Lovely to see my new friends Jennine, founder of The Coveted and IFB, and Joslin, owner of EcoCitizen, featured in FASHIONmeGREEN’s San Francisco Project! In the video, Jennine mentions the influence that style bloggers can have in sharing great eco fashion with their audiences, and local designers (The Podolls, Feral Childe, Kayu and Juleselin) weigh in on the benefits of eco fashion. This video has [...]
If you have a minute right now, I would really appreciate your help. Please sign in and vote for my panel at South by Southwest Interactive in Austin next year! » Empowering Conscientious Consumers: Take the Power Back I’ll discuss case studies of brands/concepts that educate and empower responsible consumers through the web, along with: [...]
How crazy is it that current FDA laws concerning personal care products haven’t changed since 1938? Apparently cosmetics companies aren’t required to meet any standards or regulations with their products. Crazy. But there’s good news! Annie Leonard from The Story of Stuff has narrated this excellent video to educate us about what the heck we’re [...]
“It is shameful that we allow the people who make our clothes to live in extreme poverty.” My friend Mary at Social Alterations (in the pic above) is running a really inspired campaign right now that I am excited to help support. The background: As you’ve probably heard, Bangladeshi garment workers have been on strike [...]
After helping announce the launch of Bright Young Things earlier this month, I got to catch up with designer Eliza Starbuck for a quick email interview about how her fashion label is doing things its own way. FLP: I read on your blog that at the time you met Sheena of The Uniform Project, you [...]
Lalesso’s Spring Summer 2010 collection is as sweet as it is socially friendly. And with code “fashion loves people,” you can get 15% off in the Lalesso online store from now through June 30! In addition to dresses, this summer’s styles include two jumpers, two bikinis and even ballet flats. (The Mbari Playsuit, above, is [...]
Remember The Uniform Project? To raise money and awareness for the Akanksha Foundation, Sheena Matheiken wore the same little black dress every day for 365 days, styled as creatively as imaginable and photographed daily. Today, the designer of that little black dress is doing something truly disruptive in the fashion industry: Eliza Starbuck is releasing her [...]
More shoes made in Africa! EXTRASEED‘s classic flats are handmade in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The uppers are made from factory waste, either leather or vegan scrap fabric. And the soles are made of recycled rubber from car tires! The pairs range from $38-$55, depending on materials. Take that, Payless. Shop EXTRASEED on Etsy!
This post is the first in a series I’m writing on for-benefit companies — for-profit models that inherently benefit social causes — for the men’s ethical fashion site Commerce with a Conscience, where my awesome Internet-friend Brad creates daily features as well as the most well-curated product guide for conscientious men’s style out there. Launched [...]
First things first: It is remarkable and amazing that TOMS Classics have become trendy not for their style, but for their cause. (I’m a happy owner myself, but we can all agree they’re a bit funny looking, right?) But to add a heel and a peep-toe to that basic style? Not too shabby! I love the [...]
I recently wrote an article for KCFreePress.com about eco fashion in Kansas City, spotlighting three fabulous Kansas City brands. Today, meet Sseko Designs. In the past year, Sseko Designs founder Liz Bohannon has sold more than a thousand pairs of sandals to customers around the world. The sandals are transformative, meaning that they can be [...]
Would you believe that each of these pairs of glasses are only $95? Yes, with prescription lenses included! Warby Parker is seriously shaking up the world of awesome eyewear with a business model that benefits pretty much everyone. They sell directly to consumers, avoiding the markups and middlemen of a wholesale model, which allows them to [...]
So much print-on-print! It’s perfect. Suno, which launched two years ago with the impetus of bolstering Kenya’s manufacturing industry (and which I first wrote about here), seems to have made an especially big splash at NYFW with its newest collection. Style.com wrote, “Of course, along with a major buzz comes major pressure—but Suno’s confident and spirited [...]
Hold the presses! Bamboo rayons aren’t a green fabric? Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission officially started its campaign to stop well-meaning retailers from misleading consumers about bamboo’s perceived eco-friendly qualities. From the FTC consumer alert: Bamboo stands out for its ability to grow quickly with little or no need for pesticides, and it [...]
I just (finally) watched Food, Inc. for the first time. Besides providing a continued education on where our food comes from, it reminded me of what a moral obligation I believe we all have to be good and thoughtful stewards of the things we consume. If you haven’t seen this film yet, do! I watched [...]
Over at Storenvy, we’ve spent the last 10 days or so working on a t-shirt design collaboration to benefit earthquake relief in Haiti. Designers from the community donated designs, and the community voted on their favorites. Based on all the support we got in the voting, we decided to print nine tee designs that are [...]
Earlier this month I came across a blog post from Wendy Brandes Jewelry that gives an informative glimpse into the costs of manufacturing, namely in the U.S. versus overseas. She describes the “classic small business conundrum,” as she calls it. First, why she can’t offer inexpensive jewelry: I would love to do inexpensive jewelry for [...]
I just learned via Facebook that my friend Natasha was in Haiti when the earthquake hit. Hearing about the country’s heart-wrenching news has been sickeningly sad, but it wasn’t until I heard about Tasha being there that it really felt heavy. Thankfully, I hear she is fine. But I am humbled. Jon and I donated today [...]
This was kind of a big week for ethical fashion news. The New York Times outed H&M for intentionally destroying and discarding unsold merchandise at a New York store, to which the brand responded with a statement saying they would make sure it wouldn’t happen again. And amidst it all, H&M launched a spring line [...]
I’ve written in the past about Nike’s Considered Design initiative, which I think is one of the most brilliant out there. This weekend, the brand introduced its newest Considered Design collection, N7, which benefits Native American youth sports. Read more about the shoes’ particulars at GreenBiz.com and Reuters. If you haven’t heard about Nike’s green [...]