Garment Goddess is on a mission to help you love your clothes

LAURA de Barra is back with another book.

First, the Cork woman helped us take control of our homes with her best-selling book, Gaff Goddess. Then, she showed us how to create a space we love in Decor Galore. Now, she is turning her attention to our wardrobes with Garment Goddess.

The London-based property portfolio developer gained a huge following on social media thanks to her practical and chic SHE-IY tips on how to look after your home. After the release of her first two books, Laura noticed that questions about caring for clothing kept cropping up.

“It felt like a natural next step for me, as I was always being asked about laundry and the construction of quality clothing due to my background in fashion,” she said.

Laura, who grew up in Douglas, is clear that this isn’t just another book dishing out style advice.

“I think we have a lot of fashion advice shoved down our necks, but little of it has to do with the clothes. It’s all about our bodies or achieving a micro trend aesthetic.”

In Garment Goddess, Laura has created a bible on how to buy, care for, and increase the lifespan of your clothing. The book is divided into three sections: Buying and Trying, Wear and Care, and Repair and A Spare. For Laura, it was important to cover all these areas.

“I wanted to cover the lifetime of a garment because it makes sure they last longer, but also encourages people to remember that we have to deal with the buying as well as the disposing accordingly.”

Long before she entered the world of home repairs, Laura developed a passion for sewing and clothing.

“My grandmother taught me to sew and the basics of working with patterns,” she says.

There’s such fond memories of sitting at her dining table learning her ways. I still use her shears when I make anything now, which I always think brings me some luck and reminds me to measure twice and cut once!

Laura’s fashion career began in Cork College of Commerce, followed by Edinburgh College of Art. She worked as a designer for a number of brands, and eventually for a high street supplier where she became Head of Menswear.

“It was such a fun time to be in fashion as it was right before the fast fashion wave hit,” says Laura. “However, once that did, I was out of there.”

She has seen how the rise in demand for cheaper, faster clothing has affected the quality of garments.

“Fast fashion has sadly meant that a lot of garments tick the aesthetic box, but will not be fit for purpose,” she says.

The book aims to equip us with the knowledge to make better choices when we shop. One of the areas Laura covers is how to examine garment quality and fabric composition.

“What a garment is made of and how it is constructed will determine how long it will last,” Laura explains.

Understanding fabrics and quality will help people to decide if the garment is right for them and worth the money.

Laura acknowledges that shopping for clothes can be tricky, and that the poor quality of fast fashion garments makes it even harder.

“Unfortunately, clothing is another way for people to be shamed for not fitting ‘ideal’ shapes, sizes and budgets,” she says. “It’s hard enough mentally for most people, but now that clothing is so badly made, there’s another layer to it.”

I ask Laura what she would say to someone who finds the prospect of updating their wardrobe daunting or overwhelming. Her advice is to start with what you already have.

“Divide your wardrobe into sections of use, e.g. clothes for work, working out, having a martini, casual, etc. Then divide those into items, e.g. work trousers, work tops and so on,” she says. “It will start to become really obvious where you are light on or lacking certain items or areas. This reduces aimless shopping and creates a list of what you actually may or may not need.”

She also recommends getting to know what you love in garments.

“Pick out the items you really, really enjoy wearing. Even if it’s a tracksuit you wear lounging round. You’re the expert here, assess why you like it. Is it the fabric, fit, or that it matches a lot, etc? Keep these standards when buying anything new.”

If sizing or budget is an issue, Laura recommends shopping on second-hand sites.

Look at places like eBay and Etsy. They are a treasure trove.

Looking to the future, although property is her focus, Laura’s not ready to close the book on fashion just yet.

“I’m working on some really fun projects across the usual property and interior work here in London,” she says.

“But since Garment Goddess has come out, it has led me to some really interesting sustainable fashion projects. It’s been really lovely falling back into it again!”

Garment Goddess is published by Gill Books.

Garment Goddess is on a mission to help you love your clothe