EcoSalon’s top bathing suits for summer ’11 are made from sustainable fabrics, locally sourced or fair trade.

Warm days are here and it’s that magical time where we prance around in our underwear and call it a bathing suit. Yours a little worn, tight, faded? Well, we’ve compiled an up to date list of what we consider the best (sustainable), summer ’11 bathing suit lines going.

You can thank us now or later.

Kelly B

Kelly B attacks environmental and social consciousness via her line’s flattering silhouettes and subtle sexiness. “Clothing is a form of art that everyone can relate to. Everybody wears it. It’s a platform to get everything that is important to me out there,” says Kelly. Looking stunning in her bathing suits beach side is another way to further carry out her green views.

Mociun

Caitlin Mociun of Mociun has niched out our closets already with some of the more graphic and forward thinking styles available in the eco fashion world but she’s pushing us into a deliberate love for her bathing suits too.

Karla Colletto

Karla Colletto is a luxe swimwear line that combines high fashion with figure-flattering cuts. The result is runway-ready swimwear that will make women of all ages wish they were as style savvy as you. She offers lots of different suit options but her cut-out suits are a sure standout from the rest.

Emobi

Emobi prints are all original and designed in-house, using a range of environmentally friendly water based dyes, that minimize the impact on beaches and waterways combined with premium breathable UPF 50+ fabric.

Olga Olsson

Each Olga Olsson bikini is totally unique and hand painted by fair trade artisans in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. All bathing suits are made to order so the line can create as little waste as possible.

Lina Rennell

Sure you could have a traditional bathing suit as you bask on the beach but then what fun would that be? Lina Rennell’s swimwear line is always full of surprises from vintage cuts to graphic prints that meet to form the world’s cutest bathing suit.

Meadow

All of Meadow’s designs are proudly sewn in Miami, where the brand focuses on local production and sourcing. Meadow only works with sustainable materials such as bamboo, soy, organic cotton and upcycled fabrics. Her entire line features a coastal vibe for laid back luxe pre and post beach.

Niksters

Nikster’s bathing suits are made from soy, organic cotton, bamboo, and other natural fibers to further promote your sustainable lifestyle.
These exotic bikinis are accessorized with shells, pearls, stones, bamboo, coconuts, and other hand-selected elements from tropical destinations around the globe. Some of the designs are also carefully hand-finished through macramé stitching, embroidered beads, or hand-painting.

Top Image: Cali Dreaming

You’ve started buying eco-friendly clothing. Check. You’ve realized that buying vegan shoes and paying a higher price is okay because really, how often do you buy new shoes? Vegan shoes. Check. You are eating amazingly well with your organic veggies and tofu scrambles. Eating right. Check.

But there’s a final frontier, something you hadn’t thought of but it lays closest to your skin (besides your favorite necklace). It’s your undergarments – the foundation of who you are and the secret pieces that make you look seamless.

Tiffany Phipps, founder of T-Luxe lingerie, created her line to cater to those women not only ready to tackle that final frontier, but who appreciate well made panties and bras, bustiers and sumptuous silk robes. Women who don’t and won’t skimp on their lingerie no matter how eco-friendly they have to be.

Tiffany goes eco-glam on lush fabrics used in the production of T-Luxe with blends of soy, organic cotton and bamboo. And the fact that they come from a Fair Trade facility with low carbon emissions? It doesn’t get any better. Not to mention that she designs and manufactures everything in Brooklyn which cuts down on her (and your) carbon footprint when it comes to getting you your essentials.

Did I mention how friendly and informative Tiffany is? You’ll just have to meet her and come and peruse her garment rack. What? Did you say where? Why at EcoSalon Shops! on June 4th, of course.

In your closet is the black section, the gray section, the formal section and then the “whatever section,” filled with neutrals and maybe a jewel tone here and there.

Hmm, do you think it might be time to ask yourself why there isn’t a fun section in your closet? An area that delights you when contemplating wearing what’s in there?

I have one and have noticed over the past two years that it’s being filled with Feral Childe. I’m not kidding, it actually makes me feel happy to wear their clothing. And this dress above? Well, that baby is mine as soon as it hits the stores at the end of summer. A dress made with a Lite Brite print? Are you kidding me?!

Feral Childe is the bi-coastal collaboration of Moriah Carlson (Brooklyn, NY) and Alice Wu (Oakland, CA) who both come from a fine arts background. Seasonally, the two lock themselves away and focus on the job at hand: To create a thoughtful (fun, colorful) women’s line that’s completely wearable in many settings.

Each season, the design process begins with the duo’s collaborative drawing sessions where the drawings then become become textile prints, and elements are incorporated into construction details such as shaped facings and hems, as well as the buttons and accessories. Feral Childe then ties in fabrics like organic cotton and wool, tencel, soy, hemp blends, and silk, as well as mill-ends, deadstock and overstock treasures.

The collection is proudly produced in New York’s Garment District which will be in full force representation at EcoSalon Shops! on June 4th (as well as both designers).

And for the record, just meeting the designers and seeing how they put their clothes together, will make you smile.

Designers tend to have a variety of visions when it comes to their lines, but the most important part should be to simply design well thought-out lines. Nixxi does just that and juggles fit, high quality sustainable fabrics and production methods like a seasoned pro.

According to the Fashion Takes Action’s website – where Nixxi was recently a nominee for a Canadian Design Forward award – “Nixxi recently presented their designs as an “˜Eco & Ethical Ready-To-Wear Label’ at the EcoChic Fashion Show and Exhibition in Geneva in January. By presenting at EcoChic Geneva, Nixxi has partnered with Green2Greener, and aligned their designs with the United Nations International Year of Biodiversity.”

We love how they employ not just organic cotton and bamboo as so many designers do, but also knits and wovens made from hemp, bamboo, soy, lyocell, organic wool, silk, and linen.

On their production facilities Nixxi says: “We choose to work with a local production house that employs fair wages and a comfortable working environment for their employees, thus sustaining a positive working relationship which also results in a more quality finished, longer-lasting garment.”

We were more than thrilled when Nixxi offered the Empire Dress to us for this week’s giveaway. Though the image above shows the dress in white, you’ll also have the choice of a beautiful Italian linen in either a faded blue or a misty gray if you win.

Drooling yet? I sure am. Leave a comment below to try your hand at snatching up this pretty frock.

(For complete giveaway guidelines click here. All offers are FTC compliant.)

Good Luck!

I hope you’re not one of those people who squirms when a mother breastfeeds her baby in public, because I’m one of those publicly breastfeeding mothers. If that makes you uncomfortable, well, talk to the breast!

There is no better food for babies than breast milk, of course, so it’s a great decision for mothers who are able to do it. And when it comes to social graces, I’m just not sorry to say that I won’t run off to nurse in a bathroom or tote bottles around to preserve a faux Victorian modesty (ahem, Facebook). We see more breast online and at Fox news than I could possibly compete with.

Besides, the breast is the ultimate eco-friendly feeding option. Formula is made from either cow’s milk or soy, and both come with problematic environmental implications. Then there are the bottles, usually made of plastic, which even when BPA-free, still need petroleum to be made.

What’s with our shyness? I say it’s high time to get rational and respect the breast. There’s no need to look away in embarrassment or frown disapprovingly if you see my baby noshing on my nipple. After all, what could be more sane, healthy and normal than using breasts the way nature intended? Sure, the world might be sex-crazed over boobies, but for my baby, it’s what’s for dinner. Nomnomnomnom.

Image: Raphael Goetter

When farmers in Mato Grosso, the top soy-producing state in Brazil, were introduced to GMO soy varieties, they jumped at the chance to plant them, even though the country’s government hadn’t yet approved their use. It was a foolish risk to take; the GM soy these farmers planted has consistently provided lower yields than conventional soy varieties.

About half of the soy grown in Mato Grosso is genetically modified, but because of the lower yields – and the fact that many distributors are shunning GMO – quite a few farmers are turning back to conventional crops. However, so much research has been done on GM crops in the past decade that it may be difficult, at least initially, for conventional-minded farmers to compete. Concerned consumers and environmental scientists alike hope they can act quickly enough to preserve the seed base of non-genetically modified soy.

Image: tabithahawk

Take a look through your cupboards. Read the ingredient labels on your organic and natural food products (and your conventional ones). You’ll likely see soy lecithin on a large proportion of labels. You probably don’t know that the soy lecithin in your organic food is most likely from non-organic genetically modified soybeans.

Doesn’t the National Organic Rule prohibit the use of both non-organic ingredients and GMOs?

It does, but there is one important thing to know about this rule….foods can be labeled organic if they contain at least 95% organic ingredients. The other 5% can be non-organic. Furthermore, if a product is not available in organic form, it might be on a list of exceptions to the rule. Organic soy lecithin was not available when the National Organic Rule was written, so it made the list. Organic soy lecithin is available now, but manufacturers have no incentive to switch as long as it is still allowed under the organic rule (and it’s cheaper). The USDA is currently considering comments on a proposed change to the rule. A decision is expected in the spring.

Why is it in my food?

In industrial applications soy lecithin acts like egg yolks and has similar emulsification properties. In fact, egg yolks also contain lecithin, but now that soy lecithin is available it is rarely used. Soy lecithin is what makes margarine and peanut butter spreadable, chocolate coatings smooth, batters pourable, ice cream creamy. It also facilitates mixing and prevents spattering during cooking, and extends the shelf life of foods.

How is it made?

It’s a byproduct of soybean oil that is extracted during processing. We’ve already talked about the heavy processing soy protein goes through before it ends up in countless foods. Soy lecithin is extracted from soy oil in a similarly industrial manner. First, water is added to the oil and put in a centrifuge to separate the lecithin from the oil, then it is generally bleached with hydrogen peroxide. The product is then dried and sometimes it is further refined with acetone.

Add to this the fact that nearly 90% of the soy grown in the U.S. is genetically modified and heavily sprayed with pesticides, and you have to wonder if you should be eating it.

What can I do?

Eat unprocessed, whole foods for the most part, and seek out food manufacturers who are doing the right thing and switching over to organic soy lecithin without being forced by a rule change. This is unconfirmed, but there a few chocolate brands I’ve read about on the internets that use organic soy lecithin, but you still need to read the labels because they may not use it in all of their products. These include Lake Champlain, Dagoba, Endangered Species Sjaaks, Sweet Earth, and Green and Black’s.

Please comment if you know of other food companies/products using organic soy lecithin.

Sources:

United Soybean Board

Treehugger

Weston A Price Foundation

Soy info Center

Image: jessicafm

According to Consumers Union, 95% of consumers in the U.S. want products containing genetically modified organisms to be labeled. Yet, in 1996 the FDA ruled that genetically modified foods were not substantially different from others and need not be labeled. Then, in January 2009 as the Bush administration headed out the door, the outgoing FDA ruled that it wouldn’t require the labeling of genetically modified meat or fish.

What’s going on here? We’re told that the free market works because of the rational behavior of informed consumers. How can consumers make intelligent choices when the information they need is deliberately held back by government influenced by powerful corporations?

We’ve talked about the power seed giant Monsanto exerts on our government before. Did you know that Monsanto’s hydra-like tentacles of influence extend across the globe? Let’s explore how the company was able to introduce its GM soybean technology to Brazil.

There was a point in the early part of this century when Monsanto wasn’t doing too well. It couldn’t sell its products in Europe. Nobody wanted them. Americans were getting anxious about consuming foods made from GM seeds. Monsanto needed a new market. A big new market. We’ve already talked about how the soy industry in Brazil has led to slavery and deforestation. The soy industry in Brazil has also had a big impact on Monsanto, essentially saving the company from ruin.

According to a policy brief from Food First, and other sources, Monsanto used illegal tactics to push their GM technology on Brazilian farmers and then strong-armed the Brazilian legislature to make the technology legal.

Brazil had a ban on planting of GM seeds in effect since 1998, but it was one of the only holdouts in South America. Brazil’s neighbor, Argentina, was a large producer of GM soy. Monsanto encouraged farmers in Brazil to plant its “roundup ready” GM soybeans that were illegally imported from Argentina in defiance of the ban. Monsanto knew that once its seeds were in the ground they would be able to make a case for intellectual property rights. Armed with their patents, the company’s lawyers went to the courts to solidify its new Brazilian market.

By arguing that Brazil was impeding its legal right to collect royalties on its intellectual property (the seeds), Monsanto made its case and GM soy was legalized in Brazil in 2003. Still, the essential companion to Monsanto’s Roundup-ready GM soy, the herbicide Roundup, was not legal yet. In 2004, a congressman from southern Brazil pushed through a series of federal amendments legalizing the herbicide. This same congressman purchased a large farm from Monsanto for one-third of the market price. The Brazilian government is investigating the congressman for corruption.

You may be thinking that you’re not eating GM soy because you buy organic. But if you eat organic food that contains soy lecithin (and you probably do since its in everything) check back in two weeks when we wrap up our soy series with a piece about soy lecithin. We’ll explore why the organic rule allows small amounts of non-organic ingredients in organic products and learn that it’s not that simple.

Want to learn more about the drama behind GM foods? Check out this link to news articles from different sources that will give you a good idea of Monsanto’s trials, successes, machinations, and manipulations over the past few years.

Image: Mike138

The topic of soy can create a big debate among healthy folks, and the viewpoints can be extreme. Who knew a humble green bean could be so controversial? Some tout soy products as a panacea for health and wellness, while others swear that soy is a sure ticket to infertility and “man boobs”. What are the facts?

Aren’t Asian cultures particularly healthy because of consumption of soy?

Asians don’t actually eat as much soy as we think – only about 10-36 grams per day. In contrast, a cup of tofu or soy milk contains over 200 grams of soy. Besides, the most common soy foods in Asia are fermented products such as tempeh, miso and shoyu (soy sauce), while most Westerners eat unfermented, highly processed versions of soy. Unfermented soy contains enzyme inhibitors that block protein digestion (among other things we’ll get to below).

Isn’t soy healthy because it’s a natural plant product?

Most soy foods are highly processed and bear very little resemblance to the natural soybean (think soy hotdogs or TVP – textured vegetable protein). Just because something is touted as a “health” food, doesn’t really make it healthy. Whole foods are always the best way to get your food nutrition – the more processed a food is, the less natural and ultimately less healthy it is.

What’s so wrong with soy hotdogs and TVP anyway? Aren’t they good, protein-rich, meat substitutes?

Soy is more filler than food. For many years, the protein left over from the extraction of soy oil was sold to farms as animal feed. After some time, the food industry figured out how to make this highly processed soy protein palatable to the human tongue and began to aggressively market it in foods like soy dogs, soy meat substitutes and the like. Sure, there’s protein, but it also takes quite a bit of sugar, salt or MSG to make soy protein actually taste good. The healthiest foods are whole foods, not processed ones.

How will a diet heavy in soy impact my health?

Unfermented soy can inhibit protein absorption, cause flatulence and increase the chance of developing kidney stones. The processing of soy may remove some of these problems. Soy also inhibits growth. Even within the animal feed industry, the amount of soy protein that can be fed to animals has to be limited or the animals themselves will suffer problems with growth and fertility.

What’s up with genetically modified soy?

Most soy grown in the world is genetically modified (GM) – with 87% of American soy being GM. And what’s the big deal about that? Not a lot of research has been done on the effects of GM foods, but one particular study on rats showed that unborn babies and young infants were particularly harmed by the effects of genetically modified soy.

But aren’t a lot of infants fed soy-based formulas?

Soy infant formula, a common alternative to cow’s milk for lactose-intolerant babies, contains endocrine disruptors and phytoestrogens, plant hormones which have been shown to cause premature puberty in young girls and delayed puberty in adolescent boys. It’s a bit like giving a baby birth control pills. Soy infant formula also contributes to soy allergies. (Breast milk is undoubtedly the best food for babies, and if that’s not an option, goat’s milk is the next best thing to try.)

Speaking of allergies…

Soy is among the 8 most common food allergens, with reactions being particularly common among children.

Would this have anything to do with pesticides?

That remains uncertain. However, unless you buy strictly organic, you can bet your soy products are heavily contaminated with pesticides. As a matter of fact, soy is the most contaminated crop we grow in the United States. And don’t forget, non-organic soy is almost certainly genetically modified as well.

How has the demand for soy affected the Amazon rainforest?

The huge global demand for soy (for use in processed foods, animal feed and biofuels) is eating up the rainforest, because farmers have been financially motivated to clear more rainforest land in order to plant this export crop. More deforestation, more global warming.

But still, aren’t soy farms providing jobs?

Actually, for many, soy farming is less like employment and more like slavery. Although slavery was officially outlawed in Brazil over 130 years ago, debt bondage for over 25,000 people continues on Brazilian soy plantations. This is not the kind of farming industry I want to support.

Bottom line: soy is not the magical health food that many tout it to be. Let’s be clear, however, that fermented soy products don’t carry the same negative consequences as unfermented, highly processed soy foods. So if you’re shopping for miso or tempeh, make sure to choose brands that are organic and not genetically modified. And if you’ve been depending on tofu (an unfermented food) for vegetarian protein, try out some of these other vegetarian proteins instead.

Image: Umeboshi Panda

If that’s the case, you owe it to yourself to try this recipe. Developing this recipe was my first attempt at cooking it and it succeeded beyond my wildest imaginings.

A couple tips: Tempeh must be sliced thinly and then pan-fried until a golden crispy crust forms. The caramelization improves the texture and adds to the cake’s savoriness. The easy sauce for this recipe can be whisked together in moments. Add it to the pan after the tempeh becomes golden brown, where it creates an addictive sweet-tart-savory glaze. Serve this dish with brown rice and sautéed greens, such as bok choy, Chinese broccoli, or pea shoots, and you’ll be happy you tried tempeh. I sure was.

Tempeh is one of the healthiest forms of soy. The fermentation process makes the bean more digestible and creates active cultures that are good for keeping the friendly bacteria in your gut healthy. Make sure you buy organic tempeh because most conventional soybeans are made from GM (genetically modified) soybeans and are heavily sprayed with pesticides. If you can find the Kecap Manis in the ingredient list, give it a try. Look for an Asian grocery that carries items from Southeast Asia. If you strike out you may substitute a mild flavored molasses. It has a similar, though not identical, flavor profile.

Tempeh originated in Indonesia and is made by drying partially cooked soybeans and then adding yeast and letting the beans ferment. The process creates a firm cake that has a full nutty flavor when cooked properly. High in protein, vitamins, and minerals tempeh makes a good meat substitute.

Pan-Fried Tempeh with Lemongrass, Garlic, and Ginger

Serves 3

You’ll need:

1 tablespoon very finely chopped lemongrass
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated on a microplane or small grater
4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons Kecap Manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
A couple shakes of your favorite chili sauce
8 ounces plain, unflavored organic tempeh (sliced into 1/4-inch-thick slices at an angle so you get wide slices)
2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil

To make:

Whisk together the lemongrass, garlic, ginger, lemon juice, Kecap Manis, soy sauce and chili sauce.

In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, warm the vegetable oil. Start with 2 tablespoons and add more as needed. You may need to cook the tempeh in batches because it won’t crisp up properly if it’s crowded in the pan. Add the tempeh slices and let sizzle on one side, without turning, for 3-5 minutes, or until deep, golden brown. Turn and cook on the other side until brown. Remove to a paper towel lined plate if cooking in batches. After all the tempeh slices are browned, turn off the heat, pour off excess oil, if any remains, and return the slices to the pan. While the pan is still hot, add the sauce and shake the pan to make sure the sauce coats all the tempeh slices. It should sizzle and make a thick, dark glaze. Serve immediately.

Recipe Copyright 2009 Vanessa Barrington

Note: use organic ingredients whenever possible.

Image: I Love Butter