welfare, and environmental integrity. Read the Report
day one - friday:
To be honest, I went into this with a goal of really trying to test this shirt and not hold back on my daily activities.
I kicked day one off by being late to my brunch meeting (my favorite type of meeting) which meant Nala and I were careening at breakneck speed toward the rendezvous point.
I was wearing my lined trench coat which got really warm after traveling about two miles to the brunch spot. After brunch Nala and I had a breezy stroll back to the house where I proceeded to work from home.
Day One - PASS
day two - saturday:
Day two was filled with wine tasting. My dad came into town speaking of which did you see my guide to eco-friendly father’s day presents?
And, we hit up a few wineries. We went to Opus One and Gamble with a few family friends. Now, what I learned was while my shirt might be odor resistant… it is not clumsy resistant. Thankfully, I managed to skate by without pouring red wine all over myself. A challenge indeed.
After spending most of the day in Napa, I came home and went to bed.
Day Two - PASS
day three - sunday :
Ah, day three… almost half way through! I walked a lot in the morning. I walked around town, took Nala on a walk, walked to brunch and went down to East Bay Booksellers to sign a few copies of 101 Ways to Go Zero Waste.
In the afternoon, I lounged in the hammock all day drawing and watching TV on my laptop. That evening I made a really nice dinner for both Justin and me and we opened one of the bottles of wine I picked up from wine tasting the day before.
While cooking, I wore an apron because remember - these tees might be the sturdiest tees in the world, but they're not clumsy proof!
Day Three - PASS
day four - monday:
Today was a lot of sitting in my office writing, answering emails, and then of course - taking Nala on a walk. I know that the rest of the week is going to be pretty busy so today was all about buckling down and getting ahead of my work for the coming week.
Day Four - PASS
day five - tuesday :
Oh boy did we me and my scoop tee go on an adventure today! First up I had an interview, I dropped Nala off at dog daycare, then a voice lesson, followed by a doctors appointment, and then after I picked Nala up from day care we went on a walk.
It’s was a day where I was bouncing all over the city running from place to place.
When Nala and I go on walks I like to listen to audio books, and I just finished my books and I really need to find a new one….
Day Five - PASS
day six - wednesday:
Here we are the final stretch, and I have to say that while the shirt doesn’t smell bad, it certainly does seem like it could go for a nice freshening up.
I didn’t do much today at all. I pretty much just stuck around the house doing the normal things, answering 5,000 emails, cooking, and picking up the house.
Nala was so tired from yesterday at day care that she didn’t even wake up until 2 pm! If she’s feeling up for it, we might go on a walk a little later around 6. Just need to find a good book…. promptly spends 3 hours on good reads instead of working
Day Six - TOEING THE LINE
day seven - thursday:
Today is the final day of the challenge and as I was seasoning my cast iron skillet after breakfast I splash oil all over myself - remember - not clumsy proof.
So, alas, I removed my shirt applied a bit of liquid soap, ran it under cold water and hung it to dry. I’m hoping that I got the stain out in time, and then I’ll throw it in the wash. All in all though 7 days, one shirt and I’m really impressed!
Day Seven - PASS
final takeaways:
My final takeaways from this challenge might be a little surprising… but the main one is that I really enjoyed the ease of knowing what I was going to wear in the morning.
Knowing that I was going to be wearing this baby blue tee eliminated the question of, “What am I going to wear today?”
Now, I probably wouldn’t wear the same shirt seven days in a row again, but it’s nice knowing that I could if I needed too. However, Icebreaker tees would be perfect for traveling when you’re crunched on space!
I’ve loved the baby blue tee so much, that I’m actually planning on buying this tee in blush pink.
