About Us | Awareness Attire – Apparel Rooted in Resilience
You don't have to explain your storm to wear it!
If you've ever smiled through a bad day, laughed off something that was actually breaking you, or answered "fine" when you were anything but — this brand exists because of you.
We know what it feels like to carry something heavy that no one can see. To fight battles that don't look like battles from the outside. To wonder, quietly, if it's always going to feel this hard
You are not alone in that. Not even close.
Awareness Attire was built for people who get it — and for those who want to help others feel less alone too.
Our Story
We're Brett and Sara. We started Awareness Attire because we were living it.
Both of us have spent years navigating depression and anxiety — some days managing it well, some days not at all. For a long time, we felt like we had to keep that tucked away. Like showing it would be too much, or too uncomfortable, or would make people around us uneasy.
We were tired of hiding it.
We wanted something we could wear that said what we couldn't always say out loud — something that could start a conversation, or at least let another struggling person know they weren't invisible.
For Brett, there was also a deeper well of grief to draw from. Losing his father reshaped everything. That kind of loss doesn't leave you. It changes what you care about, what you create, and how urgently you want your life to mean something. It's part of why the brand feels the way it does — because it was forged in real pain, not just an idea.
We didn't start Awareness Attire to build a clothing company. We started it because we needed it to exist.
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When we were thinking about what would represent this brand, a phoenix kept coming back to us.
Not because it's a feel-good symbol — but because it's an honest one.
A phoenix doesn't avoid the fire. It burns. It falls apart completely. And then, from the ashes, it rises again.
That felt true. Not toxic-positivity true — actually true, for people who've been through real things.
Ryse is our mascot, trademarked, and wears a green mental health ribbon. Green because it's the color of the mental health awareness movement. A ribbon because it represents the quiet courage of everyone who's carried something others couldn't see and kept going anyway.
When you see Ryse on our clothing, that's what it means: you've been through the fire, and you're still here.
What We Stand For
We believe mental health struggles deserve the same honesty and visibility as any other part of being human.
We believe the stigma that keeps people silent is a real thing — and that every time someone wears their story instead of hiding it, that stigma gets a little smaller.
We design apparel that says what people carry but rarely say. "Not Unmotivated, Just Overwhelmed." "Chemically Controlled for Social Acceptance." "Every Storm Has a Story." These aren't just phrases on a shirt. They're things real people feel. When someone else sees that message on a stranger across the room and thinks that's me — something shifts.
We've heard from customers who were stopped in public because of their shirt. A stranger said, "I needed to see that today." That is what this is about.
We don't do toxic positivity. We don't do empty encouragement. We do honesty, warmth, and the kind of community that forms when people stop pretending everything is fine.
What We Give Back
Mental health advocacy doesn't stop at the clothing.
We donate 10% of our monthly revenue to mental health organizations — with a particular focus on veteran-focused causes. We've donated $1,500 to date, and that number grows every month alongside this community.
Veterans face some of the heaviest and least-acknowledged mental health burdens of any group. They deserve more than a ribbon on a lapel once a year. They deserve consistent, funded support — and they deserve to feel like their community sees them.
We set our own criteria for who we give to. That means we research, we vet, and we direct funding to organizations doing real work — not just the ones with the biggest billboards.
When you buy from Awareness Attire, you're part of that giving.
Who This Is For
This brand is for anyone who has ever struggled with anxiety, depression, PTSD, grief, trauma, or the particular exhaustion of a mind that won't quiet down.
It's for people living with FND and other invisible illnesses who are tired of having to explain themselves. It's for veterans carrying wounds that aren't visible. It's for caregivers who give everything to someone else's storm. It's for people who've lost someone and are still figuring out how to carry that.
It's also for the people who love those people — the ones who want to show up and just don't always know how.
You don't need to have it all figured out to belong here.
"Every Storm Has a Story" isn't a slogan we chose because it sounds good. It's a truth we believe about every single person who finds their way to this brand. Your storm is real. Your story matters. And wearing it — out loud, on your body — is an act of quiet courage.
Find Something That Fits Your Story
Take a look at our collections. Whether you're drawn to the mental health line, the veteran collection, the FND awareness pieces, or Ryse the Phoenix — there's something here designed with you in mind.
If something resonates, that's not an accident. We made it for you