Tuesday, August 19, 2008

High Fashion, Highly Conscious





Stella McCartney for Addidas
adidas by Stella McCartney
adidas by Stella McCartney
adidas by Stella McCartney
adidas by Stella McCartney

I am in love with Stella McCartney right now, particularly her work for Adidas (can you imagine working out in clothes that beautiful?). Yes, she is truly the daughter of Paul and Linda, the PETA leading, vegan, earth-friendly McCartneys. Stella's line is probably the only major fashion house that's doing what only small, earthy boutique stores are doing: offering a clothing line that is socially conscious from head to toe. What she s
ays about her company:
  • Green Power: All our UK operations are powered by Ecotricity, which takes the money their customers spend on electricity in the country and invest it in clean forms of power like wind. Check www.ecotricity.co.uk to register!
  • Offset your carbon footprint: Stella McCartney Ltd is Carbon Neutral, visit www.CarbonNeutral.com for more information and green tips.
  • Recycle, recycle, recycle...our company does... we recycle more than 2 tons of paper a year!
  • Our new organic capsule collection is available in the US will soon be available in the UK, continuing our contribution to sustainable in sustainable fashion.
  • We developed 100% biodegradable bags made of corn... if you ever get your hands on one, use it again. If not, that's a shame for you and us, but it will disappear within a year without polluting the environment anyway.
  • Recycle Glass: the energy saved by recycling one bottle can power a computer for 25 minutes... so you can enjoy browsing on our website even longer!
  • Use our organic skincare CARE, it just gives your skin everything it needs and nothing it doesn't! (no nasties...)
  • Did I mention we don’t use any leather or fur?
  • ...think before you print this!
Too bad a sweater costs over $1,000. At least the very-rich are getting some alternatives to fur coats.


Can you believe? Finally: a fashion magazine that is as design-conscious as it is socially-conscious. I mean, I'm all for hemp pants and handmade wool beanies, but sometimes I'd prefer to dress a little less like a member of the Fairy Congress.

I only wish all companies were following suit (pardon the pun). Namely, my absolute favorite store, J.Crew, needs to shape up. This morning I actually decided to voice what I believe in and emailed them directly. I invite and encourage you to do the same for issues you believe in.

Friday, August 15, 2008

Sustainability Wrap-Up

Okay, so I'm not doing half of what I should to be an eco-friendly citizen. So I feel like somewhat of a hypocrite for promoting this stuff. But the truth is, we all want to do better and need to do better. So we have to start somewhere. I've learned from my hunt for socially-concious yet "cool" design that it's still very much in the minority. That's changing, and we all need to do what we can to speed up the process (instead of waiting for something like horrific gas prices to force us).

I have found some pretty great products, and some pretty exemplary efforts to make this corporate world a friendlier place. There are definitely some holes and flaws in companies that advertise themselves as fair-trade, organic, humane, etc (for instance, "cage-free" eggs doesn't necessarily mean the chickens are treated well, and "organic" does not mean it's fair trade, free-range, or even healthy). I'm not advocating any particular brand or providing background information about the products on this blog. I'm just throwing them out there to give a glimps into what's happening. If you want to read about these companies, please follow the original links. And let me know anything interesting you know discover.



































Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Jewell's Picks & Pics: Eco-Friendly Baby Fashion

Sustainability Week continues! I love being green. And I love being cute. And being all-natural is all the cuter. I came up with a great idea for how to save the earth's resources: going naked! It's good for the planet, and good for the soul. But Mommy said that's not really an option. So here's some other ways to be a purist without wearing nothing but your own skin. Recycled, fair trade, and organic baby fashions: