Essential elements

Every year, we spend billions on blue jeans, coats, prom dresses, sport shirts and other garments that clothe us, comfort us, warm us and define us. Do we ask about the source of these materials? Not so much.

But there's a burgeoning movement among consumers and producers to consider sustainability and -- dare we say it? -- localism.

So in the Image section, meet the sheep and goats of Namaste Farms in Temecula, read about artists who transform castaway material into jewelry, debate the pros and cons of cotton and alternative fabrics and ponder the possibilities of buying closer to home.  

--Alice Short

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Photo: Thread, a showcase for mostly local designers, brought shoppers and buyers to the L.A. Garment District last weekend. Credit: Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times.