November 5, 2009
Scratch that…we’re going straight through the weekend! You could win $200 from Novica.com, and you have all weekend to do it. All you need to do is send us a little story about your favorite eco fashion item, and a picture or video…the best story wins! Here are the contest rules…good luck!
November 3, 2009
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Each belt is 100% unique, carrying with it the long and exciting life of the bike tire it is made from. We especially like how sleek and un-bulky Jiro belts are, and there are so many colors and designs to choose from, probably because Italian bike tires are so colorful to begin with! At 30 Euros each, they’re pretty well priced for something that’s really going to last a lifetime. You can order direct at info@jiro-belt.com….specify the color, size and they’ll handle the rest!
November 2, 2009
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Each piece is hand-made by the Hill Tribe of Karen Village in Northern Thailand. We love the lightness of each piece…perfect little works of art to turn a black t-shirt into a phenomenally different look. The shop and stocklists aren’t quite together yet, but you can order directly through orders@shadowplaycollection.com.
October 30, 2009
Through her label Himane, Haitian designer Catherine Edouard Charlot makes new bags and women’s fashion out of broken umbrellas. After a rainstorm you always see them, lying there, wilted on the sidewalk. Charlot gives them new life.
Each unique piece is collected. The waterproof nylon makes for great city fabric. For NYC folks, you can find them at East Village eco-boutique, Sustainable NYC.
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October 27, 2009
It’s contest time! Our friends at Novica.com have sponsored this opportunity to win this sexy fair-made Mexican leather satchel – from their corporate gifts online store.
And the odds are lookin’ pretty good. All you have to do is send us in a story and a picture/video of you and your favorite eco fashion item before November 6. Check our Contest Rules for more info.
Remember, our definition of eco fashion here at Seed & Sew is very inclusive: organic, recycled, renewable, DIY, ethical, vegan…they all apply. We’re looking to find new stories, new trends and phenomena we’ve never seen before.
And the prize is worth a whopping $200. So send us your stories! We eagerly await…
October 23, 2009
Hooray it’s finally here! We had so much fun last year at Steampunk Day at the BrooklynIndie Market that we made a video about it. If you missed it last year, go and check it out tomorrow, you won’t be sorry
This year it’s back and better than ever. The Second Annual Steampunk Day at Brooklyn Indie Market, an emerging designer market, will take place from 11-7 and Fashion Show at 4pm. Take the F/G to the Carroll Street Station.
With a week before Halloween, this is an opportunity for grownups to have their day of dress up and make-believe. Retro Futurism descends upon Carroll Gardens under the red and white striped tent on the corner of Smith and Union Street and spills out into the street with a Steampunk Fashion Show at 4pm.
What is Steampunk you say? We asked fashion show coordinator Britney of Berit New York, “In short, Steampunk is science-fiction as it could have been envisioned during the Victorian Era which draws inspiration from countless cultures and nations across the world.”
Don your goggles and corsetry, transport yourself over to The Way Station, Brooklyn’s first Steampunk Bar and performance venue for an after party, located in Prospect Heights at 685 Washington Avenue, Steampunk performances and libations, doors open at 8 pm. 2/3 Brooklyn Museum, A/C Washington Ave or Q 7th Ave.
October 22, 2009
Our favorite blog for men’s super hot eco fashion is Commerce with a Conscious (“ethical fashion for the fastidious gentleman”) and the one thing they’re better at than anyone else is finding really awesome eco fashion ties. Like these Sonic Fabric ties by Alyce Santoro and Julio Cesar from Supermarket. They’re made of a combination of used audio cassette tape and colored polyester, the perfect tie for that sharp dressed gentleman in the music industry or music enthusiasts of all kinds. Um, keep up the amazing work finding cool things for eco guys to look super sharp in!
via CwaC
October 20, 2009
In partnership with comedy troupe The Vacationeers, Julia shows off some of her ridiculous 100% eco-friendly outfits, including the Shants, a shirt that doubles as pants. These “outfits” are available for sale on her online store for hilariously large sums of money, all of which is donated to The Lunch Box Fund to feed hungry kids. Great idea, great cause, and funny! Worth a watch…
October 19, 2009
The idea is that, actually, you don’t have to pay for your clothes. Covert Candy is an online clothing exchange / vintage shop that acts as the central hub between the clothes you no longer want in your closet, and the clothes you actually want in someone else’s closet. For each item that you send in, you’re given credits toward another item on the site. Here’s how swapping clothes works. It’s simple, it’s just like taking your old clothes to Buffalo Exchange, except there’s a better selection of things to choose from with your credit. The better stuff is filed in their Vintage Shop… with more and more items by the day.
This UK-based company is just starting out, but we have the sense that they’ll go far.
October 15, 2009
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We are mad about NY-based Feral Childe and the Fall 2009 collection isn’t helping much.
The palate is bold enough to be bright yet not overstated, the patterns fit snugly into the contemporary yet are reminiscent of the past. Everything seems half born of the craft table at a kindergarten. The only thing is the price, which is up there for some of these items ($270 for the jacket, $210 for the smock) – and the fact that you have to go sniff them out at local shops since there’s no online shop. Our local boutique Treehouse carries Feral Childe, as do these others in your area, and three online eco fashion boutiques, Beklina, Fashion Philanthropy and Jute and Jackfruit. We caution against getting too excited about these clothes, it stings when you realize they’re not in your closet.
October 12, 2009
What we like: you can shop online for underwear based on print, fit or cause. Each of the three lines donates 10% of the sales price to a cause (that fittingly matches the color of the undies): Forest Ethics (forest preservation), 826 National (literacy) and Oceana (protecting the oceans). It’s an underwear social movement that reminds us a lot of UK-based Pants to Poverty.
Each of the three styles comes in six different cuts (three for ladies, three for guys) and is priced at $20. Seems like a lot when you can buy a six pack of Fruit of the Loom or a wad of Victorias Secret panties for cheaper than one pair. So what are you getting for the price? We’ll break it down:
1. You are wearing a cause that you support underneath your clothes
2. You are wearing organic cotton underwear which is better for your health (no pesticides), healthier for farmers and workers (no pesticides) and better for the planet (again, no pesticides)
3. You are wearing cotton that’s been dyed using heavy-metal-free, non-toxic dyes. We don’t have to explain the implications of this when it comes to your undies…
4. The garments have been manufactured ethically in a certified organic factory in Turkey
5. The entire supply chain to make the underwear takes place within a 100 mile radius – this is really impressive logistics and planning – bravo!
6. A whole lot more awesome stuff to read about here.
So eat your heart out Fruit of the Loom and Victoria’s Secret! While you were focusing on keeping prices down and branding to be “reliable” or “sexy” – these guys were hard at work redefining what it means to feel good about your underwear.
October 8, 2009
In the $180 – $220 range in their online shop, the pants aren’t cheap. But the seasoned urban cyclist knows that it’s really hard to find durable, flexible, well made pants that allow you to move with freedom and look great at the same time. Outlier nailed it. I’ll leave you with their spot-on description of biking in the city, and a couple live-action-y pictures to enjoy..
Thanks, uber-city-cyclist David for tipping us off
The sun is rising, the air clear, the city unfolds below you as you reach the top of the bridge. Your legs are spinning fast, heart pumping, maybe you are sweating just a touch. It’s a magical feeling of exhilaration and liberation that comes from riding a bike in a city. Inside trains, humans are imitating sardines, while drivers stall and stew in their own exhaust. The cyclist however is completely free, in motion, almost flying, a huge smile wiped across their face.
Amen.
October 7, 2009
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These deep-toned, casual pieces have a feminine silhouette, despite their loose drape. It’s no wonder that this designer who used to work for Vivienne Westwood would have mastered a certain edge in her looks. The entire collection is manufactured ethically using sustainable organic fabrics in proper Canadian style. Some of the Fall collection is available online in the under-$300-its-an-investment range, but could somebody please tell us where to buy in the US?
October 5, 2009
It works like this: you drop off the shoe, Nike transports it to one of its recycling plants and they break the shoe down into three parts: the rubber sole, the foam middle, and the fabric upper. The rubber is chopped and used to make recycled tracks for running, the foam becomes the springy stuff under basketball courts, and the fabric becomes a component in tennis courts. We especially love the videos from inside the plant that show you exactly how its done.
Essentially what Nike is doing is creating value where there was none, turning what was once considered a useless item into an asset, both for new sporting facilities, and for building-in a lower environmental impact into their product overall. Nike is doing a really great job tackling the bigger sustainability issues, and leading their category. Just last week Nike resigned their position on the Chamber of Commerce Board over its opposition to climate change policy – that’s really taking a stand. Keep up the great work, Nike!
October 2, 2009
It was a relatively smart idea for the marketing folks at Banana Republic to smoosh together their new “Heritage” collection with their eco line. The Heritage Collection harkens back to the olde days (I remember them well) when BR was a safari store full of pith helmets and breathable oxford shirts. See Article 1: Suitcases. That connection to simpler times, to exploration, adventure and the natural world seamlessly blends with an environmental story. The line, which features environmentally-friendly fabrics such as organic cotton and hemp, sits woefully in the most inconveniently-placed, dusty back corner of the Rock Center store, ensuring that shoppers have thoroughly picked through the hot stuff before they drift aimlessly over to the stuff under the Eco Conscious banner. See Article 2: Emergency Exit. So on paper it works, but in the store they could have done a better job, if driving sustainable behaviors was behind this endeavor. What they ended up with is a merchandising play that triple-discourages and confuses shoppers: clothing that is at once anachronistic, green-ish and totally out of the way.
