Having been an environmentalist most of my life, brought up in the halls of fashion as the chouchou d’ELLE in the 50′s and 60′s, it never really dawned on me the importance of beauty products and cosmetics had in the grand scheme of things. Then I read that a hair dresser in the UK by the name of Maurice Ward had mixed a few things from his salon together and miraculously came up with a substance more resistant to heat that the NASA space shuttle tiles. He named it Starlite after Bakelite, the first plastic, its jewelery still prized today.

In recent years, the work of architect Bill McDonough and chemist Michael Braungart at MBDC, implementing their cradle-to-cradle product development philosophy, led to the creation of green chemistry departments at Universities all over the world, most notably at Yale, now working on safer formulas for the beauty industry. Interesting how again, architecture and fashion cross path to share missions.

Emma Pezzack’s Futurenatural came online last year and quickly established itself as one of the most successful all natural and organic supply house for enlightened consumers as well as professional make-up artists wishing to green their kits. Emma joined forces with Anna Griffin, Courtney Dailey and Stacy Malkan at GreenMUA to lead the way in Hollywood.

Victoria Everman is a model, environmentalist and journalist living in San Francisco. She is a contributing blogger for In The Loop, a founding member of GreenMUA and the U.S. Spokesperson for Twice Shy Clothing.

You lived in Darien, Connecticut. Is that where you grew up? How did you come about your green mission?
 
Actually, I never lived in Darien, but I did live on Avon, Middletown, Enfield and Stamford. I didn’t grow up in Connecticut – I was born in Indiana and have moved around a lot. Living green was something that I always grew up with, but not in the traditional sense. My family was green because it was more affordable to reuse or make our own things (including food and clothing) than buying new. Some school years began with shopping at the Salvation Army. While those days are behind me, that do-it-yourself mentality has still stuck with me.
 
You’re part of this new breed of model who blends her career with environmental activism. It’s no longer an after thought, you integrate the two. How does that work?
 
Being a green or eco-model was just a natural part of my career progress. I’ve been modeling since I was 6 and being able to work with sustainable companies and organizations is a fantastic opportunity. Being a green model isn’t just about wearing organic cotton clothing and being mindful of how much you travel – there are many more elements, such as make-up, hair products, locations … etc. There is no rule anywhere that says you can’t be beautiful and sustainable – if national parks can do it, why can’t models?

(I just realized looking around for a couple of images to illustrate this post that Deborah had recently been interviewed on this blog by Jenn Breckenridge. She’s such a popular girl! I hope I can put a new spin on the line of questioning… RemyC.)

(10500 Magnolia Boulevard, NoHo)

Deborah, you can fairly be described as one of the doyennes of sustainable fashion, having been one of the first designers to do it at this level. Yet, you based yourself in LA when at the time the epicenter of fashion was still New York. Was it the rock & roll lifestyle vs. the wear nothing but black crowd which made you settle in the City of Angels?

I agree about you view of New York. That is why I decided to attend Parsons School of Design and then start my business in Manhattan after having worked almost 10 years, and I love the city so much and consider it such an important part of not only my education but a part of who I am today. It was a different city in many ways when I lived there in the 80′s as we all know. I relocated to Los Angeles because of many reasons. Part of which is that I’m a farmer’s daughter from Minnesota and I really wanted a more personal space, gardens, flowers and trees, and the ocean. And a dog who could have a yard.
 
LA and Hollywood being one and the same, has there been as much concern for green costume design in films and music videos as there is with the community of actors and performers now urging the world to go green?  

I think there probably is a concern for that idea. I have personally met and worked with some actresses who are very visible in the green lifestyle, such as Daryl Hannah and Wendie Mallick. Some of the actresses who wear my clothing I don’t meet personally but I would like to meet them personally of course. It’s easier to get a sense about someone when seeing them in person. Many times their stylists request clothing for them.

I find that people like my clothing on a personal level but the added benefit is that I’m eco.

Hi Starre, you’re Eco-Chick, one of the most widely read, prolific and respected green fashion bloggers on the web. Yet, you’ve been writing about hard core environmental issues for many years… you have a BS in Geology, a minor in Biology from Syracuse and an MFA in nonfiction writing from Columbia. What made you pick sustainable fashion, of all things, as your preferred avenue to chronicle green change?

I am a total science nerd and I love being outdoors, learning about rocks, plants, insects and ecology. I taught environmental science to kids and worked as an environmental scientist when I first got my undergraduate degree. But I feed on change, and I’ve always loved writing, and creative endeavors seem to be endlessly challenging and they keep my restless mind entertained. I come from a family of artists and scientists, and I’ve always wanted to combine the two (and am fascinated by those few souls who also look at the world this way). So how could I bring together science, design, visual art and show my love for this amazing planet?

Fashion seems ideal to me since it has the science (fabric and fibers, production and dyeing of textiles, growing plants sustainably–or not) combined with design and artistry. I have a very strong aesthetic sense even though I was never a visual artist (my father and stepmother are illustrators and painters though). I was raised by my grandmother who taught me to sew and fostered an appreciation for clothes and design and as a child. I wouldn’t really go shopping for clothes- we would go to the fabric store and I would pick out – even when i was just 5 and 6- fabrics and dress patterns and she would make them with me. When I wasn’t making clothes and quilts with her, I was off in the woods, covered in mud, exploring the wetlands that my house was built on.

My grandmother also designed our home herself, and it was built in 1967 so it was super-modern, but at the same time totally integrated into the environment it was sited on; she was inspired by Russell Wright (no relation to Frank Lloyd Wright) who produced the iconic American Modern dishware line and also built an incredible house in the town I grew up in called Manitoga. Every room in the house has an indoor and outdoor component (even the bathrooms!) and a tree trunk is a main support in the center of the house. Rock floors, and seasonally-changing cabinets were design elements. The house I grew up in had similar features and was built on a rock ledge, so we were totally integrated into our surrounding landscape. We kept huge organic gardens and ate local meat and eggs from our neighbors. All of these influences and dichotomies- a modern house on a dirt road, art and design coupled with fresh food and the real physical labor of gardening, freedom to create and respect for the local ecosystem….It was an incredible place to form an aesthetic!

Honestly, the concept of disposable plastic items has got to be one of the most stupid ideas in human history. On par with nuclear energy, disposable plastics are made for a one-time use, then end up as toxic waste that lasts almost forever. It’s “convenient” and cheap in the short term, and polluting and cancer-causing in the not-so-short term. A shocking factoid: Americans use 2.5 million bottles every hour. Oh my.

So, what to do my friends?  Make a resolution to stop using them. It’s easy. Get yourself the most fabulous water bottle you can find and carry it with you wherever you go. Concerned about water quality? Pepsi’s brand of bottled water, Aquafina, is the best-selling brands of water in the country. It’s tap water. Coca-Cola’s brand Dasani, tap water. If we have filtered tap water at home and the office, why don’t we just fill up our reusable water bottles when we’re there? Much cheaper. Much chiccer. Concerned about what your friends will think if they’re not doing it yet? Believe me, they will be in a few months and then they’ll be so impressed about what a trendsetter you are. And with all the fabulous choices for water bottles on the market, the most difficult thing about getting into the habit of using them is picking which one you want!

OUT…………………………………………….IN
Plastic Shopping Bags……………….Fashionable Canvas Totes
Poland Spring and Evian…………..SIGG and Klean Kanteen
Plastic Utensils……………………………Reusable To-Go Ware
Disposable Party Plates……………..Mismatched Vintage Dishware
Styrofoam Takeout…………………….Eating In

Is the trend apparent? With Peak Oil on the horizon, our petroleum-based products are naturally headed OUT. Conscious and cute everyday tools are very much IN. Let’s change the number one selling item at Whole Foods from plastic bottled water to stainless steel water bottles, and turn our future landfills into future land trusts.

Courtney Dailey is based in LA where she does double duty as a fashion photographer and a professional make-up artist. We met on Model Mayhem, or Myspace, can’t remember… I pride myself having become the green conscience of Model Mayhem, tracking new talent to see who the next green stars are going to be. Courtney and I shared a singularity of vision. She joined GreenMUA, a project we started to assist professional make-up artists to green-up their kits. I asked her to be my first interview victim on the Greenloop.

Lips Nvey Lip Lustre Armor Rose, Eyes Alima Cosmetics-Azure Model Amie

Hi Courtney, where are you from originally, what brought you to LA? Couldn’t have been clean air!

Ha, Yes, it was most definitely not the air quality! I was born and raised in Detroit. I made the “big move” in November ’07. In recent years, Detroit’s economy had been in a serious and vicious decline. Despite my love for the Motor City, I needed to find an outlet for my creativity, where I could still survive as an artist. I thought about New York, but my prerogative is, if one is going to pick up their lives; pack their cats and rabbit for a road trip, the destination should be somewhere warm.

Is it true what the mayor says, Los Angeles is fast becoming the capital of green fashion? There’s such a buzz with Hollywood celebrities going green, how does it affect professionals in your industry? What changes does it bring?

There is a lot of Buzz about the green movement, and it’s refreshing. I think LA has long been ahead of the game. Coming from the Midwest where post consumer recycling isn’t a cost efficient option, Los Angeleno’s recycle everyday.