Green Cotton

Theme of the Week: BAMBOO

Three Questions:

1) What fiber is the closest to bamboo in terms of processing?

2) Name one reason why bamboo may not always be environmentally friendly to process?

3) Name one company that sells 100% bamboo clothing?

Be the first to answer all three correctly and you win!

If you answer any one question correctly you will also be featured in the ‘winners circle’.

Email your answers to ecotique@gmail.com or simply post a comment.

PATAGONIA!

Patagonia is the first major US company to initiate sourcing organic cotton for their shirts, and they did so in 1996. In the early 1990’s, Patagonia issued am R&D study to look at the environmental impacts of all their fabrics and processing. Much to their surprise, cotton came out the worst. As a result, Patagonia took significant steps toward making the same products (at almost the same price) with organic fibers, and eliminating damaging pesticide and excessive water use in the process.

Interestingly, this was not a demand by Patagonia’s customers, it came from within management. In fact, Patagonia did not aggressively market the organic fibers much at that time, since their customers were not much concerned with the fabrics’ source at the time. However, since then, more than a handful of consumers and companies are now cognizant of and interested in where and how fabrics are sourced. Patagonia has been and continues to be a true pioneer in the green apparel space. To learn more about their steps toward sourcing organic cotton, check out the Footprint Chronicles at Patagonia.

This week’s Quiz Winner is ricepaperslidingdoor. Congratulations ricepapersldingdoor!

Honorable mention goes to Kelven Goodridge who guessed American Apparel in 2003.

Stay tuned for the next quiz question!

If you are a chocolate lover keen on organic blends, the DC Green festivals was the place to be last weekend. While I thought I was a relatively savvy organic chocolate consumer, the Festival proved me wrong with a handful of new brands in the category:

• Alter Ego (http://www.altereco-usa.com/main.php) offers coffee, tea, chocolate, rice, quinoa, sugar, hearts of palm). This company is very cool – with an all around eco-friendly and ethically conscious approach. While I had not seen or sampled their product before the festivals I can honestly say they have a very a very solid range of basic products: from rice, to sugar and coffee and tea, all available at a fair price, organically produced and fair trade certified. They had 4 varietals of chocolate on demo, each of which were produced in different corners of the world: Ghana, Bolivia, and elsewhere in Latin America. I believe they are available in Whole Foods as well, so check them out! (On a side note: Apparently, it is easiest to produce fair trade chocolate in Latin America since the facilities are all set up, and there are several cooperatives with experience in this area, and greater enforcements for quality control, but if anyone knows of other companies that are producing fair trade organic chocolate in Africa, please do share).

• Kallari Rainfamily (Roberto’s Recipe) Amazing new company*. From their business model to their exquisite cocoa complex notes, this company is incredible. Relatively new, yet not sold in Whole Foods or Trader Joes, or any other big retailer for that matter, Kallari Rainfamily is a family-owned cooperative located in the rainforest of Ecuador. The company not only supports the growing the cacao bean, but also transforms it into some of the most delectable chocolate I have ever tasted. If I am not mistaken, I believe the vendor mentioned they have already received requests from Swiss chocolate manufactures to receive some of their chocolate.

• Travel Chocolate. This is an innovative chocolate company, born out of an avid traveler-chocolate lover who has merged the two passions into one interesting product. With different travel destinations on each chocolate bar, the brand is well suited for airports, travel destinations and really anywhere - that transports the interested consumer into a virtual ‘chocolate destination’ with peace of mind that all ingredients are organically derived and ethically produced. Check it out!

As for older, more established companies, Dagoba http://www.dagobachocolate.com/) stood out as well with their panoply of flavors, recipes and aromas. Like many other chocolatiers at the festival, Dagoba is clearly dedicated to the art and science of cacao alchemy: transforming cacao beans into exquisite chocolate types and flavors. Dagoba embraces a philosophy and methodology known as Full Circle Sustainability™: blending equity, quality, ecology and community.

My favorite for the day however was Kallari’s vintage 75% cacao with fruity notes and floral aroma, much like a complex, aged wine. I highly recommend sampling this bar if you have the opportunity. I am not sure where they are sold yet in the US, but will post as soon as I discover!

The eco-fashion front at the Festival was equally as exciting and thriving as the chocolate. Stay tuned for my next post which will review some of the hottest and most interesting vendors in my view as well as point out some areas for improvement, and what’s new on the fabric scene. Stay tuned!

*I believe that this company is actually a non-profit. Stay on the look-out for this brand. While not inexpensive, it is truly delicious, and also makes you feel good that you are helping the local Ecuadorian economy and supporting organic agriculture.

Photo: From Flickr by MonkeyBites

Here’s to a powerful showing of ethical and green fashionistas in London this week. For the first time, eco and “people” friendly fashion acquired its own rightful place at the week-long event. ‘Esthetica’, the eco exhibition, featured designers from Ciel and Enamore to Davina Hawthorne and Samant Chauhan, some of the hottest, most talented designers in the field. Notably, many of these young artists not only demonstrate their uncanny ability to source creative eco products and materials for designs - all with low carbon footprints, but more than a few explicitly embrace fair and ethical trade practices.

We are entering a new generation in which it is not only possible to create and sell sexy, hip, environmentally conscious clothing, but it increasingly is a necessity. The very definition of hip, I believe, has transformed to include socially and environmentally conscious design practices.

Interestingly, Esthetica reveals a huge range in product, design, materials and approaches. Hetty Rose for example takes used high end Kimonos and integrates them into stunning, individually crafted shoes for women. While not inexpensive, these shoes are a work of art: contemporary, fun, elegant and hip. The best part too is knowing that the material, as re-used, is not contributing to additional carbonization of the planet.Also worth noting is Noir– which appears to be the sexiest, most striking line of the week. Proving that green can be hot and hip, Noir took an impirial, dark and almost militaristic approach to their sexy designs this year. Catchy indeed- the clothes are powerful and hot, serving to drive home even deeper that green-ing is achievable, one baby step at a time. Noir is not 100% organic, but they are working toward that goal, one thread at a time.

Finally, I’d like to make note of Samant Chauhan, a new designer from India, whose knitware work is obvious in its ingenuity. This man is clearly a visionary and one step ahead of the crowd in terms of his designs. While some may say, the designs appear too odd, off-beat or strange at times, I would argue that Samant may be onto something. Inspired by the Asian pulse of fashion, he bridges the gap between East and West: fusing two typically opposing paradigms to create one very unique look. Furthermore, given that Asia constitutes the fastest growing consumer market in the world, and houses close to 3 billion consumers — I can only guess that the work of designers like Samant will be increasingly influential.

clipped from www.londonfashionweek.co.uk Another new initiative at the Exhibition @ London Fashion Week is Estethica, it will be the hotspot for ethical fashion, designers will show collections founded on ecological and organic principles. Maintaining the highest standards in design and craftsmanship, all the labels here including Katharine Hamnett and From Somewhere are creating high end fashion without compromise. ECO SUSTAINABLE FASHION Estethica

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