eco-chic design

sustainable fashion and jewelry with a mission

NOW Showcase in NYC last month featured some of the newest trends in sustainable fashion and accessories. The location made it easy to get around this year since it was at ICO gallery. Los Angeles based eco-fashion designer Linda Loudermilk had a great quote on a banner leading up to her collection that read “nature is the original punk.” I loved her white shirts for men and women that featured a cool illustration of a water faucet on the back and are part of her water is a human right collection. I had seen the powerful icon on t-shirts, tank tops and scarves before and it’s even available as jewelry in copper, silver or gold. Her website states that more than 1 billion people worldwide do not have access to clean, safe drinking water. That’s why 17% of proceeds of her mission wear collection are donated to clean water initiatives all around the world.

Two other jewelry designers caught my eye as well. I loved Kimberlin Brown’s coral reef pendants that are handcrafted from recycled 18 karat gold. She recently joined SeaWeb’s coral conservation campaign entitled ‘Too Precious To Wear’ that’s dedicated to celebrate the ocean without harming it. And last I was really impressed by Article 22’s hand cast aluminum bracelets made from repurposed bomb metal from the Vietnam War. I guess you can tell by now that I really love design for a cause.

stylish and sustainable activewear

Eco-friendly clothing company Nau had their pop-up shop Here/Nau/NYC in Soho for the last 4-6 weeks and I finally managed to stop by. I’ve always wanted to try their eco-friendly activewear and outdoor clothes since I love the design and sustainability mission of the Portland based company. What I like about their eco-friendly apparel line for men and women is that it’s an urban take on outdoor clothing. It’s like Patagonia meets Prada since their apparel line combines sustainability with style. Some of their pieces are very sleek by design and others almost utilitarian. I was impressed by the quality and softness of their women's down shirts whose shell fabric and lining are crafted from 100% recycled polyester. Their 850-fill goose down fill is naturally renewable and the highly compressible design packs down to a grapefruit size. It’s just another example how Nau combines performance and sustainability with the goal to create long-lasting garments.

All clothes are designed for social, material and aesthetic sustainability and Nau considers the complete life-cycle not only of their products but also of their retail fixtures. Even the pop-up shop Here/Nau/NYC was decorated with reused and repurposed local waste products such as cardboard or recycled metal that were turned into cool product displays. I’ll be sad to see the store go, but I also found out that Paragon Sports is carrying their collection in Manhattan.

underwear with a social conscience

An article in the WSJ caught my eye a few weeks ago since it mentioned that more M.B.A.s are emerging nowadays with a focus towards social entrepreneurship. One of them is Jeff Denby who co-launched the very cool company PACT organic underwear with Jason Kibbey. What got my attention was that they teamed up with Yves Behar whose humanistic designs I admire. And the eco-modern designs for PACT are really fun.

PACT organic underwear has a socially and environmentally responsible supply chain that ranges from fair labor employment to the use of dyes and inks that are low-impact and free of heavy metals. All underwear is made of 95% organic cotton and 5% elastane to make sure the designs keep their shape. What I love the most is the concept that each pattern on the stylish underwear designs matches with a cause. Basically you can choose between 3 fits for men or women, 3 colors or 3 causes. For example you can pick the cause Oceana that protects oceans and marine life and match it with the bikini or the cause Forest Ethics that protects endangered forest around the world and combine it with the boxer. It’s an eco-chic way of giving 10% of your underwear purchase to your favorite charity. PACT’s motto is that “change starts with your underwear” which I can’t argue with since it’s the first thing you put on in the morning. It’s a great reminder to make a pact with yourself to make responsible and sustainable choices on a daily basis.

stylish and sustainable coffee sleeves

Occasionally I still use disposable paper cups for coffee or tea but I make it a point to opt out of the cardboard sleeves to reduce my eco-guilt. Megan Auman’s cozy/cuffs made out of wool felt are a great eco-modern alternative. Not only are they reusable and keep your fingers from getting burnt but they also double as eco-chic bracelets. I’ve raved about the sustainability of wool felt in pillows before and I’m glad to see the eco-friendly material used in a multifunctional application. It’s another way to reduce waste.

The design of the cozy/cuffs is inspired by Megan’s jewelry and sculptural objects that explore floral patterns found in textiles and decorative ironwork. They are laser cut and made of 100% wool felt imported from Germany. All designs are locally manufactured at her studio in Jonestown, Pennsylvania. I love the modern take on floral designs and the contemporary use of colors like light green, turquoise blue or simply grey and black. Not only can you color coordinate the eco-chic accessories to any outfit, but they also make a statement that you care about the environment. The eco-friendly cozy/cuffs are a great conversation starter about wasteful paper consumption. Maybe next time you’ll pick up more than fair-trade organic coffee at your favorite coffee shop.

the perfect mix of solar and style

At the end of summer I usually try to catch every hour of sunlight and the eco-fabulous Noon Solar bags seem like a perfect accessory for that. I discovered them through the book “ecological design” published by TeNeues that’s a great resource for modern eco-friendly designs. In the past I’ve seen many backpacks or laptop bags with integrated solar panels so that I was really intrigued by the Solar Noon bags as a stylish alternative for eco-conscious women. They combine style, technology and eco-friendliness in a contemporary way. The Noon Solar bags look less like a gadget and more like a fashion accessory that happens to make a statement about the environment. The solar panels are strategically placed on the outside to charge a lithium-ion battery pack inside the bag.

My favorite bag is the Cortland made from chrome-free, naturally tanned and dyed, full-grain cowhide leather and sage colored organic hemp/cotton lining interior. It’s not only made of biodegradable materials except the solar panels and hardware but you can easily carry it from summer to fall. I like that the solar panels are on the back so that you can collect solar energy at the park and inside the windows of your office, car or home yet look eco-chic when carrying them. They are a great way to keep your cell phones and iPods powered in sustainable style.

a rebel approach to green design

You have to be a little rebellious to be a part of the new green revolution and Rebel Green certainly gets that with their edgy eco-friendly designs of their reusable bag system. Their retro-inspired graphics created by hip design company Wink are a big departure from traditional green granola designs.

Green Rebel makes packing your own eco-lunch or bringing your own produce bag to the grocery store look cool. Their designs are sophisticated yet edgy and I love that you can get the lunch bags in black as well as pink. But most importantly all their products are made in the US to cut back on unnecessary carbon emissions and are specifically designed to minimize waste. The eco-friendly bags are made from 100 percent certified organic cotton and printed using low impact inks. Green Rebel’s mission is to create a shift in awareness to buy locally but think globally. The company donates a percentage of their sales to clean water initiatives and the fight against hunger to such organizations like Charity Water, Great Lakes Water Institute and Growing Power. Their apparel line appeals to small and big green rebels alike as with their eco-friendly bibs. It makes it so much easier to get your eco-kids to eat their green veggies if they can feel rebellious while eating something that’s actually good for them.

a green gift that keeps giving

Why not wrap your gift for mother’s day this year in one of these colorful and reusable Baby Baggu bags to save paper? They come in more colors than I knew even existed like rhubarb, electric purple or deep ocean. It won’t be hard to pick one of over 40 colors to either match your present or mom’s wardrobe. Or your own if you prefer.

Baggu bags are made from ripstop nylon, a super durable long lasting fabric and come in 3 different sizes. They are designed to minimize material waste and every Baggu comes in a pouch made from scrap fabric. Their website claims that you can replace 300 to 700 disposable bags throughout the year by reusing a Baggu. This makes sense if you think about all the places where you would normally leave with a plastic or paper bag in your hands like drug stores, grocery stores or bookstores. Since Baggu is a stylish alternative and easy to keep in your bag or glove box it should be a no-brainer to keep plastic bags out of landfills. This way you’ll be giving a gift to your mom and mother earth at the same time. I’ve to admit I’m a little late with my post this year and the standard size Mom Baggu is only available in black or white at this point since they are a limited edition. The good news is that either one will go with any color outfit that your mom might have.

towards a sustainable fashion world

Still new to the world of eco fashion I checked out the green room at the Designers & Agents show here in New York yesterday. The green room showcases new emerging trends and designers in sustainable fashion and furniture design. Some of the eco-chic highlights were the feminine and fair-trade clothes by anardo & skyum, the utilitarian PAPER WEAR collection by house-wear, the stylish lingerie by T-Luxe and the future-forward designs by French design company Ambrym. I was wondering though how some designs were more eco-friendly than others and how the fashion industry thrives to regulate this? The food and more recently beauty industry for example have the USDA certification process.

That’s why I was really glad to discover the stylish organic pieces by Kate Organic that are SKAL certified. SKAL tests and verifies international organic farming standards and makes sure that no pesticides or herbicides are used. Kate’s chic designs feel super soft and make sustainable fashion look effortless through its elegant ease. I especially love her Tokyo jumper made out of organic cotton fine twill that has two cute pockets or the Georgia cotton knit organic cotton blouse. Or her chic dresses made out of soy cotton like her Padme dress or the Cory Reversible dress. Her designs are stylish yet timeless which means you can wear them for many years to come. To me this is the ultimate definition of sustainability. Kate Organic also plants a tree through Trees for the Future for every garment sold.

sustainable fashion style

Thanks to Christie Matheson’s book “green chic” for introducing me to her sustainable fashion obsession Stewart + Brown. It has been easy for me to go green in many aspects of my life, but fashion was always my biggest hurdle. Even that I love EDUN or Loomstate I was always looking for something a little bit more stylish.

The ethical fashion company Stewart + Brown was founded by the husband and wife team Karen Stewart and Howard Brown in 2002. Once you’re on their website make sure to check out their sketchbooks since they are as inspiring as their fashion. It’s no surprise that Karen is a trained painter and Howard has a background as a graphic artist. A lot of their eco-fabulous designs use organic cotton that is free from pesticides, herbicides and other cancer causing toxins. Other green fabrics include tencel gauze, hemp silk charmeuse, hemp jersey and linen. I especially love their armoire dress and patio dress for spring that are made with tencel gauze and trimmed with 100% organic cotton lace. The tencel used is a renewable and biodegradable green fabric harvested from managed forests to avoid deforestation. It’s processed within a closed loop system to avoid any unnecessary impact on the environment. Stewart + Brown is a member of 1% for the Planet and just recently won treehugger’s best casual brand for women award in the green fashion and beauty category. Congratulations!

have a green Valentine’s Day

If you love the earth, but hate Valentine’s Day since it’s a commercial invention and creates more consumer waste you might want to check out the heart skull reusable tote bag by Dogeared. It’s one of multiple designs within the canvas series and perfect for any love/hate relationship with its hot pink and orange colors. All canvas bags are made of natural cotton canvas. They let you carry groceries while spreading words of love or wisdom like  “I might like you better if you recycled”.

Dogeared is based in Los Angeles and creates handcrafted jewels and gifts with an increasing selection for eco-friendly demand. Their website states that each canvas bag sold saves 1,000 plastic bags in its lifetime and that as of today 2,124,000 plastic bags have been saved. So please stop carrying plastic bags and start declaring your love to mother earth this upcoming Valentine’s Day by using reusable shopping bags. And you can always reuse the bag and maybe regift it in case you have a change of heart.