Ecouterre » Green Designers

Vivienne Westwood Gives Virgin Atlantic Crew an Eco-Friendly Makeover

Jasmin Malik Chua — Thu, 02 May 2013 16:00:03 +0000

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Fashion “World Changer” Orsola De Castro Speaks Out On Textile Waste

Amy DuFault — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 19:00:16 +0000

In a perfect world, designers would have the ability to address all the environmental and social challenges fashion faces them with. For From Somewhere designer Orsola de Castro, co-founder of Esthetica, the sustainable showcase of London Fashion Week, it all began in 1997 when she started tackling the growing textile waste in the fashion industry.

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Council of Fashion Designers of America Forms “Sustainability Committee”

Jasmin Malik Chua — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 17:00:03 +0000

Photos by Loomstate

The Council of Fashion Designers of America has tapped Loomstate’s Scott Mackinlay Hahn and jewelry designer Melissa Joy Manning as the co-chairs of its first-ever “sustainability committee.” The group, which will include a steering committee of CFDA members such as Maria Cornejo, Victoria Bartlett, Pamela Love, and Tina Lutz, will “foster and support sustainability measures in the fashion industry through mentorship, education and collaboration,” the not-for-profit trade association announced on Monday—aptly, Earth Day. These industry experts are not only committed to socially and environmentally restorative business practices, according to a press release, but they’ll also “lead the charge, with the aim of inspiring and empowering designers to take practical and prosperous steps toward sustainable design.”

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Vivienne Westwood Chooses Winning Flag to Be Planted at North Pole

Amy DuFault — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 12:00:20 +0000

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Vivienne Westwood to Duchess Kate: Buy Less

Jasmin Malik Chua — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 13:00:25 +0000

Dame Vivienne Westwood has only one piece of counsel for the erstwhile Kate Middleton: Buy less. “I don’t have any advice to her, except I think it would be great if she wore the same clothes over and again, because that’s very good for the environment and it would send out a very nice message,” the legendary British designer told reporters before the showing of the Fall/Winter 2013 Red Label collection at London Fashion Week on Sunday. The longtime environmental activist also distributed a “climate revolution charter” that urged people to “buy less, choose well, make it last.”

PREVIOUSLY ON ECOUTERRE: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge…Secret Thrift-Store Shopper?

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Iris van Herpen Debuts World’s First 3D-Printed Flexible Dresses

Jasmin Malik Chua — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 21:27:59 +0000

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Issey Miyake Creates Heat-Retaining Menswear From Recycled Polyester

Jasmin Malik Chua — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 13:00:29 +0000

Issey Miyake’s timing couldn’t be more apt. As temperatures at Paris Men’s Fashion Week plunged below zero on Thursday—and the City of Lights faced its worst blizzard conditions in 20 years—the Franco-Japanese fashion house feted a lightweight, heat-retaining wardrobe that almost seemed to anticipate climate change’s role in worsening winters. Sure enough, the blinding cavalcade of quilted overcoats, sporty jackets, hooded anoraks, and utilitarian cargo pants provided more than a few nods to the future, imagined or prophesied. Metallic accents gave way to gilded panels, which yielded to reflective suits of gold, silver, and bronze. (The last was said to generate as much warmth as five or six emergency blankets, but without the bulk.)

PREVIOUSLY ON ECOUTERRE: Issey Miyake Unfolds Origami-Inspired “132 5″ Eco-Fashion Collection

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Susan Woo Wins 2013 Ecco Domani Award for Sustainable Design

Jasmin Malik Chua — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 16:00:23 +0000

Congratulations are in order for New York City designer Susan Woo. The Gotham native is the 2013 winner of the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award for Sustainable Design, a mantle previously worn by the likes of Titania Inglis, Tara St. James of Study NY, John Patrick of Organic, and Bodkin’s Eviana Hartman. Bestowed by Italian winemaker Ecco Domani, the prize comes with a $25,000 grant for staging a runway show or presentation during New York Fashion Week.

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Stella McCartney Designs Virtual Badge to Protest Violence Against Women

Jasmin Malik Chua — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 23:00:27 +0000

Stella McCartney has designed a virtual badge to help raise awareness about violence against women. The symbol, a white ribbon rendered in gold, will feature prominently in a two-week online campaign designed to coincide with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 25. The initiative will run on the Facebook and Twitter pages of McCartney and her fellow PPR brands, including Gucci and Puma. Social-media users can also share their support by downloading the badge and matching banners from Twibbon.

+ Foundation for Women’s Dignity & Rights

+ PPR Group

[Via WWD]

Meet Gong Jia Qi, Winner of China’s 2012 EcoChic Design Award

Christina Dean, Redress HK — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 18:00:28 +0000

Ecouterre is the official media sponsor of the 2012 EcoChic Design Award.

China ushered a new era of sustainability late last month when it hosted the nation’s first mainstream eco-fashion design competition. Organized by Redress, a Hong Kong-based nonprofit dedicated to reducing the environmental impact of the Asian fashion industry, the 2012 EcoChic Design Award China presented the textile-waste-reducing designs of 10 finalists to an audience of over 500 industry representatives. While all the designers showed great promise, the top prize went to Gong Jia Qi, a student at the Raffles Design Institute in Shanghai. Gong, who was inspired by Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, reconstructed five garments using unsold stock from Taobao, one of China’s leading online retailers. We checked in with Gong to talk about her experience, what sustainability means to her, and how she intends to parlay her win—with a little help from Esprit—into a full-fledged career.

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Carlo Volpi Challenges Notions of Masculinity With Campy, Colorful Knits

Morgana Matus — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 19:00:40 +0000

It’s easy to understand why someone like Carlo Volpi would have a deep and abiding passion for wool. The breathable fiber is a natural insulator that can be weighted to keep its wearer warm in winter or cool in summer. It’s also flexible, easy to manipulate, and easy on the environment. As a man who knits, however, Volpi is a bit of rare breed, which explains why his own take on the centuries-old practice is less than conventional. For his thesis project at the Royal College of Art in London, Volpi experimented with stitch types, gauges, and textures to create a flamboyant menswear collection that turns traditional notions of masculinity on their heads.

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Vega Wang’s Electroluminescent Garments Are Out of This World

Bridgette Meinhold — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 17:00:55 +0000

Vega Zaishi Wang’s “Alpha Lyrae” collection wouldn’t look out of place on the set of TRON 3. Named for one of the celestial bodies in our night sky, the eight-piece lineup harnesses electroluminescent technology to evoke the haunting beauty of the cosmos. The garments made their official debut in September at The Creators Project event in Beijing, where Wang teamed up with UFO Media Lab, electronic musician Zhang Shou Wang, and the lighting wizards at Top Right Optoelectronics to create an immersive, three-dimensional environment for her otherworldly designs. Consider this one small step for a fashion designer, one giant leap for fashion design.

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Manufacture NY: A Fashion Incubator That Champions Local Manufacturing

Amy DuFault — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 17:00:36 +0000

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Michelle Lowe-Holder Turns Fashion Industry Castoffs Into Dramatic Jewelry

Alyssa Alimurung — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 21:00:10 +0000

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Donna Karan Recieves Clinton Global Citizen Award for Haiti Relief Work

Jasmin Malik Chua — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 12:00:47 +0000

Photo by s_bukley/Shutterstock

Donna Karan made a surprise appearance on Monday night as the seventh recipient of the 2012 Clinton Global Citizen Award, an honor she shared with the Right Reverend Christopher Senyonjo and Pepe Julian Onziema of Uganda; Mexico’s Carlos Slim Helú; Denis O’Brien, chairman and founder of the Digicel Group; Luis A. Moreno, president of the Inter-American Development Bank; and Katie Stagliano, founder and chief executive gardener of Katie’s Krops. The fashion designer took to the podium at the Sheraton Hotel in New York City to speak about her earthquake-relief efforts in Haiti with former president Bill Clinton’s Clinton Global Initiative. She also delved into her work at Urban Zen, the label-cum-philanthropic-foundation she founded in 2007.

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EcoSalon, Textile Arts Center Host a Sustainable Fashion’s Night Out

Amanda Coen — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 12:00:31 +0000

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Stella McCartney Introduces Biodegradable Soles for Fall/Winter 2012

Jasmin Malik Chua — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 21:00:53 +0000

Stella McCartney’s fall lineup of pumps and boots isn’t just kind to animals; it’s also gentle on the environment. First spotted on the Paris Fashion Week runways in February, the cruelty-free kicks feature soles made from Apinat, a biodegradable thermoplastic derived from natural—and renewable—raw materials. Each wedge of white provides a strong contrast to the faux-croc and pleather uppers, lending the shoes a sporty sneaker-pump vibe that should appeal to girly girls and tomboys alike.

+ Fall/Winter Shoes

+ Stella McCartney

Vivienne Westwood Wants a Climate Revolution at Spring 2013 London Fashion Week

Jasmin Malik Chua — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 12:00:17 +0000

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Christopher Raeburn Takes Flight at Spring 2013 London Fashion Week

Jasmin Malik Chua — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 12:00:01 +0000

Upcycling impresario Christopher Raeburn returned to London Fashion Week on Sunday with his Spring/Summer 2013 women’s collection—the second he’s dedicated to the fairer sex. His springboard for inspiration? The concept of flight, or more specifically, the first female aviators. Raeburn stumbled upon a cache of ’50s-era flight maps, printed on silk instead of paper so pilots could find their way to safety even in a downpour. (“The intricate print is as interesting to decipher as it is visually impressive,” Raeburn says.) The reclaimed materials set the tone for the entire lineup, which he punctuated with laminated lace, decommissioned parachute nylons, quilting derived from recycled plastic bottles, and a subtle camouflage print on ripstop cotton.

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Gretchen Jones Pays Tribute to Joan Baez at Spring 2013 NY Fashion Week

Jasmin Malik Chua — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 12:00:06 +0000

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Laura Siegel Dresses the Modern Nomad at Spring 2013 NY Fashion Week

Jasmin Malik Chua — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 20:00:37 +0000

Photos by Amanda Coen for Ecouterre.

Deserts aren’t the barren wildernesses they’re made out to be. Like the vivid bouquets that spring unexpectedly from the arid landscape, Laura Siegel’s Spring/Summer 2013 line juxtaposes somber hues of olive, umber, and terracotta with bursts of neon, electric pink, and emerald. “The collection is about life in the desert and what that means from different cultures’ perspectives,” says Siegel, who presented at New York Fashion Week on Wednesday. The Parsons The New School for Design graduate harnesses artisanal techniques like leather-embossing, embroidery, weaving, and Shibori dyeing by collaborating with cooperatives in India and Peru. (Full review to follow.)

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Samantha Pleet Turns Back the Sands of Time at Spring 2013 New York Fashion Week

Jasmin Malik Chua — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 16:00:37 +0000

Photos by Amanda Coen for Ecouterre

To say that Samantha Pleet’s Spring/Summer 2013 collection is epic isn’t a matter of hyperbole. Presented at the Wolverine store in Manhattan’s Lower East Side at New York Fashion Week on Wednesday, “Sands of Time” draws its cues from the ancient societies of the Fertile Crescent and the 19th century explorers who uncovered their stories. “I wanted pieces that could be displayed in a museum,” Pleet tells Ecouterre, describing her prints and silhouettes as “almost biblical” and “mythic” in nature. (Full review to follow.)

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Jesse Kamm Exemplifies California Cool With Her Handprinted Eco-Apparel

Kirin Rinehart — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 12:00:17 +0000

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FIRST LOOK: Stella McCartney’s Lower-Price, Eco-Friendly Lingerie Line

Jasmin Malik Chua — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 18:00:03 +0000

Meet “Stella,” British designer Stella McCartney’s new, lower-price range of saucy underpinnings designed for a “nearly nude wearing experience.” Comprising French Calais lace and silk, together with organic-cotton gussets and recycled metal hardware, the eco-friendly collection offers five different bra shapes (molded underwire, low plunge, strapless, and a seamless, underwire-free style) in a variety of smooth, mesh, and lace fabrics.

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Is New York City’s Garment Center Worth Saving?

Anthony Lilore and Erica Wolf, Save the Garment Center — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 20:00:50 +0000

At this very moment, thousands of people in Midtown Manhattan are designing and manufacturing apparel all within a 10-block radius in New York City’s Garment Center. The innovation, opportunity, and jobs that the Garment Center provides is essential not only to the New York City economy but also to the American fashion industry as a whole. In this 100-year-old neighborhood, the trim-and-fabric suppliers, pattern-makers, sewers, pressers, and finishers act as a self-sustaining ecosystem, providing support for established and emerging designers all over America.

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