How Are You Going To Carry All Those books? An Eco Backpack Review
By Jillian Polaski
Filed Under Conscious Commerce, News & Reviews | 2 Comments
It’s that time of year again. Days are shortening, shadows are lengthening, and the air is cooling. As fall once again creeps silently onto the scene, people of all ages are getting preped to head back to school. Companies still give us little opportunity to be environmentally responsible with our choices in pens, highlighters or binders, and the debate over using post-consumer recycled paper or taking notes on your laptop remains heated. One thing that we can choose to be responsible with this year is what we stash and transport all of our heavy books in: our backpack. Continue reading How Are You Going To Carry All Those books? An Eco Backpack Review…
Posted on August 25, 2008 |
On The Flip Side: An Eco Review Of A Hot Summer Shoe
By Jillian Polaski
Filed Under Conscious Commerce | 1 Comment
Let’s focus for a moment on our feet. It’s summer; a time when our toes can finally be set free without fear of frost-bite, yet since humans are not evolved enough to bear-it-all without protecting our precious peds, we seem to have devised a solution: the ultimate foot wear for the bohemian, the hazardous when running too fast, fun for the sprinkler but not mowing the lawn, sole that embodies the definition of laid-back style: flip flop sandal.
Like everything else in my life, lately I’ve been wondering how eco-friendly my favorite style of shoe actually is. We have evidence that the Ancient Egyptians were sporting flip flops way back in 4,000 BC, and you can bet that the woven papyrus and palm leaves they were made of were not doing any damage to the natural environment. On an equally sustainable parallel, the Masai in Africa traditionally made sandals out of rawhide, rice straw was used in China and Japan, the leaves of the sisal plant in South America, and the indigenous peoples of Mexico sourced fibers from the yucca plant. So, understandably, when I see a pair in the store, I can’t help but think of how ethically sourced the rubber is, or what young hands may have applied the toxic glue responsible for holding the plastic thong to the plastic platform.
I was on a mission: choose three eco-conscious brands and put them to the ultimate test: can a flip-flop be comfortable, responsibly made and environmentally conscious? Let’s see…
Continue reading On The Flip Side: An Eco Review Of A Hot Summer Shoe…
Posted on August 8, 2008 |
Smokin’ Threads: Hemp Makes Fashion Sense
By Jenn Breckenridge
Filed Under Sustainable Style | Leave a Comment
Due to numerous stigmas surrounding the herb marijuana, hemp fabric has been a tough sell in the fashion market until just recently. Though “industrial hemp” is legal to use in the US, growing it is not. Hemp fabric is generally imported to the US by China, Hungary, Thailand, Romania and Chile. The farming of hemp requires no pesticides or herbicides, requires little water, and actually helps clear soil of toxins by a process called “phytoremediation,” making it far superior to cotton production. As sustainability struts to the forefront of fashion, designers have started taking note of this fiber, once thought of as the type of material found in flour sacks, not Sak’s Fifth Avenue.
During the California Gold Rush of the 1850’s, this extremely durable fabric was used for the very first pair of jeans by Levi Strauss. Even with all the cultivation challenges, hemp still makes its way into plenty of American closets today. Simple, Adidas, and New Balance are using this strong, biodegradable material for their super fly sneaker styles. Eco fashion lines like Habitude and Mountains Of The Moon have sexy, sophisticated dresses and tops of hemp and silk blends. Recent collections by fashion giants Armani and Dolce & Gabbana have featured fiercely taylored hemp suits. Green bag designers Helen E. Riegle and GreenOne utilize this fabric for their handbags and totes, and emerging brands like Hoodlamb are using uber warm hemp-based fake fur in their urban wear.
Continue reading Smokin’ Threads: Hemp Makes Fashion Sense at In The Loop…
Posted on June 30, 2008 |
Great Green Father’s Day Gifts
By Jenn Breckenridge
Filed Under Green Living, Sustainable Style | Leave a Comment
Father’s Day 2008 is indeed upon us. Yes, again. Why not get your Dad something this year that’s better for the planet than say, another set of golf tees or that three-dimensional trout plaque that your Mom will make him hang in the garage anyway? (Disclaimer: An eco-friendly Father’s Day gift is a simply a suggestion and absolutely not intended to offend any child who’s purchased that trout plaque for Father’s Day in the past or plans to in the near future.) Anywho, here are the top eco gifts for Dad from eConscious Market… Continue reading Great Green Father’s Day Gifts…
Posted on June 10, 2008 |
The Ultimate Eco Laptop Bag
By Jenn Breckenridge
Filed Under Sustainable Style | 1 Comment
This chic recycled wool felt laptop bag by Carga is biodegradable, highly durable, and a slammin’ choice for the meetings that matter. These fairly traded bags are designed by Mauro Bianucci and handmade in his native Argentina. They can be found at various shops around the world or online at Refinery 29. Continue reading The Ultimate Eco Laptop Bag…
Posted on June 8, 2008 |
Conscious Living TV: Spring 2008 Style File
By Jenn Breckenridge
Filed Under Sustainable Style, eCo TV | Leave a Comment
Design-savvy diva Bianca Alexander takes you on a tour of eco-fashion for Spring 2008 with Conscious Living TV. They capture both front and backstage footage from LA Fashion Week, interview Green Girls Productions, and give you a thorough tour of the chiccest eco boutique in Los Angeles, Avita Co-op.
Posted on April 25, 2008 |
Fashion Conscious
By Pippa Sorley
Filed Under Sustainable Style | Leave a Comment
I admit it. I’m a sucker when it comes to fashion. I pride myself on biking to work, buying organic food, and voting with my dollar whenever possible…but I love clothes. So what’s an eco-conscious girl to do? Most conventional retailers like Gap or Banana Republic are agonizingly limited in their eco-friendly choices. Who knows how many pounds of pesticides were used to make this cotton T-shirt or how little that Vietnamese worker was paid to sew that incredible skirt.
Until recently, when the words “eco-friendly” and “fashion” were used in the same sentence, it would conjure up images of frumpy frocks made out of hemp, or Birkenstock-clad festival goers. Environmentally and socially responsible clothes – that were also fashionable - were hard to come by, and came in limited styles, sizes and fabrics.
Today, supply has caught up with demand, and hip, urban, funky clothes – that are also consciously made – are more accessible than ever before. Businesses such as Nike and Patagonia have learned that their customers really do care about the social conditions of their manufacturing facilities, or the environmental effects of their operation. According to the LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) Report on sustainable economy, one-third of U.S. consumers are willing to pay 20% more for environmentally or socially responsible products. That translates to a $226.8 billion market worldwide.
This “Conscious Consumer” market segment is driving a new economic paradigm. Mainstream, global corporations are starting to realize that unless they adopt a triple bottom line philosophy of economic, social, and environmental sustainability, they may lose their ‘loyal’ customer base. Even Walmart – the global behemoth we love to hate – has jumped on the bandwagon by preserving an acre of wildlife habitat for every developed acre of their footprint.
But I digress. Back to the most important issue at hand - fashion. Here’s a quick list of hip, functional, trend-setting clothes that will make you look fabulous while you’re “walking your talk.”
Same Underneath is an uber cool fashion company that specializes in hip clothing made out of bamboo, wool, hemp, organic cotton and recycled polyester. All of their fabrications are composed of sustainable and/or organic blends. The company’s mission is to “change the way people look at each other,” and, in line with their name, their objective is to “unite those who don’t judge others by religion, race, hobbies, color, creed, and/or sex.”
When it comes to seeding the growth in the supply and variety of sustainable fabrics, Patagonia is the true pioneer. Back when organic cotton was unfathomably expensive, the company made a bold decision: to convert their entire sportswear line to 100% organically grown cotton. Within three years, Beneficial T’s became one of the biggest users of organic cotton in the United States. They now convert roughly 500,000 pounds of organic cotton into T-shirts, tote bags and hats each year. They were also the first outdoor clothing manufacturer to use fleece made from post consumer recycled plastic soda bottles, saving some 86 million soda bottles from the trash heap.
Everybody loves funk. Thanks to Funk Divine, we can now buy hemp tees and jumpsuits that are funky, retro and ‘sweatshop-free.’ The company’s mission is clear: to use only the finest hemp and organic cotton fabrics to be found. The limited edition line evokes a modern day Egyptian glamour, the scarab logo representing ‘life’.
Sadly, Made In The USA and sweatshop-free garments are few and far between; over 93% of clothing in America is made in foreign countries. Companies like Funk Divine are breaking this paradigm. With more than a hundred boutique clothing designers based in the U.S., the awakening of the American-made fashion movement is poised for success.
Co-designed by U2 frontman Bono’s wife, Ali Hewson, and fashion designer Rogan Gregory, Edun (“nude” spelled backwards) is founded on four respects: respect for what your clothes are made of, respect for who is making them, respect for where they are made, and respect for the people who are going to put them on. The result is a fabulous, funky new line of apparel made in developing countries with environmentally friendly materials.
Posted on April 15, 2008 |
-
Buy eCo Products
