Jill Danyelle pioneered eco-fashion blogging with her FiftyRx3 project. Her favorite outfit is a combination of family heirlooms, designer duds and activewear.

Six years ago, Jill Danyelle began a year-long project, documenting every outfit she wore on the blog FiftyRx3. As indicated by the name of the project, her goal was to make sure that 50% of her outfits were made up of the three Rs of sustainability: Reused, Reduced or Recycled. Now, as everyone and their mother (sometimes, quite literally) has a daily outfit blog this may not seem like anything unique, but at the time it was a groundbreaking experiment.

During the FiftyRx3 project, Danyelle also designed clothing. Among the projects that garnered the most attention was the 30-minute dress — sewn from an old T-shirt during a lunch break — and the umbrella dress — made from broken umbrellas gathered on the streets of NYC after a major rainstorm. A master of many trades, Danyelle now runs a successful business doing personal style and interiors. Her own NYC pad was recently featured on Design*Sponge.

During the time I have known Jill, I have always taken great pleasure in seeing her come up with creative outfits, usually put together from thrifted items that she often customizes using scissors and simple stitching. Her favorite outfit is an eclectic combination of family heirlooms, designer duds and activewear — a perfect reflection of the Downtown/Upstate girl that she is.

“My Mexican silver bracelet is a favorite piece. It was the first piece of jewelry that my father gave my mother. I love it for sentimental reasons, but it also happens to be very much my style. I often wear it with one of these beaded necklaces that I have had forever. The rings are lapis and turquoise that I bought myself in Mexico,” says Danyelle. “It seems such a NYC cliché to be dressed in all black, but didn’t someone say ‘Black always goes with black’? I admit this is an easy roll-out-of-bed go to outfit, but it is also comprised of some of my favorite things and very much represents my wardrobe philosophy. I tend to pull from many places and price points.”

“The leather jacket was purchased at a vintage shop in Lawrence, Kansas. I went to university there and still have good friends who live there. Layered underneath is a black cotton tank that was gifted to me from John Patrick from his ORGANIC line and an asymmetrical cashmere sweater from Maria Cornejo, who is one of my favorite designers. The leggings are actually a Patagonia base layer, so I am ready to climb a mountain or some subway stairs. The Prada boots are in heavy rotation as they are comfortable and work with everything. Finally, there is a navy cotton scarf in there that I love. It pinch hits as a wrap and in the summer months doubles as my towel and sarong at the beach.”

What we love about Jill’s style is that it’s a unique mix of old and new, high and low, eco and non-eco. She makes each piece her own by unexpectedly mixing it with the other treasures in her closet. That, is what personal style is all about.

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