Friday is a good day to look back at what was in the news this week on the eco-fashionable front lines. Since we have already covered and re-covered LA Fashion week, it will be almost absent from this post. Here we go:

1. Rashida Jones, who fans of The Office may recognize as Karen Filippelli, along with partner Angela Wilcox launches a new collection of eco-friendly apparel called Laloo. While the styles are pretty basic,(we all need basics) consisting of “swingy tanks, dresses, and layerable tees in the softest organic cotton, ”what I like most about it this news is Rashida’s statement to Lucky Magazine: “It was important that everything be reasonably priced and look great on a range of body types.” I know I am not alone is saying…FINALLY! Now let’s see if it pans out. You can read more in this month’s issue. Courtesy of Ecorazzi. Image Courtesy of WireImage.com

2. What does Sustainable Fashion really mean? Apparently Fashion Group International has the answer and you can pay $25 to find out. On Tuesday, March 25th, they will be hosting, “Sustainable Fashion: What Does It Mean?” They do have some good panelists to inform the masses. Tierra Del Forte is one, and she knows what she is talking about when it comes to organic denim, and Mike Korchinsky of Wildlife Works will be sure to have some good insights on fair trade and supporting developing nations through commerce.
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We promise this is the final review of LA Fashion Week…at least for this season.

thinkVitality was a fashion show benefiting the breast cancer prevention organization Susan G. Komen For The Cure. It was at Natural Products Expo West, a natural lifestyle trade show. It was in Anaheim, CA, home of Disneyland. And, believe it or not, it was actually really fun. With the chips stacked much against it, as far as glamour and fashionworld cache goes, thinkVitality kinda rocked. Nine ethical designers showed their Fall ‘08 fashions including Stewart+Brown, Deborah Lindquist, Livity Outernational, Linda Loudermilk, Ecolution, Indigenous Designs, Green Babies, Under The Canopy, and Ecolution.

Highlights of the show included Linda Loudermilk, who gilded the show with some truly stunning well-constructed designs in eco-luxe fabrics. Another headturner was the hottest of the hot swimsuits from Koi Swimwear. Of course the true pinnacle of the show was the standing ovation given to the breast cancer survivors who came out for the finale, modeling gowns of recycled think energy bar wrappers. (more…)

Last week, Greenloop gave our readers the heads up on a very exclusive eco-fashion soiree at the home of Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa. On the lawn of the Getty House, the founders of fashion trade show Designers & Agents presented various pieces by both established and up-and-coming eco designers alike, which were crafted from sustainable fabrics donated by co-sponsor Earth Pledge. We were so lucky to have eco fashion stylista Monique Marco on the ground at the Mayor’s house to give us her review…

Seventeen designers were requested by the Mayor, D & A and Earth Pledge to create custom pieces to specifically exhibit on the night to showcase the versatility, beauty and scope of sustainable textiles. Each outfit was displayed on an all white mannequin arranged around the border of a small wading pool at the back of Villaraigosa’s garden, giving guests the opportunity to delight in the individual designs. Mayor Antonio’s garden is more like the size of an estate, which is lucky because there was a sizeable crowd of media insiders, website representatives like Lime.com and Fashion TV, and fashion luminaries such as Lloyd Kline and Anthony Camargo of Anthony Nak were all there hobnobbing.

Fashion-forward designers such as Organic, Hazel Brown and Magda Berliner participated as well as Roze Nichols who designed an ensemble utilizing organic cotton, soy protein, silk chiffon, organic wool jersey, silk satin and hemp. Another innovative example is from NYC based designer Bahar Shahpar, who created a deep periwinkle blue pleated baby doll dress made out of soy protein coupled with a matching organic cotton vest. Also feted were Deborah Lindquist who designed a sweet spaghetti strap dress in soft pastel lime with a shirred waist and delicate pink appliqued flowers out of soy protein, silk chiffon, hemp and silk satin. Trina Turk put an eco-spin on a traditional trench coat by fashioning it out of white organic cotton denim.

In particular it was really thoughtful of the Mayor to gratefully acknowledge the influence of his eldest daughter Natalia, who loves fashion, as the main inspiration and motivation to host FutureFashion LA. All in all it was an elegant and classy affair…

Thank you Monique Marco for the inside scoop.

In the classicly edgy words of Mikey Koffman, Owner of eco fashion PR firm The Gallery Los Angeles, “Go green or go home.” With models like these, I will not be going home. The Gallery pulled off it’s second eco-driven show for LA Fashion Week and proved to the international fashion world once again that sustainable fashion rocks.

Housed in the hubbub of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Culver City, The Green Initiative Humanitarian Fashion Show was more than a mouthful of feel good words. Lady Muse by Mathilde, lilikoi by Barbara Boswell, M The Movement, Rene Geneva, Andira Rain Tees and Vintage China seamlessly blended style, sustainability, and social awareness on the runway. Each designer opened with a dance performance from a different culture, from Breaking to Ballet to Traditional Chinese Ribbon Dance…nice touch. M The Movement repped for men’s eco fashion in a big way. He dressed his opening b-boys as well as his Adonis-like male models in bamboo, soy, organic cotton, and the hot new addition to the world of sustainable fabrics: charcoal. (Apparently bamboo charcoal can be embedded in various fabrics as an odor-absorbing biodegradable blending material.)

Lady Muse kept her designs very French and very recycled, or “rescued” as she called them in her adorable accent. All of the materials used for Mathilde’s pieces were surplus fabrics, including gorgeous metallic brocade, from which she constructed her Victorian era-inspired jackets. lilikoi used hemp silk, bamboo, linen and organic cotton for her wrap dresses mixed with casual tees and sexy pencil skirts. (more…)

As if being leaders in the ethical apparel industry isn’t enough, eco designers such as Deborah Lindquist, Ecolution, Linda Loudermilk, Livity Outernational, Stewart+Brown, Indigenous Designs, and Koi will be addressing the issue of breast cancer prevention at this year’s thinkVitality fashion show. On March 15th, thinkproducts will bring together these eco fashion icons to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for Susan G. Komen For The Cure. Komen For The Cure is the largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and the largest nonprofit fund dedicated to fighting breast cancer in the world.

Lizanne Falsetto, CEO of thinkproducts, said of the show, “This united alliance of companies is unprecedented in the industry and reflects the core values of the natural products community, which is to help make the world a healthier place, naturally. Consumers need to better understand that what they eat, wear, and how they live can help promote wellness and reduce their risk of disease.” The fashion show will be a major highlight of the Natural Products Expo West, an absolutely massive industry tradeshow for organic food and sustainable products. If you plan to attend the Expo, this fashion show is a must…and with the cool cats of Livity Outernational and Indigenous Designs involved, it might not only support a good cause, it might actually be a lot of fun.

Saturday March 15th, 7pm, at the Anaheim Convention Center.

Yes…another “green expo”. As much as I am all about getting the word out and driving change, I worry sometimes that the sheer number of green events, and (lack of quality control at several) can do more damage than good to the new, green mode of living we are working toward.   With that said, I believe the Better Living Show will be an exception, raising the bar by setting a new standard for what people come to expect.  To start with, the event is FREE. Yes, FREE. No excuses. Just go. To boot, they are also holding this event “lights out”, with only task lighting for each exhibit…very cool (literally). It’s happening at the Portland Expo Center, so there is plenty of public transportation available to get there too.  There are two highlights at this event in my book. The first takes place on Saturday, March 29th, from 5-8pm, when Portland Fashion Week, in collaboration with the producers of the Better Living Show, are hosting an eco-fashion panel discussion and installation fashion show. For this event, members of the global eco-fashion community will gather to discuss sustainable apparel design and manufacturing processes and to illustrate how Portland is leading the international fashion community in its quest to go green.

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Eco fashion has once and for all arrived…on the Mayor of LA’s front lawn. This March 13th, Earth Pledge, a non-profit accelerating industry’s adoption of sustainable practices, will present FutureFashion LA. This evening of eco-conscious couture will be co-hosted by Kramer and Mandelbaum of Designers and Agents, Steven Kolb of CFDA, and Mayor Villaraigosa himself. Fifteen fashion designers will grace the Getty House lawn with one-of-a-kind creations that showcase the beauty and innovation of sustainable textiles. The designers invited to participate in this prestigious event include longtime eco fashion queen, Deborah Lindquist and “organic pioneers” Stewart+Brown, along with Bahar Shahpar, The Stronghold, Skin, Suss, Trovata, Organic, Magda Berliner, Imitation by Imitation of Christ, and a host of others.

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There is something inspiring about seeing just how creative designers can be in their materials selection. What really does it for me though are end-use products made possible by dipping into the waste stream…quite literally in some cases. Let’s talk trash…as it applies to fashion.

While they may not be totally practical for a day at the office, or even a night on the town, I’ve seen some amazing artistry come forth in dress form from some very unlikely materials. Take, for example, this little strapless number made entirely from recycled food bar wrappers collected an airplane flight. I love the banded top and the detail at the hemline from the overlapping wrappers. Do you think she’s afraid of giving the cab driver a little more tip than he bargained for should a few of those wrappers take flight?

Makes you think twice about where your Cliff bar wrapper might end up.

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