Today’s conscious perfume lover can now find beauty in a nature-based signature scent.

When Coco Chanel famously said, “Wear perfume wherever you want to be kissed,” she was no doubt planning herself a romantic February 14th. Sales of perfume always go up dramatically around Valentine’s Day, but beyond our desire to feel more attractive to others, why do we “wear” perfume?

Like our choice to wear certain clothes, we simply want to carry around something beautiful that reflects how we feel inside. Today’s conscious consumer, increasingly aware of the benefits of environmentally friendly and sustainable practices, can now find that beauty in a nature-based signature scent.

Jenny Pao, a San Francisco based holistic healer and founder of Nectar Essences has been developing homeopathic flower-essence sprays for her bespoke clients since 2007. “I had so many people ask for aromatic counterparts to our healing sprays.” So just in time for Valentine’s Day, Pao has launched three new organic perfumes. Made with 97% certified organic ingredients, they’re botanical and free of synthetic fragrances and chemicals.

Amethyst captures the scent of pink rose and scarlet rhododendron along with hints of cedar, nutmeg and cacao. Hints of amber and sandalwood underlie an aromatic bouquet of five different roses in Rose Quartz While Turquoise carries the scent of night blooming jasmine and Ylang Ylang balanced with a woodsy, equatorian Palo Santo.

“Organic perfume is more subtle than synthetic fragrance,” Pao says. “It is never overpowering and the scent has depth.” She recommends that the perfumes are reapplied on your pulse points every 3 hours.

In addition to providing a burst of olfactory heaven, each perfume is infused with gemstones for balancing emotional and mental well-being. The perfect way to start a romantic evening.

A scene inspired by a midnight desert, a Warhol muse, and personal tragedy at Gretchen Jones’ Fall/Winter 2012 presentation.

Outside it was snowing, but inside Chelsea’s Root Drive-In, a desert had been realized.

This wasn’t your sun-kissed, white linen and turquoise desert, though. This was darker, more melancholy – the desert at midnight. The room was pitch black, save for small spotlights trained on the models, who stood on wooden platforms arranged in a circular pattern among sand and stones. In one corner, a smoke machine created a haze. In the other, the Gang Gang Dance’s Brian DeGraw spun mellow electronica.

The occasion was sustainable designer Gretchen Jones’ Fall/Winter 2012 presentation, and when I spoke with Jones about the inspiration behind her new collection, the decor made perfect sense.

“This season I’ve been dealing a lot with life and death and how they’re intertwined,” said Jones, whose father passed away shortly after her premiere solo presentation last season. This new collection is in homage to the man, whose Apache background served as Jones’ primary design muse.

Like every season, Jones also drew inspiration from literary and musical influences: The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe, Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll, and, appropriately, Desertshore by Nico, a 1970s German singer and Andy Warhol muse.

The resulting collection was striking, with strong silhouettes and decadent but sustainable materials. Among the most eye-catching ensembles were a digitally printed silk floor-length gown and a sleeveless pantsuit made from burnt orange wool lattice.

“The textiles tell the real story,” Jones told me. “I use them to inform the audience about where I am.” She explained that the wool lattice represents the contrast between life and death, while a purple crocodile print embodies the process of transformation that she’s undergoing.

The outfits were accessorized with hats from Little Doe, boots from Durango, and archived Hopi, Zuni, and Navajo jewelry from Ruby+George. Minimal make-up and cracked turquoise nail polish (which I’m totally rocking this spring) completed the models’ looks.

Some of our favorite pieces, along with close-ups of the details, are featured below.

Images: Jessica Marati

ORGANIC by John Patrick gives us his “beautiful vision” of sustainable fashion.

To the toe-tapping tunes of The Beatles, designer John Patrick debuted his Fall 2012 ORGANIC collection at a boutique event space in the Garment District for New York’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

Under the heading “A Beautiful Vision,” the show featured a romantic collection inspired by a Julia Margaret Cameron photograph called A Beautiful Vision, Julia Duckworth, taken of Cameron’s niece (and future mother of painter Vanessa Bell and writer Virginia Woolf) in 1872.

Using the photograph as a starting point, collaborator and illustrator Mike Ellis interpreted his own “beautiful vision” in graphics for the invitation and show set. “When the illustration came I was stunned at how magically he captured what I was thinking and feeling,” Patrick said in a press release.

The fall line itself was heavy on textures and textiles, with a dizzying array of eco materials parading down the runway, including handmade metallic lace, sustainable recycled wool, biodegradable cotton cupro, vegetable-tanned leather, hand-loomed Angora, and a kaleidoscope of digitally printed silk from London. Patrick also worked with North Carolina-based Raleigh Denim on a handful of jeans in the collection.

The event marked the first New York Fashion Week runway show for the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist – he had previously hosted presentations – and featured environmentally conscious model/actress (and long-time John Patrick fan) Shalom Harlow in the front row.

Here, some of our favorite looks and snapshots from after the show.

Images: Jessica Marati, Hans P. Kraus Jr. Fine Photographs

Green jean, baby.

In 1873, Levi Strauss & Company invented the first blue jeans, a durable pair of trousers that could hold up to the task of constructing America. The rest is history. Today, Levi’s 501 jeans are the world’s best-selling item of clothing, and the blue jean, whether skinny or bell-bottomed, has been a global fashion staple for as long as most of us can remember.

Levi’s commitment to social responsibility has similar historical clout. During the Great Depression, for instance, Levi’s instituted shorter work weeks to prevent the massive lay-offs that were happening around the country. Levi Strauss factories were racially integrated long before the Civil Rights Act mandated it. And in the 1980s, Levi’s became the first American corporation to publicly address the HIV/AIDS epidemic sweeping the nation. The fight against HIV/AIDS continues to be an issue central to the company’s not-for-profit Levi Strauss Foundation.

In addition to its social responsibility efforts, Levi’s has also been a pioneer in the world of sustainability. Their current eco-efforts are founded on an intensive study of the entire product lifecycle of their best-sellers – the Levi’s 501 jeans and Dockers Original Khakis – conducted in 2007. From this study came the idea to further evaluate – or “E-valuate”, as they call it – 11 of their most popular items using primary data across several categories: contribution to climate change, energy use, renewable energy use, water consumption, land occupation, qualified sustainably grown fiber content, waste generation, materials efficiency, recycled content, land transformation, eutrophication, and restricted substance list adherence.

The Good

From the product lifecycle analysis, Levi’s had a better idea of their strengths and weaknesses as a company. They made the decision to hone in on two key phases – cotton production and consumer use – and they have aimed to reduce their impact in the energy, water, chemicals, and materials aspects of apparel manufacturing.

By making the decision to focus, Levi’s has taken a “do less, but better” approach to sustainability marketing. Over the past five years, they’ve made particularly significant strides in the area of water preservation. In 2010, they introduced the Water<Less jean collection, which used up an average of 28% and up to 96% less water in the finishing process than traditional jeans.

“What’s different about the Water<Less collection is that we’re still using the same materials and techniques to create finishes for our jeans but we’ve substantially reduced water’s role in the equation,” said Carl Chiara, Director of Brand Concepts and Special Projects. “Sometimes, the way to achieve a more sustainable design is to rethink a traditional process and find a way to do it better.”

A typical pair of jeans consumes 919 gallons of water throughout its lifecycle, including what’s needed to irrigate the cotton crop, produce the pant, and wash them at home. For Water<Less jeans, Levi’s made simple changes like reducing the number of washing machine cycles by combining multiple wet cycle processes into a single wet process, incorporating ozone processing into the garment washing, and removing the water from the stone wash.

Levi’s also aims to change how customers use their products, after finding that nearly 60 percent of energy use involved in a product’s lifecycle happens after the jeans are taken home. Their “Care Tag for Our Planet” campaign instructs Levi’s owners to wash less often, use cold water in the cycle, air-dry jeans on a line, and donate old jeans to Goodwill, using innovative methods like a crowdsourced design competition for air-dry solutions.

The Bad

Apart from some backlash over a handful of tasteless ads, Levi’s reputation has been pretty pristine for the past few decades. That’s not to say their conscience is completely clean. In the 1990s, Levi’s was embroiled in a scandal involving factories in the Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth territory of the United States located in the Pacific Ocean. Though jeans from these factories were branded “Made in the USA,” they were produced primarily by imported laborers operating under “slavelike” conditions: 12-hour work days, seven-day work weeks, poor living conditions, payment well under the minimum wage, and an atmosphere of fear and control.

The high-profile case spurred Levi’s to establish a workplace code of conduct for its manufacturing suppliers. In 1991, the company released the first version of their Terms of Engagement, which spells out the ethical standards, legal requirements, environmental requirements, and community involvement that all of their suppliers and contractors must agree to and abide by.

The Questionable

Levi’s has a strong track record of operating responsibly, and is considered a pioneer in sustainability by many in the industry. The company has compiled an impressive body of information, literature, and resources surrounding its operations, and has been transparent both with its failings as well as its dedication to improve.

However, much of this information isn’t necessarily translated to Levi’s customers. The other day, I popped into a Levi’s retail store in lower Manhattan, expecting significant promotion around the Water<Less campaign, or the Better Cotton Initiative jeans shipped out just a few months ago. Within the store, I couldn’t find any information concerning sustainability, and when I asked a salesperson for information about their sustainable jeans, she said she had no idea what I was talking about. When I mentioned water, she said that most of the denim in the store was made using 96% less water than usual – a pretty big exaggeration of the truth, which is that the Water<Less process uses on average 28% and up to 96% less water than usual.

It was only when leaving the store that I finally stumbled upon a mention of Levi’s sustainable initiatives: a wooden “Care Tag for the Planet” sandwich board placed just outside the front entrance. Funny enough, the actual care instructions faced the wall, while an advertisement for a 30% off sale had prime real estate.

Levi’s is one of the few major apparel brands making waves in the world of sustainable manufacturing. That’s a major accomplishment, but it also comes with a major responsibility. Levi’s is missing the opportunity to educate a wider audience about the importance of sustainability by leaving its efforts out of its mainstream marketing.

A November New York Times article described a recent scene at Levi Strauss HQ:

After being briefed on the cotton initiative by the sustainability team, the new Chief Marketing Officer, Rebecca Van Dyck nodded her approval, then asked, “But do our customers know?”

They won’t if you don’t tell them.

SEE ALSO:

Behind the Label: H&M’s Conscious Collection

Behind the Label: McDonald’s See What We’re Made Of Campaign

The Fall/Winter 2012 presentation from Crop by David Peck featured versatile dresses, separates, and evening gowns inspired by the designer’s personal history. 

For his latest collection, designer David Peck went home, both metaphorically with his design inspiration and literally with his garment production.

The Fall/Winter 2012 presentation for Crop by David Peck, held at the LEED-certified Crosby Street Hotel,  featured designs inspired by the multiple layers and textures contained in his background and that of his wife. The idea struck during a visit to New York’s Lower East Side Tenement Museum, where the restored homes of former immigrants ignited an interest in the couple’s own history.The result is a very personal collection. Lightweight silks feature digitally-printed images depicting scenes from Peck’s life: blossoms in Paris, autumn leaves in Colorado, a boat on the New York harbor. Garment production takes place in the couple’s hometown of Houston, Texas, with textiles dyed in the United States and select fabrics imported from fair trade co-operatives in India. Peck also donates 10 percent of his profits to a cause associated with each new collection’s theme. This season, the chosen charity is Covenant House, an organization that provides shelter and support to homeless youth.

The collection itself is heavy on versatile separates, casual dresses, and cocktail shifts, which Peck explained could be layered between seasons and make the easy transition from day to night. There were also a few evening gowns thrown into the mix, each a romantic vision of digitally-printed, beautifully-draped silk habotai, organza, and chiffon.

“I want to elevate the perception of sustainability and show that you can still do higher level fashion while sticking to sustainable principles,” Peck said.

This selection of pieces from the presentation show that Peck can achieve just that.

Images: Jessica Marati

10 top eco-friendly picks for a weekend away from this month’s Fashion sponsor, Clary Sage Organics.

Clary Sage Organics‘ Co-owner, Patti Cazzato, spent over 20 years in the retail industry honing her chops with the likes of industry giants like the Gap and Levi’s before starting her own consciously curated company with partner Daniel Kalish.

“We believe in empowering people to live healthy, thoughtful, and ecologically responsible lives,” says Patti. “Toward that end, our store serves as a center for holistic wellness, offering the best organic fashions, sustainable beauty products, and a comprehensive array of time-honored natural medicine programs.”

That’s what we call a sustainably rounded business.

We asked Patti to pick some of her favorite things from her shop’s shelves. If you like these picks (or your own even better), just got to the Clary Sage Organics site, enter the code LEAPYEAR at checkout and get 20% off!

The trend for the double cuff makes a strong aesthetic statement and gives a feeling of indestructibility to the wearer.

For the past few seasons, cuffs have been decorating the wrists of fashion’s most stylish models and muses. The big, indestructible-looking bracelets looking like shields of armor, are studded and gilded in gemstones, one on each arm. You’d be forgiven if the trend reminds you of Wonder Woman striking her signature battle pose, crossing her wrists and deflecting bullets with her cuffs.

Coco Chanel’s iconic Maltese Cross Vendura cuffs were inspired by Byzantine artwork discovered during her travels. The cross was the symbol of the Knights of Malta, a Christian military order charged with the defense of the Holy Land after the First Crusade. 

Superhero powers aside, it’s a bold, powerful look that has appealed to warrior women through fashion history. Audacious and assertive, Coco Chanel was rarely photographed without her iconic Maltese Cross cuffs designed for her by Vendura in the 1930s. Matching cuff mainstays moored Harper’s Bazaar editor Diana Vreeland indomitable style through the 1960s. Leading the charge for modern day lionhearted style is Elle’s Kate Lanphear, whose chunky cuffs work to assert her cult androgynous and punky aesthetic.

Elle’s Style Director and modern day fashion icon, Kate Lanphear’s all-black looks are often armored with a mixture of leather studded cuffs.

While combined with other jewelry, the look is most definitely an eccentric style statement. Worn alone, matching cuffs look clean and modern. Match the scale of your cuffs to your sleeves. With a delicate cuff go with a simple sleeve, with ornate, embellished cuffs balance with a strong shoulder or architectural sleeve. Feel the power of an accessory that can transform a look from glamor girl to amazon in a flick of a wrist.

The growing love for cuffs means there are plenty of options to choose from this season, from plain gold or silver to studded and ornate. 

ALSO READ:

Now & Then: The History of Turtlenecks

Now & Then: The History of Tights

Now & Then: The History of Skinny Jeans

Now & Then: The History of the Chevron Stripe

Now & Then: The History of Penny Loafers

Now & Then: The History of Go-Go Boots

Now & Then: The History of the Poet Blouse

Now & Then: The History of Ladylike Gloves

Spread the love this Valentine’s Day by dressing up in head-to-toe red, and adding in a sprinkle of hearts and roses.

However you feel about Valentine’s Day this year —  giddy writing love letters or turning up the volume on that breakup-tunes mixtape — it gives us a chance to break away from the ordinary. And when it comes to fashion, it’s a good excuse for dressing head-to-toe in red and adding in a sprinkle of hearts and roses.

Orla Kiely Prom Dress
This sweet little sleeveless dress by Orla Kiely has a gathered skirt and bow. The pattern, which is actually small coffee cups keeps it from being too cutesy. Made from 100% organic, Fair Trade certified cotton in India.
Approx. $94, People Tree

Tiny Heart Necklace
This tiny heart necklace is sweet and simple, a discreet way to whisper to the world that you still believe in love. Handcrafted in San Francisco, by designer Kris Nations, using recycled 14k or sterling overlay.
$35, BTC Elements

Erica Weiner Sweetheart Necklace
When Erica Weiner found a small quantity of these vintage heart necklaces from the 70s, she thought they seemed to just ache to be inscribed with a message. Make your perfect Valentine’s statement and write your message with teeny tiny letter stamps.
$65-80, Erica Weiner

Apple & Bee Hearts Tote
With inside pockets and lots of great compartments, this super practical organic cotton tote will make a great shopping companion, spreading the message of love wherever you go.
$37, Apple & Bee

Hovey Lee Allott Necklace
This elegant heart-shaped pendant is designed for everyday wear, yet the genuine pink peach shell, lends it a unique glowy sheen. Available with 14kt gold-filled  or sterling silver chain.
$76, Hovey Lee

Alkemie Single Rose Ring
Roses are the ultimate symbol for love, and unlike a dozen red ones this ring will not fade. Handmade in Los Angeles, using 100% reclaimed metal and Austrian Crystal. Available in silver patina as well.
$154, Alkemie

Pink/Red Heart Lady Dragon Shoes
These new Anglomania Lady Dragon shoes by Vivienne Westwood and Melissa brings a more glitzy side with gold edged mirrored hearts that make your feet ready to party. Made from Melissa’s signature earth-friendly rubber.
$230, Vivienne Westwood

Artistic license might be just the cure for what ails us each fashion season.

With fashion week season slowly melting away the deep winter freeze here in Europe, it is promising to feel a bit of stylistic heat from the recent runway shows in Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen, and Stockholm. Autumn/Winter 2013 might be the last thing on our minds as we struggle to channel coral-hued resort ensembles, but looking ahead can be a good thing when so many creative dimensions are at play. The sculptural experimentation seen on the catwalks during January and early February have demonstrated, perhaps, that smaller European design houses know how to take risks with conceptually bold approaches to their collections. Whether through extreme knitwear, origami fold wearables, or cool geometry, the license to explore fashion follies seems hyper-real in combination with a sustainable edge.

One of the things that I like about the smaller European shows that take place before the heavy-hitter line-ups in New York, Paris, London, and Milan is the excitement that comes from supporting local talent in style geist outposts where fashion schools and converts to sustainable style are looking to cure their fashion malaise. Perhaps this is also why some of the recent catwalk presentations can afford to be a bit more theatrical, as designers present their works as part of a storytelling continuum and with textile innovation as a creative selling point.

Designer Isabell de Hillerin’s MOSAIC collection (photo by Amos Fricke)

I was so impressed last January with the public interest in Berlin Fashion Week – anyone could attend the presentations at the Lavera Showroom (RSVP’s required, though). Berlin has demonstrated increased momentum on the green fashion frontier with venues like The GREENshowroom, The Ethical Fashion Show Berlin, as well as this year’s first Slow Fashion Awards. I was smitten yet again with Berlin-based ethical fashion label, Isabell de Hillerin, who sources many of her woven and embroidered textiles in Romania. Isabell’s new MOSAIC collection encourages the wearer to experiment freely in order to find lasting styling solutions and wardrobe combinations. The designer shares, “Playing with balance, this latest collection is inspired by its individual parts that collectively form a mosaic of colors and shapes. Rich and contrasting fabrics fuse with soft shapes to define a new whole. Folkloric handmade Romanian materials combined with clean cuts represent a position between new design and tradition.”

Princess Máxima (center) at The Green Fashion Competition during Amsterdam Fashion Week (photo courtesy of Style.com)

The much-anticipated Green Fashion Competition at Amsterdam Fashion Week generated quite a bit of interest this season, and the finalists definitely demonstrated a range of eco solutions to the three-piece runway presentation. Much of the excitement was centered around the event’s VIP guest, Princess Máxima, who won major points by attending the runway competition at the Westergasfabriek (Amsterdam’s equivalent to Bryant Park). Winners of the event included Amsterdam’s own Studio Jux and NYC’s ethical fashion it-girl, Carrie Parry.

Carrie Parry’s bold eco separates at The Green Fashion Competition in Amsterdam (photo courtesy of the designer)

Designer Carrie Parry takes the prize at The Green Fashion Competition (photo by Patricia Fewer for Hegedus Style)

Mark Smith of Style.com shared the following comment about having a real live princess at the Green Fashion Competition: “Carlien Helmink of Studio JUX, the fair-trade brand that scooped first prize for its chic collection of Nepalese-produced dresses, said, ‘She (Princess Màxima) was so enthusiastic and even told us that she had expected the jury to choose us as winner.’ New Yorker Carrie Parry, who won the Category Two prize for most promising start-up, was also impressed. ‘Having a real princess witness the unveiling of your designs is pretty much a fairy tale, isn’t it?’”

2011′s Green Fashion Competition winner Elsien Gringhuis kicked off the catwalk event (photo by Patricia Fewer for Hegedus Style)

The stuff that fairy tales are made of just might turn the tide of fast fashion. Eileen Moran of Origin 23 feels that cities like Amsterdam are definitely at the forefront of a green fashion revolution. She shared the following with us after completing the circuit in Europe during the past two weeks, “In the merger of the French Federation’s Pret a Porter and Who’s Next Paris, they decided to eliminate the So Ethic section this season. Many of the designers and buyers who have been going to that show for years to seek out what’s interesting in ethical design, moved to MINT at Modefabriek in Amsterdam or to one of the many shows in Berlin, including the GREENShowroom. I really feel that Amsterdam is going to be the next epicenter for eco and ethical fashion. In speaking with buyers, the press, and consultants, most feel that Paris is now more a place to go for fashion week runway shows as well as The Ethical Fashion Show, but Berlin and Amsterdam are steadily taking over as the destinations for trade shows.”

As a counterpoint, I found it interesting that Brazilian-born Priscilla Camargo, the founder of Hegedus Style in Amsterdam,  felt that only three pieces by each designer on the Green Fashion Competition’s runway lacked a bit of depth in terms of presenting a broad cross-section of eco and ethical fashion expressions. Priscilla commented that she was better able to understand the message of designer collections during her visit to MINT at Modefabriek. That said, she was extremely impressed by the designers’ creative efforts and the enthusiasm of the crowd, but looks forward to the event gaining more applicants from abroad for 2013. You can read more of Priscilla’s coverage via her blog.

Green Fashion Competition finalist Zaida Adriana Goveo Balmaseda’s ‘Calafuria’ collection featuring recycled fiber knitwear (photo by Peter Stigter)

As a knitwear enthusiast, I was excited to see the recycled fiber creations of Green Fashion Competition finalist, Zaida Adriana Goveo Balmaseda – who we previously featured in our article Plying A More Fashionable Fiber Frontier. Zaida’s Calafuria collection pays homage to a natural beach reserve in Tuscany that features rock formations called “tafoni.” These other-worldly forms are mimicked by the “weathering” and “cementation” of materials and surfaces in the designer’s organic pieces. Natural fiber and eco-friendly methods used include hand-spun textiles, scraps or pre-consumer waste gathered from designer studio production floors and textile centers as well as organic cotton that was naturally dyed and batted with PET recycled batting. Dead stock wool was also recycled for  the “aveolo” pieces that were stunningly tinted with natural substances and then hand-embroidered.

Dutch designer Iris van Herpen’s wearable art and ‘escapist’ sculptural couture (photo courtesy of The Wild Magazine)

Three-dimensional experimentation and extreme silhouettes were also featured prominently in the Paris Couture Fashion Week presentation of Dutch designer, Iris Van Herpen. Whether wearable art really leads us down a path of statement piece activism or even multi-purpose fashion, is debatable. That said, many of these creations do allow us to explore metaphors and vocabulary related to organicism and mimicry of nature. Both Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Stockholm and Copenhagen Fashion Week  designers seemed to be sharing this message as well – in combination with thawing out fashion lovers on blustery winter nights.

V Avenue Show Repair at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Stockholm

Gaia at Copenhagen Fashion Week

Stine Ladefoged’s extreme knitwear at Copenhagen Fashion Week

Beckmans College of Design at Copenhagen Fashion Week (photo by Kristian Löveborg)

lead image: Winde Rienstra, photo by Peter Stigter

A quick peak at EcoSalon’s celebration of Future:Standard’s 1st birthday.

We were thrilled to partner up with Future:Standard recently to celebrate the online eco boutique’s one-year anniversary. A clothing swap, photo booth and night of celebrating eco fashion is our kind of fun.

“I’m so honored to have celebrated my 1^st birthday party with EcoSalon! It’s been such an exciting year for Future:Standard and there couldn’t have been a better representation of what we are trying to accomplish, than with EcoSalon. I’m looking forward to a fabulous year with more amazing merchandise that respects the planet!” said Future Standard founder Jessica Althoff.

We couldn’t agree more – thanks to Jessica and her team for letting us take part. Here are some of our favorite shots from the photo booth that night.