Hot New Trends From Retro Fabrics A Big Theme For Eco-Fashion Week 2013

Vancouver’s Spring/Summer 2013 Eco Fashion Week – to run from Oct. 16th to 19th – has gained so much momentum and popularity since its inception four seasons ago (running twice a year) founded by stylist/buyer Myriam Laroche, that this season (its fifth), there’s scheduled to be nearly a dozen designers, lots more creativity in presenting the runway shows, inspirational speakers talking about caring for the environment and fair trade practices, and lots of industry workshops focused on ecologically conscious and sustainable business practices.

The week will kick off with music, inspirational speakers, and a runway show by local-famed designer Nicole Bridger at the Vogue Theater, on October 16, with doors opening at about 6:00 p.m.

The opening evening will begin with a performance from emerging jazz vocalist Jaclyn Guillou. Born and raised in Vancouver, Guillou is a recipient of the CBC Galaxie Rising Star Award from the Vancouver International Jazz Festival, and has recently toured internationally.

Among the opening speakers will be Madeleine Shaw who is co-founder of Lunapads, an East Vancouver-based company that specializes in creating washable cloth alternatives to disposable feminine hygiene products.

Lunapads is also really great in that it operates a unique in-house/international humanitarian aid project called Pads4Girls, which runs a number of programs including – One4Her: Pads for Girls, Jobs for Women.

One4Her is a Lunapads/AFRIpads buy one, give one program supplying girls in need with pads and supporting local employment for women in Uganda.

For every eligible Lunapads One4Her purchase, Lunapads provides a girl in need with a Uganda-made AFRIpad to help her continue going to school during her menses.

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Radical Recycling: Designer Brands Transforming Old Tire Rubber Into Beautiful Durable Shoes

Making footwear at Indosole.

Late summer and early fall are some of the best times for shoe fashions because they allow for such a diversity of styles, and always showing your love for the environment with your eco-choices in materials.

Sandals and beach shoes are still great, but you can also start on your fall styles with heaver materials like canvas, suede, and leather – and all made with rubber soles from recycled tires.

Always searching for the best variety of eco-made shoes, I found three fabulous companies – Indosole, soleRebel, and Yellow Port – that are worth taking a look at for their styles and commitments to the environment.

Indosole

Indosole is a fabulous Indonesian company that makes sandals and canvas beach shoes that all look great, and can be worn as part of everyday causal wear.

The materials used include banana leaves, burlaps, canvas, (man-made) vegan suede, and EVA-foam.

Photo courtesy of Indosole.

For those that don’t know much about materials, burlap is a woven fabric from the fibers of the jute plant, combined with other vegetable fibers. Canvas is a heavy-duty woven fabric usually made from cotton, linen (fibers made from the flax plant) or hemp fibers.

Vegan suede is made-made suede, usually made mostly of polyester and without using any animal products. Natural suede is a kind of animal leather.

Photo courtesy of Indosole.

EVA foam, also called ethylene vinyl acetate, has a lot of great qualities including that it’s soft and flexible, as well as really tough, crack resistant, and waterproof.

 All of the soles are made from repurposed motorbike tires. The company exclaims that, “Indosole is on a mission to salvage old motorbike tires and other trash from landfills and give them new life.”

Indosole also boasts that its “products are handmade by skilled Balinese artisans and the production process does not contain fuel-powered machines.” The company adds that it “conducts fair trade practices in its workshops.”

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Aqua Green’s Eco Swim To Make A Splash At Funkshion Fashion Week Miami Beach

Aqua Green’s Eco Swim collection is having a big July with both a swimsuit giveaway contest and participating in Funkshion Fashion Week Miami Beach which will run from July 18-22.

The free swimsuit contest is being held by Haute Mom, a great blog that gives moms a forum to talk about things like fashion, cooking, baby tips, exercise, and generally organizing life.

Porthole Halterkini. Photo by Aqua Swim.

It’s simple and free to enter the contest, which runs until July 23 at 9 p.m. (PST). You need to be a public follower of Haute Mom, take a look at the swimsuits at Eco Swim, leave a comment with Haute Mom about which is your favorite style, and leave your email.

Eco Swim is definitely worth taking a look at. The collection ranges from interchangeable bikini bras and bottoms to tankinis that also coordinate with different bottoms to one-piece swimdresses.

Eco Swim also has a great coverup dress and board shorts that go with everything. One of the things that I like about the collection is that while all of the tops and bottoms have different prints, they all use a similar color pallet of royal blue, khaki, black, and white.

You can buy two tops and two bottoms and make four different swimsuits. It’s great on the wallet and gives you great versatility. I also really like the tankinis and one-piece swimdresses, because they come in a variety of styles that are all designed to hide whatever imperfections we may have.

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Eco-Designer Carrie Parry Bringing Summer Color to the Big Apple With Classic Fashions

Photo by Carrie Parry.

Expanding her recognition in New York City, Carrie Parry hosted a “Pop Up Shop” over the weekend featuring her designs and also participated in last month’s Designers and Agents annual spring Green Room exhibition that showcases emerging fashion designers and their use of eco-friendly materials, sustainable production practices, and supporting local and fair trade labor.

Parry’s style themes are best described as revolving around the ideas of tailored sophistication within simple looks that also have a bit of whimsy. She says as much as possible she uses eco-friendly renewable materials, and recycled materials.

Some of my favorite fashions from her collections are her colorblock sleeveless dress, V neck sleeveless blouse with its removable scarf, and her pleated skirt.

The colorblock dress has a nice causal look that can be dressed up with a belt for going out at night. The material is 88 percent recycled polyester and 12 percent spandex jersey.

Photo by Carrie Parry.

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HandCrafting Justice Wowed At NY Festival With Handmade Handbags From Recycled Materials

Thailand artisan woman. Photo by HandCrafting Justice.

Making people aware of the beauty of traditional artisan craftsmanship from around the world – often women from small, rural communities – HandCrafting Justice showed off at the NYC Green Festival last weekend with a collection of one-of-a-kind handbags made of recycled materials including telephone books, chip bags, and silk.

HandCrafting Justice is a nonprofit project of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd that markets over 1,000 different items through its website, wholesalers, and special events. Items sold include: handbags, clothing, jewelry, accessories, pottery, indigenous art, and toys.

HandCrafting Justice works with over 3,000 women in over 20 countries around the world, working within Fair Trade initiatives to make sure that they work in clean, safe environments and are paid fair living wages.

Featured at the festival were hand-woven handbags from recycled telephone books that were crafted by Filipino artisans from the Alay Kapwa Coop in Manila.

Recycled telephone handbags. Photo courtesy of HandCrafting Justice.

These unique handbags also featured bamboo handles and closed with wood bead latches. The bags were waterproof coated for stiffening and being safe in the rain.

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