Just when we thought we’d already seen the most outrageous knitwear this holiday season has to offer, here comes one with that “Juice”—well, kinda. At the very least, this series of sweaters comes with a seriously conscious twist.
For the third year in a row, U.K.-based socially responsible and environmentally friendly enterprise NotJust Clothing has once again made its pop culturally relevant entries into the sweater game, introducing a limited edition homage to the breakout star of the year with a Lizzo-themed holiday sweater.
Per a release from the brand:
The festive knit pays homage to the bold and beautiful icon of 2019 featuring Lizzo front and center, surrounded by DNA strands, 100 emojis and flutes bookending “Dat Christmas B*tch” stitching. The back of the festive sweater features the famous “Blame it on my Juice” lyric with orange juice boxes below.
“2019 is the year of body positivity,” says NotJust Founder Mike Harding in a statement about the statement-making sweater. “For years, people have been told that certain body shapes are more desirable, or acceptable, than others. Enter Lizzo: loud, proud, and oozing the type of juice that instills confidence in those that have previously felt marginalized, mocked or misrepresented. We’re here to celebrate everything she stands for, and let’s face it this knit looks good as hell!”
But should you indulge, you get more than just a “good as hell,” ethically-produced entry into your local Christmas sweater contest. You also get the opportunity to donate 10 percent of your purchase to a charity of your choice, including Stonewall (LGBTQ advocacy), Save the Children, Equality Now (women’s rights), Remake (anti-fast fashion), Plastic Oceans (environmental), and Kicking Off (refugee support). Since 2017, NotJust has raised more than $35,000 for charity; this collection is their first designed for the American market.
Lizzo’s juice not your jam? There are several other famous names, faces and themes to choose from, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, soccer star Megan Rapinoe, Jonathan Van Ness (Queer Eye), and our other favorite style from the collection, Lil Nas X. (And yes, that’s fringe hanging from the sleeves.)
Most importantly, as the brand tells us, this holiday indulgence is guilt-free:
All sweaters are produced in ethical-working conditions to tackle sweatshop labor. Producing one of these premium quality knits is time-consuming, highly specialized and technically intricate work. Using the latest hi-tech knitting machines, it takes 45 minutes to weave the front and back sections, and the sleeves are cut by hand and the collar attached by carefully feeding each sweater into a separate machine. Each stage of the process is carried out by expert craftspeople in fair working conditions, resulting in sweaters built to last and to be worn again year-after-year.