The Best Luxury Brands for Modern Women: Reformation

You know how when you discover a new brand and really, really love it, and you want to tell everyone about it? Well, that’s where we are with Reformation. We made our first purchase from the brand at the beginning of the summer. But unlike some fleeting summer romances, this one is still going strong. Our correspondent Julie Chang Murphy has the rundown on one of the best luxury fashion brands for modern boss women: Reformation.

what are the best luxury brands for modern women?

What are the best luxury brands for modern women? It’s a pressing question. Many of us are working moms here at Dandelion Chandelier. Moreover, we work in an industry where personal style is expected to meld with professional attire.

Which means we need not just great apparel – we have to have a shoe game and a handbag game, too. Don’t even get us started on the jewelry thing. And while we don’t have to chase every trend, for credibility we need to nod to the zeitgeist and demonstrate our fashion IQ. Plus we love to shop!

All of which means that being smart about where to invest, and what brands go the distance, is key. Previously, we’ve shared our tips on how to dress like a boss lady at the office. Now we’re turning our attention to the brands that help us deliver the look we’re seeking without using up all of our shoe money, whether we’re at work or at play.

In this edition of Brands We Love, we turn our attention to one of the coolest sustainable fashion brands on the market now: Reformation.

one of the best luxury brands for modern boss women: reformation

Before sustainable fashion became a thing, many of us can still recall eco-friendly garments that looked like the proverbial sack. They were shapeless clothes that seemed to come in only neutral colors and earth tones. And they were usually kind of itchy. You could perhaps wear them to an outdoor jam band concert but to work? Hardly.

the origin story of the reformation brand: Yael Aflalo

Nowadays, sustainable fashion is actually stylish and that is thanks to visionaries like Yael Aflalo, the founder of LA based contemporary fashion label Reformation.

What immediately comes across in all the feature stories and interviews about Aflalo is that, like our previous featured brand Veronica Beard, she approaches fashion with common sense and practicality.

Many fashion brands design with an ideal customer in mind. We love Aflalo’s target woman:

“She’s a waitress, she’s made about $200 in tips tonight, and she wants a dress for a date or an event. She’s gonna say, “I love this dress so much, it’s worth that eight hours of work I put in.” I try to draw that in for the girls that work here, that we have to earn that. She had to work really hard for it, so we have to work really hard too to make it worth it for her.”

Aflalo even eschews the typical stories and themes that designers often use to inspire their collections. No 80’s punk rocker meets Little House on the Prairie or a coven of witches lost in the big city here. Instead, Aflalo says:

“We’re not trying to make a story, we’re just trying to make clothes. I trust that my customer knows how to make her own story . . . My point is, I don’t think the story is relevant. I’m inspired by clothes I want to wear, very simple and to the point.”

This same no-nonsense attitude inspired her to create her ethical fashion brand in 2009. After a depressing trip to China, where she witnessed firsthand the wastefulness and pollution caused by manufacturing, Aflalo vowed to create sustainable and stylish clothing at an attainable price point. Cotton t-shirts that would not use 200-500 gallons of water to produce and dresses made from fabrics that wouldn’t take hundred of years to biodegrade.

For transparency, something often missing in fashion’s sustainability claims, all clothes include a “RefScale,” which shows customers the environmental benefit of each piece through a breakdown of how much CO 2, waste and water they helped to save. For a point of reference, the making of a pair of Reformation “seamed” jeans consumes 196 gallons of water, compared with an industry average of 1,656 gallons, and emits 5 pounds of CO 2, far less than the average of 36 pounds.

Beyond the clothing, Reformation as an operation has been carbon neutral since 2015. It sources locally when possible, uses eco-friendly packaging, screens its suppliers, and invests in green building infrastructure to minimize waste, water and energy footprints.

All of this is to say that Reformation makes clothing that we feel good buying and wearing. They are most known for feminine, vintage-inspired dresses which look effortless with a pair of tennis shoes on the weekend. For the work week, the dresses work double duty with a blazer thrown over for a smart and stylish look.

reformation apparel

“It girls” and boss women like Meghan Markle, Rihanna and Karlie Kloss have all been famously spotted in Reformation. This year, the company is projected to exceed $150 million.

Reformation has brick and mortar stores throughout major cities in the US, as well as in London and Toronto. And the shopping bags that your cute clothes come in? They’re made from vegetables and are 100% compostable. 

Here are some of our favorite new styles just in. Who’s up for some guilt-free shopping?

reformation dresses

When we’re paralyzed and can’t decide what to wear in the morning, the answer usually ends up being a shirt dress. This midi-length polka dot Arcadia dress ($248) is classic and youthful and can be easily toughened up with a pair of ankle boots.

We love the vintage feels of the Lee dress ($218) with its feminine puff sleeve detail and sweet floral pattern. For more drama, you can’t go wrong with the high neck and billowy sleeve silhouette of the Valentin dress in a moody floral ($248).

reformation tops

Play up that beautiful collarbone in this smocked square neck Pinto top ($148). Every girl needs a cashmere sweater in a slouchy silhouette. Reformation’s version is made from 70% recycled cashmere ($148)! The painterly effect on this Violet blouse ($128) gives work outfits a bit of an artsy edge.

reformation Bottoms

Wide legged trousers are all the rage this season and we love this paper bag silhouette Greyson Pant ($178) but even better, they’re made from surplus suiting fabric that would have ended up in the landfill. If you’ve been looking to try out some different denim silhouettes, the high rise, cropped leg Fawcett jean ($128) looks super flattering on and saves 494 gallons of water in the process. We don’t know about you but our hunt for the perfect animal print skirt for the Fall might be over. Check out this lightly flared leopard print Bea skirt ($148) which can easily be dressed up or down.

Reformation Outerwear

Cozy coats like this get us excited for the upcoming chill. Made from leftover shearling, the Barlow coat ($328) is luxuriously oversized and chic. The leather biker jacket is a cool downtown girl staple. If you don’t have time to hunt for the perfect vintage one- try out The Deadwood ($328) which has a classic silhouette made from 100% recycled vintage leather. Traditional plaids have made a comeback in the tailored, menswear inspired looks this season. The York coat ($328) is polished perfection.

reformation accessories: the shoes

If you haven’t noticed yet, Reformation is a one-stop shop. Their shoes cover all of a woman’s lifestyle needs. These New Balance x Reformation x90 collaboration sneakers ($100) are made using eco-friendly materials like post-consumer recycled polyester in the linings, laces and labels and shoe inserts made from a combination of EVA foam and BLOOM algae. And the color ways are on point.

This mock croc effect Virginia ankle boot ($268) is a must for all those midi dresses and cropped jeans. These sweet ballet inspired shoes with a block heel ($168) give a little lift while still being comfy.

its time for the reformation

It’s a brave new world out there in sustainable fashion. And who best to champion brands like Reformation than modern boss women? Leading with your brains, ethics and style is always a winning combination.

the best luxury brands for modern women

That’s it – everything you need to know about one of the best luxury brands for modern women. We’ll keep sharing our thoughts on other brands like this in future posts. In the meantime, though, happy shopping!

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Crediting her training as a cultural anthropologist at Wellesley College, Julie has immersed herself in various industries in the last 15 years including fashion design, event planning, fitness and even investigating police misconduct. Julie lives in NYC where she loves trying every ramen and dumpling restaurant with her husband and three children. She finds joy in bold prints, biographies of fierce women, kickboxing and spending way too long finding the perfect polish color to express her mood.

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