Vivienne Westwood Red Label: 'Don't Buy this Collection'

By Kenzie Bryant Sep 18, 2012, 6:00pm EDT

Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.

When Vivienne Westwood told Vogue UK, "I don't really care about fashion. My job now gives me an excuse to talk about what I really care about," everyone knew they were in for a treat. And a treat it was. Toting her worthy cause—climate change (she's against it)—she sent a sort of surreal Lady, or Stepford wife consumed by her environment, down the runway, green-face and all.

Strip the message away and you've got pretty prints perfect for a picnic, sporty pants, pink rompers, full skirts, knitted shifts, vertically striped shirt-dresses—everything you need to fit right in at the country club. On the the whole, the clothes are entirely covetable but it's her tongue-and-cheek message that really propelled the show. And that message is, verbatim, "You should wait until you really need something before you buy it. In fact, don't buy this collection." But should you care to look at it anyway, it's after the jump.