Your Daily Thread is an online green lifestyle magazine for the Los Angeles community.  This hub connects environmentally relevant information with LA’s green tastemakers.  YDT recently redesigned the site, adding in-depth neighborhood green guides (issue one is devoted to Echo Park & Silver Lake) and episodes of YDTV like Green Your Closet and Drunken DIY Jamming. As it turns out, the two founders of YDT, Lauren and Tracy were not dancing around drunk on camera (though that would have been great), they were actually learning how to make brandied fig jam with Lauren’s Mom on a farm. Yeh, big difference. Anywho, it turns out making jam isn’t so hard after all, which is actually very exciting!

The two ladies behind the drunken jam ruse of yesteryarn recently spoke about their revamp of YDT. “Oftentimes we don’t realize what great resources we have right in our own backyard, so we’re thrilled to be able to provide this service to our community,” states Lauren (whose mother’s “backyard” is actually an orchard and goat farm.) Tracy went on, “We’re excited to bring more detailed coverage to the spread out and often isolated neighborhoods of Los Angeles.” Amen to that, sister.

It turns out these blossoming green media moguls at Your Daily Thread will soon be expanding beyond the confines of LA to other major cities like New York, Chicago and San Francisco.  In the meantime, look out for YDT’s green holiday guide and more episodes of Lauren and Tracy getting their eco-Angeleno on.

Thank goodness Stephanie Rogers is here to tell us about non-toxic nail polish! No more looks from the manicurist when I tell them “no polish please.” Even a treehugger like me can be Priti after all.

I’m in love – with nail polish. A few years ago, I all but gave up on the idea of ever having a nice-looking manicure again after swearing off conventional polishes full of toxic ingredients and experimenting unsuccessfully with the few ‘natural’ nail polish brands on the market.

Then, I found out about Priti NYC, a boutique brand created by Kim D’Amato. Priti polishes contain no toluene, formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate (DBP) or petroleum ingredients and are safe for children and mothers-to-be.

Read more about Priti NYC at EcoChick.com…

Eco Geek Alert: Do you have a genius eco-themed Halloween costume? Is your environmentally-themed DIY creation so cute, clever, or controversial that you feel you deserve to be honored by your fellow environmentalists? Enter Inhabitat’s Green Halloween Costume Photo Contest! Submit your photo by November 1st to win a solar-powered Bogo flashlight or a $100 gift certificate to Inhabitatshop. This is the perfect way to motivate all you eco freaks to green your Halloween. Wait a minute, Eco Freak…that’s a brilliant idea. Just cross Rick James’ Super Freak with an eco geek and you get Eco Freak…a tall geeky cyclist in red leather pants proclaiming “I’m Ed Begley, bitch.”

Or not…

Conscious Planet execs Bianca and Michael Alexander recently moved from the sunny coast of California to the Windy City of Illinois to create a Platinum LEED-certified television studio at Chicago’s new eco business mecca, Green Exchange. As if that wasn’t ambitious enough, the two fashion-forward media moguls behind Conscious Living TV and Soul of Green have embarked on a mission to produce Vert Couture, the very first eco fashion show Chicago Fashion Week has ever had.

What inspired this husband and wife team to take on such a massive production, in addition to all their other projects? “Chicago has some of the most amazing eco-designers in the world, yet there was no show during Chicago Fashion Week to promote their work.  We basically saw that if we didn’t take responsibility for putting on a sustainable fashion show during Chicago fashion week that it wouldn’t happen. The city’s Director of Fashion, Melissa Gamble was also extremely supportive in helping to bring this show to fruition, and we have received a tremendous outpouring of support from Chicago’s conscious community.”

Vert will be featuring fresh designs from up-and-coming green seamsters Vaute Couture, Frei Designs, Elise Bergman, and Bryant McLemore Smith, along with veteran eco fashion line Mountains of the Moon. Conscious Planet has ensured that stylish examples of sustainability reach way beyond the runway. Vert Couture is contributing to the new Greensburg, Kansas wind farm by purchasing travel and energy offsets for the show through Native Energy. All their printed promotional material from posters to press kits is printed on recycled paper with eco-friendly ink. And for every organic Veev-spiked “Treetini Cocktail” served, a tree will be planted. Even getting your swerve on at Vert Couture is green. Bottom’s up people, let’s save this great planet.

We asked Bianca and Michael what kind of impact they most hoped to make on CFW, and their answer was very appropriate to their new home-it was full of HOPE. “The City of Chicago and Mayor Daley are extremely committed to making this the greenest city in the country. Given the waste and un-sustainability inherent in the fashion industry, we feel that by producing VC and highlighting the amazing eco-designers that are comparable to what you would see on runways in Paris, Milan and New York, that we can not only influence consumer demand for eco-fashion but that designers and buyers will see that you can have amazing style and be green. In doing so, we hope that several years down the road all the shows and designers will be green.”

We hope so too.  If you’re a Chi-town fashion hound, be sure to get your ticket to Vert Couture and support the sustainable evolution of Chicago style.

For those of you who have not yet experienced the beauty and tragedy of Pamela Anderson and Richie Rich’s new organic clothing line, here’s the short and sweet (like a vienna sausage) on the line from environmentally-fueled gossip rag Ecorazzi, “Called A*Muse, the new organic clothing line consists of bathing suits, hoodies, zip ups, a full range of casual dresses, and beachwear. It debuted to mostly mixed reviews during New Zealand fashion week — with critics calling it everything from “fun and playful” to “Borat-inspired“. Anderson and her partner designer Richie Rich are now embarking on a world-wide promotional tour to debut the range in major cities in North America, Europe and Asia.”

I’m thinking more “world-wide pharmacy tour.” Please enjoy the video and decide for yourselves.

Questions for you, the viewers…

1. Why is Pam holding up her A*Muse wrap/dress/mumu throughout the entire press conference?
2. Is the A*Musing part of the line that the clothes don’t actually stay on without some serious effort by the wearer?
3. Why aren’t the mannequins behind them wearing any clothes?
4. Why is Richie Rich always in roller skates now?
5. What are they on exactly?

Actually, only seven… three of them already live in Los Angeles;  Vanessa Meier, Rachel Avalon and Jessica Williamson. Both Zion Francis and Juliana Tran are from Austin, TX. Ariel Clay is coming from San Francisco. Leilani Munter from Cornelius, NC. Rachael Joy from Mount Rainier, MD. Erika Schmid from Portland, OR and Karen Pannochia from Miami.

It wasn’t easy for Project Green Search to narrow it down from 130+ entries to just ten. The online voting was a bit of a confusing mess, because the design platform we chose to build the web site only offered that voting option as a preset. Many people ended up voting by mistake while they were simply trying to access a contestant page… there was no instruction manual or practice run, but it was the only option we had. Wordpress or nothing. We were dead set on launching this competition, so we made it work. We will do better next year.

We  asked the judges not to look at the number of stars, the rating, only consider how many votes each entry received. All things considered, online vote popularity didn’t feature all that much into their decision. They looked closely at modeling potential, education, screen presence, media background and experience. It boiled down to running averages on each judge’s top ten submission in order of preference, inviting to the finals those who featured most frequently, the highest on each judge’s list.

We’re confident that the ten women picked to participate in the finals represent the best expression of majority verdict by the judges. It wasn’t easy. Competitions create more losers than winners, that’s what I want to address here. We don’t cast Project Green Search in the same light as your run of the mill cut throat reality TV show. PGS is much more of a collaboration, developing talent to bring attention to issues all dear to our heart. In a sense, the winner, should and will, represent all the other contestants, become a spokesperson for all the women who entered this contest, which isn’t a contest really, it’s more like a direct action!

Continue reading 10 Green Girls Are Off To Hollywood!

By Darrah De Jour

Yogamatic.com is gaining a lot of attention these days as the only customize-able, eco-yoga mat out there. The Santa Monica-based e-commerce company has been featured on Extra, The Ellen Show, E! and in the hallowed pages of leading magazines, like Shape and Marie Claire. Taking individuality to the next level, Yogamatic.com lets yoginis design their own custom, one-of-a-kind yoga mat.

Whether a hobbyist or professional photographer, take your craft to the mat. Upload a photo onto Yogamatic.com- and Voila – you are the matrix of your one-off eco-mat. Nobody else in the gym or at the resort will have your eco-mat. Plus, you can also choose from over 200 designs in their online Gallery. Images range from the Dalai Lama to Barack Obama’s inaugural speech, foraying into pop art and even more irreverent images (i.e. “Strip.”)

Made from natural rubber and recycled content, the mats are printed using water-soluble ink, so they are non-toxic. There is no lead, phthalates or chemicals. Ever. You can collect different mats and gift them this holiday season. Active in philanthropy, the two-year old company got a boost when Donna Karan and Calvin Klein created exclusive mats where 100% of profits benefit “Fashion Targets Breast Cancer.” And now Alice + Olivia designer du jour, Stacey Bendet has two mats with her classic neon flavor, sold in A + Os Malibu Lumber Yard store and at Aliceandolivia.com. Five percent of proceeds on all mats purchased from YM benefit the leading environmental charity Global Green.

With their new web-series POSERS: Yogastyles of the Movers and Shakers, Yogamatic.com is turning stereotypes about Yoga upside down. This edgy “yogamentary” captures a wide array of vibrant Los Angeles personalities. Actors, musicians, captains of industry, and celebrity instructors offer their take on Yoga and how it has impacted and transformed their daily life. Including Academy Award nominated actress Mariel Hemingway, Grammy nominated singer/songwriter Michelle Branch, celebrity instructor Mandy Ingber, Skinny Bitch bestselling author Rory Freedman, Yoga Works’ Vinnie Marino (recently hailed “L.A.’s Yoga King” by the New York Times), Eco Gift Festival Founder Tommy Rosen, instructor Kia Miller and many more…Check it out.

The Battalion at Los Angeles Fashion Week was truly worth the hour and a half of rush hour traffic it took to get down to Geffen Contemporary at MOCA for a 5pm show. Linda and Chrys Wong, the sisters behind The Battalion, presented an impressive collection for Spring 2010, L’Atelier De Danse.

Tulle-clad models from Ford and Q did their egret-like walks down the runway in the most gorgeous eco collection yet. Not only that, in classic Linda Wong style, “they are clothes you could run away in,” meaning you could eat, sleep, party, or get chased in…or perhaps all of the above.

Linda’s attention to detail was what made The Battalion’s Spring 2010 such a stand out. It seemed she took the extra mile on each garment in the collection. The “Pete” faux denim vest of grey bamboo seemed simple until you got a good look at the tuxedo lapel and the classic jean jacket V applique on the back shoulders. The comfy white tee got asymmetrical sleeves. Oh, and the fringe! Linda created an uber glamorous effect with super fine razor fringe draping provocatively down the front of an otherwise casual top or slinking down just one side of a black evening dress. (One of my favorite examples of this was the Luxe vest which looked a bit like angel wings.)

L’Atelier De Danse remained true to a Kirov Ballet rehearsal palette: black, white, amaranth pink, heather grey, and some renegade navy. Unusually subtle for spring, but refreshing in its unpredictability.

The Wong sisters describe their season with impeccable self-awareness. “Spring 2010 is about fluidity, transparency, and movement. We imagine dancers in a naturally lit atelier, dressed up in various costumes that are made of tulle, fringe, and paper thin jersey. If women are going back to basics in the coming seasons, we want their clothes to be simple but sincere. We want their wardrobe staples to be wearable, but dreamy. We want them to dance, dream, and fall in love like the dancers who have inspired this collection.”

Well, this dancer simply can’t wait to dance, dream, and fall in love…in her new Battalion threads.