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 made me reflect on the overall “green culture” in San Francisco — it’s more obvious and ingrained than any place I’ve ever been. Here are five things I love about it, as illustrated (loosely) by Jennine’s photoshoot styled by EcoCitizen.

1. Curbside Composting

The fact that there is curbside composting makes makes the separation of compostables + recyclables + garbage a given, whether at home or at a coffee shop or restaurant. It makes our weekly throw-aways next to nothing.

2. Conservationism

I love the signs throughout the city’s bathrooms that sweetly remind you, ”paper towels come from trees, so please use only what you need.”

3. No Styro

Many (if not most) coffee shops and restaurants use plant-based plastics for their to-go cups, and I don’t think I’ve seen a single piece of styrofoam in the city.

4. No Car Needed

Plus of course it is so easy to live here without a car, with fabulous public transit, walkability and bikeability.

5. Living Simply

And, as perhaps my most pleasant surprise, I love the perspective it has given me on living simply. In the Midwest we seem to focus so much on having things, which seems to be because we can. Here, people live apartment-to-apartment and don’t have basements and garages to fill to the gills.

People keep what is sentimental and beautiful and necessary, and if it’s not one of the above — why buy it in the first place?

Click here for product info. Each of the above pieces available at EcoCitizen.

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:

• Buster Benson, creator of the iPhone app Locavore, helping you identify seasonal produce
• Brent Schulkin, founder of Carrotmob and Virgance, organizing win-win situations for buyers and sellers

The panel is up for public voting now, though final cuts will be made by SXSW execs, so your vote could really help me out. And I hear that they really like affirming comments… do I ask too much?!

And while you’re at it, also check out my husband Jon’s panel about social shopping and vote for it if you like. He’ll talk about our work on Storenvy, where we provide free online stores for indie business owners.

Voting ends Friday, so click fast. I really appreciate it. Thanks everyone!

Image cropped from The Broken Family Band album artwork.

Did you miss me? About a week ago Jon and I took a short vacation to Disneyland! But it’s taken me a while to get the wind back in my sails since we got back. It’s just that time of year, I guess, for vacations and transitions and the like.

Last week was my first time visiting Disney-anything. And guess what, I loved it! Disneyland wasn’t my idea, but Jon and enough friends persuaded me of the magic I was missing out on that I eventually came around. And there was something extra-special about visiting the very spot of Walt’s original vision for making Disney a destination — we geeked out on Disneyland history the entire time, devouring Wikipedia pages on our iPhones while we waited in line for rides.

My favorite stops at the park were the Tiki Room, a campy animatronic song-and-dance show that originated in 1963 (the truest in-person performance I’ll ever see from that era!), and Magical, the nightly fireworks show. Such imagination, and quality! I just loved it. Have you guys been? What were your favorite parts?

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 putting on our bodies, and on the very day it was released (July 22), the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010 was introduced in Congress.

To take action and encourage your representatives to support the act, visit SafeCosmetics.org.

Token quote from the 8-minute video: ”Even babies are being born pre-polluted.” Blarg.

Read more at SafeCosmetics.org, a sponsor of this video, and at GreenBiz.com.

“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 because their wages are below the global standard for a living wage — the UN defines extreme poverty as individuals living on less than a dollar a day, and current minimum wages in Bangladesh are below that — and they’re making news now as local police are becoming violent against the protesting workers.

Social Alterations is now collecting images like the one above from people like you and me to use as a petition:

“The photos will be packaged into a slide show with a powerful message which, along with a letter of solidarity, will be e-mailed to targeted organizations such as the International Labour Organization (ILO) office in Dhaka, Bangladesh; the ILO’s ‘Decent Work for All’ Campaign; the Delegation of the European Commission to Bangladesh, and the Bangladeshi Ministry of Labour and Employment.” Plus others, as their research continues.

To join in, take your own photo and post it to Flickr tagged with #SABangladeshProject, or post it to Social Alterations’s Facebook wall. See them all in this Flickr set.

Nadira at Social Alterations published an in-depth overview today of the situation in Bangladesh, which you should definitely check out if you’re interested: Bangladesh// The Details.

Thank you, Social Alterations, for providing a platform for us to share our voices!

Because I don’t have much of a shopping budget lately, I’m taking in more “inspiration” than “new things.” Right now I’m so inspired by these classic Saint James sailor shirts.

I’ve admired this shirt style since it came out at American Apparel earlier this year — until I figured out that AA was just copying a classic! (I hate design stealing.) Saint James has been producing these garments in France since 1889, and that made me love it even more.

Gravel & Gold, my favorite SF boutique so far, says on their website listing, “These are the true-blue heavyweight sailor shirts that last forever. Truly timeless, and good for all time. So do your mom or dad a favor — just buy your own so that you don’t have to steal theirs. They look best oversize, with the sleeves rolled up.”

How good would one of these look with dark denim jeans, rolled to the ankle, and brown oxfords? The epitome of classic, yet so fresh.

Prices are around $100 for the heavyweight, which is woven tightly to block the wind — which was originally good for sailors and is now good for a San Francisco June.

You should support Gravel & Gold buy getting yours here, or you can view all styles on the Saint James website.

Images via Lark. Styles vary slightly: 1 & 4 are Meridien, 2 is Caravelle and 3 is Naval.

FLP: I read on your blog that at the time you met Sheena of The Uniform Project, you were in the process of walking away from the fashion industry altogether, separating yourself from the mass consumer culture it fuels. But, you’ve now found a way to do something within the industry that can change that culture. (Amen!) Have you seen any other examples that buck the consumer-culture trend, or at least come close?

Eliza: There’s a lot of great designers out there that are working from the production end to change the industry, which is encouraging to see. But it’s rare to find a brand that is presenting the shift from the consumer’s point of view in an accessible and appealing way. I think that dothegreenthing.com is probably the best example of it. They take the idea of glossy advertising and turn it on its head with comical commentary to discourage consumer behavior. I find them very inspiring.

FLP: Even with all the interest sparked by The Uniform Project, I know you were hesitant to take on commercial production for your dress design. So how did you go about it? Tell us about where and how the dress is produced, and how you know it’s done ethically.

Eliza: I looked into producing it with ethical factories in China, India, and finally New York. But I really couldn’t go to see the factories overseas so there was no comfort level there. And it seemed wasteful to ship things around the world when there’s a perfectly good garment industry in New York. So I decided to keep it here for a number of reasons. First of all, I can visit the factory as often as I like — and I can do it unannounced, which helps to assure me that they’re following all the regulatory standards. When I do visit, it’s always a clean, well-lit environment with big windows and large posters on the front door stating the worker’s rights.

Also, developing one item at a time — and not sampling hundreds of items for a collection — is another way I avoid waste during the development process. Because I tend to know exactly what I want, I don’t generally need to try sampling one thing in 15 colors or 10 different fabrics before I find the right thing, which is how many industry giants go about development. And of course producing the items when the customers order them really helps to avoid overproduction.

FLP: Since you and Bright Young Things are releasing a “line” of only one garment, how do you plan to keep it fresh for shoppers and media who are used to “new, new, new”?

Eliza: The dress will evolve in an organic manner. I like to listen to the customers to hear what they like and what they wish was different. I also plan on making new editions with variations on the dress in updated fabrics and silhouettes as I collaborate with different organizations and stores. Over time I plan on adding other core basics that are as versatile as the dress. But the original dress will always be present in one form or other, because I don’t believe that well-designed and well-made clothes really go out of style. If they’re season-less then they can continue to live in your closet year round. (P.S. I have one word for you, WEARATHON : )))

FLP: What is artistically inspiring you lately? In fashion, music, art, film, etc.

Eliza: People inspire me! Just walking down the streets of New York I see so many different people, each with their own subtle quirks and details that are so uniquely their own that I just have to beam at them, thank them for being themselves, and tell them how amazing they are. I love fashion, film, art, music — but I see cultural production as the expression of an individual designer or artist, not as something to copy.

If you’re asking more where I get my personal style influence, I’d have to say I look to legends, fairy-tales, and epic historical tales, and then I head to the junk store to see if I can make my own variation. Whatever unusual item I’m looking for (a Robin Hood-style hooded cape, to name a recent example) usually magically appears if I search for it long enough. Has anyone seen any chainmail or armored shoulder pads lately? If I can’t find it, eventually I’ll just make it myself.

***

Order your Bright Young Things Premiere Edition dress here. Each dress is made-to-order, putting demand before supply, so expect 6-8 weeks’ delivery time. Read more background about Eliza and the dress here.

Dress front-and-back image via Ecouterre. Factory image, wear-a-thon screenshot and subway snaps from the Bright Young Things site.

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 on its way to me now!) Prices are already super affordable, and with this 15% off, the pieces range from about $32 to $74 each. As always, each style is sewn from traditional African khangas.

You can read my report about Lalesso’s awesome manufacturing practices from last September here, and they only seem to be getting better. The brand’s latest manufacturing update:

“The progress with our new production unit, SOKO, an eco and ethical clothing production unit in Ukunda Kenya, which Lalesso instigated the start up of, has grown leaps and bounds, all under the magnificent leadership of Joanna Maiden. SOKO is now manufacturing the infamous ASOS Africa line which has followed Lalesso’s suit in using the traditional East African ‘khanga’ or ‘lesso’ in many of its designs. SOKO is providing over 20 jobs directly as well as out sourcing to over 50 individuals within Kenya as well. All employees are paid an extremely fair wage which helps to alleviate poverty, improve their quality of living and indirectly affect the lives of many of their family members. SOKO is a charitable business and all profits are regenerated back into various community projects. So for every item you buy you are helping to make SOKO a bigger and better socialy responsible endeavour.”

Shop Lalesso’s online store now!

How good is Pamela at Market Publique? I knew SATC wardrober Patricia Fields had a penchant for vintage, but Pamela’s post on how much vintage appeared throughout SATC2 really impressed me. Imagine all the hunting it took to find the right pieces for not one, but four looks, at a time. Check out all these vintage spottings!

And no, I haven’t seen the movie yet, but the time will inevitably come…

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 new label, Bright Young Things, offering one collection of one dress — a piece that will inspire us to “shop our own closets” to spice it up with our own personal style.

“I’ve seen so many women with closets full of clothes who say, ‘I haven’t got a thing to wear!’ I’m giving them one dress that they can wear forwards, backwards, open, again and again, with anything they like,” Eliza says. You really can wear it with the buttons in front or back, as you can see in the pics here. Her concept is borne of the idea that fashion shouldn’t be obsolete each season.

Describing her decision to put the dress into production, Eliza said, “If by buying my one dress, women would forego buying five cheap and trendy dresses this year, that would be a big feat. Keeping that much junk out of the landfills alone would make production worthwhile to me.”

The dress was previously offered in a limited production of 365 pieces, which sold out immediately. The Bright Young Things website encourages wearers to submit personal style pics of them in the dress, from which the images here have come, and I can’t wait to see how it will grow once the dress is more widely available.

The dress goes on pre-sale TODAY, produced in the U.S. of high-quality cotton, for $185. Support Eliza in changing the paradigm of mass consumer culture and get yours here!