Analogue Chic

Posts Tagged ‘green fashion’

My hairdresser is awesome.

Michelle, at Synergy Salon, is putting together a holiday shopping event, featuring a group of her creative clients– including me!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

6:00 to 8:00pm

at Synergy Salon

53 East Avenue

New Canaan, CT

203-966-5655

Besides me, I know there will be an amazing jewelry artisan, and perhaps another bagmaker like myself.  I will have my original handbags, small zipper pouches, flower brooches, and perhaps some reconstructed clothing.

[View with PicLens]

{UPDATE: This post is now an entry in the Blog Off at What Designers. Vote for me!}

The standing joke among we handmade artists is that any  money we make from selling our crafts goes into feeding our addiction for pretty supplies and cute things made by friends.  In that spirit, a few months ago I treated myself to a Grace Napoleon original, a pink, ruffly wrap sweater.  But seriously, these purchases and the bonds we make in our raucous real-life meetings and in online forums are an important conduit for exchanging ideas and business advice.  In an effort to record this movement of self-employed women artists, and to preserve the lessons and inspiration I glean from them, I am beginning a project of interviewing women who have inspired me as an independent fashion designer. 

I met Grace at a meeting of our local new-wave craft club, and watched with admiration and curiosity as she handstitched her woolly holiday projects.  I finally sat with her on a recent evening for tea and dessert to talk about her evolution as a textile artist.

Grace is a Danbury, CT-area artist who designs and creates women’s clothing made from clothing– that is, she deconstructs secondhand clothes and re-assembles them in unexpected and charming ways.  Every new seam is stitched by hand.  She offers her clothes and other fabric crafts, along with vintage housewares, in her online store at Etsy.com and at regional craft shows and flea markets.

Read the rest of this entry »

GreenLAGirl has given me a few great links today:

• Now you can return your plastic cosmetic containers to stores and beauty counters for recycling.
• Target will be featuring a line of organic cotton clothes for men and women, designed by Loomstate, starting in April.  There are ethical questions, but at least it’s a start.  Locals:  I checked with the Bethel, CT store today, and they were not able to tell me if they were going to carry this line.  I’ll keep checking, and if they don’t have it, hopefully it will be available online– I’ll keep you posted.

And another item that has been nagging at me:

A mild debate (in which I seem to be the only participant) about whether "vegan" fashion is also environmentally sustainable, especially when it comes to shoes.  This was sparked by a lot of rahrah-ing about Stella McCartney’s vegan shoes.

Read the rest of this entry »