Mint green is one of spring’s hottest colors. Here are six chic ways to wear it.

One of spring’s hottest hues also happens to be one of the freshest – minty green. It’s a breeze of fresh air in your wardrobe and combines well with staples like black, gray and white as well as with spring’s other pastels. Wear all solid basics or combine them with patterned pieces for a more layered look.

Capucine Bubble Dress by IDEO in Jade
This cute Ideo bubble dress features short pleated sleeves, a V-neck and elastic bubble hem. It’s ethically made in India, under fair labor standards using a light 100% organic ECOCERT labeled cotton jersey and dyed using water-based dyes.
$24, Fairtribe

Reuse Jeans Colored Skinnys
These bright, minty-colored skinny jeans are made with 70% recycled cotton 28% new cotton and 2% spandex and features Reuse jeans’ 4-way stretch denim, which ensures this jean will hug you in all the right places.
$95, Reuse Jeans

Lina Rennell Snap Top
This green top by eco-designer Lina Rennell features a check print, enclosed seams, brass snaps down front, 3/4 sleeves with cuffs, and an asymmetrical hem. Ethically made by hand, from 100% silk crepe, in Northern California.
$290, Beklina

The Beth Loop Scarf by Njabini
This Seafoam green double loop scarf by Njabini will keep you warm and toasty through cold spring nights. It’s hand knit in Njabini, Kenya. 50% of the sale price is put back into the hands of the women Njabini employs, stimulating the local economy, while 20% is donated to non-profit Flying Kites Global, which operates a children’s home and primary school in Njabini.
$36, Njabini

Jeffrey Campbell Rumble Boot
These mint green boots, part of Jeffrey Campbell’s exclusive vegan collection for Convert is the perfect way to add a touch of mint to an otherwise casual outfit. Pair them with jeans, a tee and a pattern scarf in minty tones and you’ll be on trend all through fall.
$155, Convert

Priti NYC Polish in Dusty Miller
The minty fresh hue of this polish is obtained without the use of any toxic ingredients, including formaldehyde. Priti NYC uses ingredients derived from organic compounds that are not only safe for humans but often used in food as well. All colors have been approved by the FDA.
$12.50, Priti NYC

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How to wear polka dots without looking like a 50s pinup.

Polka dots. You’ve seen them on the runways but aren’t quite sure how to wear them without looking like a 50s pinup or your grandma’s apron. Fear not, there are plenty of ways that this classic pattern can fit into a stylish eco-fashionista’s wardrobe.

Stella Wedge by Calleen Cordero, $455, Juno & Jove // Stella Stars Necklace, $128, Hovey Lee // Lina Rennell Recycled Leather belt, $165, Beklina // Polka Dot Sweater, Approx. $550, Chinti & Parker // Stella Vino clutch by Raven Kauffman, $325, Juno & Jove // Baby Toes Cactus polish, $12.50, Priti NYC // A Line Mini Skirt, on sale for $104, Edun

Let’s start with a Polka Dot Sweater from Chinti & Parker, a basic, versatile piece perfect for a first envoy into this polka dot trend. The mixing of patterns is very hot right now. Don’t be afraid to try ones that you wouldn’t think at first glance will go together — that’s where the magic happens. Mix your polka dot pattern with more pattern, like this woven mini skirt or a bright floral pattern or – why not – a smaller polka dot print on a dark background.

Stars are all the rage right now and just happen to be a great complement to those dots. This necklace from Hovey Lee will ensure your look is more tough than sweet. Add visual interest with with a burgundy bag by Raven Kauffman and shoes by Calleen Cordero. Finish off the look by adding some bright yellow – one of the hottest colors this spring – accents like a belt and nail polish.

If you’re still not convinced that you can rock the polka dots, try a dotty manicure (here’s a tutorial on how to do it yourself).

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How to knock off Alexa Chung’s style, in true eco-fashion.

We love this casual cool ensemble worn by TV personality/model/all around “It Girl” Alexa Chung to a Stella McCartney holiday party in London. Here’s how you can copy her look, with all sustainably savvy pieces.

Washed-out Gray Denim
For obtaining that perfect washed-out gray denim look you can either wear your black skinnies until they fade into perfection or pick up a pair of these Denim Street Girdle jeans by Prairie Underground. Made in Seattle by designers Davora Lindner and Camilla Eckersley.
$145, Juno & Jove or Prairie Underground

Navy Blue Knit Sweater
This silky merino wool sweater from Stewart + Brown strikes the same perfect balance between delicate and tough and is Fair Trade made. Do like Alexa and wear it over your favorite white tee.
$178, Stewart & Brown

Textured Nude Clutch
This limited edition clutch bag by designer Lina Rennell is ethically made by hand in Northern California, from recycled leather.
$145, Beklina or Lina Rennell

Parka with Attitude
This cool jacket is really the detachable inner of a parka by British designer Christopher Raeburn. It’s made from reappropriated German parka liners while the outer part that comes with it is made entirely from dead-stock cotton (i.e. factory waste).
Approx. $1557, Christopher Raeburn

Alexa Chung photo: Zimbio

The post Celebrity Knockoff: Alexa Chung’s Casual Cool appeared first on EcoSalon.

10 Holiday dresses that will take you from the company party to year-round glam girl.

Holiday dresses can be the bane of our December existence. If you’re lucky, you’re able to swap frocks with a friend or know of a fabulous consignment boutique that helps justify buying something new for a single party. Why not think even further with your purchase this year and how you could wear it year round? We’ve found 10 dresses that can do just that and with just a spark of creativity, can be the dress that keeps on giving.

Carrie Parry’s Red Bow Dress

Carrie Parry’s Red Bow Dress made from 100% organic wool is a feminine, shift dress with a removable bow collar that “transitions easily from a day at the office to a night on the town.” We love the festive red tights for the holidays as they add a fun style element to what could otherwise be a boring shift with safe, black tights and shoes.

(Also available in black.)

Camilla Norback’s Butterfly Sleeve Dress

If you opt for a LBD this year, try stepping outside the straight and narrow you’re seeing in popular department store windows and add a little flounce and flair. Swedish designer Camilla Norback offers up this lacy dress that is just as much country as rock and roll.

Feral Childe’s Pleated Prokofiev Dress

Known for their graphic prints and seamless melding of color and shapes, Feral Childe always produces collections with at least one truly  stand out dress. This Prokofiev Dress in their Orchestra Print is that one. What can’t you do with this dress for a holiday party or, better yet, year round?

Dahl by Alison Kelly

Alison Kelly’s dresses are just as pretty as she is. Feminine, playful and at times glamorous, Dahl dresses come in a variety of colors (see site for more), and with 10 styles to choose from, you’re bound to find a style just for you.

Kelly Lane’s Galaxy Dress

Kelly Lane’s Galaxy dress is part funk, part lady. While the top part of the dress echoes the lines of a built in shrug, the rest of the dress is a basic shift that flatters. Worn with black opaque tights for a holiday party or teal tights for a night out, this dress will shape shift its way into your style universe.

Popomomo Palazzo Pantso

H

It’s not a dress or a skirt, but these Palazzo Pants from Popomomo are a perfect fill in for holiday parties with a sexy cropped top and statement piece of jewelry or, just kicking back. The drawstring waist is an additional selling point for those holiday parties don’t come without their fair share of eating (and stomach expansion).

H Fredriksson’s Drip Dress

H Fredriksson’s Drip Dress drapes where it should and is made from a buttery soft silk. Contrast the shine of the fabric with a knitted tight post-party, add boots and a fitted black t-shirt and you have a whole other date in your Drip Dress.

Prairie Underground’s Austen Blouse

Not all parties you go to this holiday season are going to be under dim lights with a live band playing Duke Ellington. This Austen Blouse by Prairie Underground is actually long enough to wear as a dress (albeit mini), and looks great with patterned tights and a pair of shimmering flats or after your holidays are over with purple tights and heeled brown booties. This is also a great neckline to show off your favorite necklace.

Allison Parris’ Sammi Feather Dress

This is the dress that is made specifically for everything fun and fabulous that you do. Made from a raw organic silk, the Sammi Dress from Allison Parris will elevate you to a new level of sustainable with a fashion-forward feather crinoline skirt to balance out the industrial, exposed zipper on the back. Can you wear this dress again? Of course, but it better be in another state.

Lina Rennell Check Cocktail Dress

You didn’t wait all year to make a New Year’s resolution to start working out or intensifying your yoga practice, no, you did it faithfully – all year. Slip that toned body into Lina Rennell’s Check Cocktail Dress and watch how the other party goers keep using you as a gauge for how much they shouldn’t eat. This dress is for year-round and has so many possibilities for cardigan sweaters and boyfriend blazers, sandals and platform heels, this dress just brings it.

Top image: Allison Parris

The post 10 Holiday Party Dresses (You Can Use Year-Round) appeared first on EcoSalon.

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

The post The Best Eco Bathing Suits for Summer 2011 appeared first on EcoSalon.

Lina Rennell is best known for her native modern, art driven textiles and objects.

Try finding a good sun hat this year and you’ll be hard pressed to find a prettier one than Lina Rennell’s Rock Sun Hat. Made from 100% organic cotton canvas, and hand printed in her black Briefcase print. Briefcase? Forget it, take a steamy novel and make way for the beach.

$180

Look for Lustables daily at EcoSalon. 100% gorgeous green finds, and never sponsored. Submit your favorite to tips@ecosalon.com

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The best eco-friendly boutiques online.

Eco-boutiques are popping up all over the web thanks to visionary retailers willing to take risks. While the debate over green consumption asks tough questions (is marketing lots of green stuff the answer to our consumerism woes?), it is clear that when it comes to eco fashion, the mantra is quality over quantity.

While some sites carry tried and true lines we’ve been following for years, others are peddling cutting edge sustainable fashion – making conscious consumption more provocative than ever.

Here’s an updated list of what we consider the top online eco boutiques going.

Start your shopping engines…

Annie Novotny, the designer behind Frei, opened Workshop in 2009 in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood. Her boutique’s 100 year old building houses her own line as well as lines like Brooklyn’s Loup Charmant, Shades of Gray vintage jewelry, D.S. & Durga perfume and a great selection of vintage leather handbags and belts for accessorizing.

Novotny’s shop also serves as a gallery and an actual workshop space for sewing classes.

In Roman mythology, Juno and Jove ruled as the divine queen and king of all gods, online they rule as a fantastic source for shopping over 70 designers. This online boutique (and store based in Sarasota, Florida), is massive but never overwhelming. Owner and buyer Olivia Bono has done well balancing high fashion with wardrobe staples including clothing, shoes, body care, home and even a nice section for men.

Whenever I want something totally different and inspiring, I click on over to Beklina. Not only is owner/buyer Lina Rennell one of the best online site curators, she designs an eponymous (eye candy) line featured on her site. Here is where you find architecturally and artistically pleasing clothes infused with all the glamor and femininity a site can offer. An additional bonus is Rennell selling fabric yardage from her own line and sustainable sweetheart, Caitlin Mociun’s of you guessed it, Mociun.

Joslin Van Arsdale’s Eco Citizen is a San Francisco staple for lines including The Podolls, Stewart+Brown, Feral Childe and more. Van Arsdale caters to women more than men but still has some fun organic pieces for your significant other you can quickly purchase before checking out with a cart full of your own new duds. We love the Jade Tribe and Collina Strada bags.

Everything at Olivine is special, (their tag line of “Atelier” says it all). With plenty of beautiful clothing, trendy beauty products and the healthiest dose of Swedish Hasbeens and Prairie Underground around, Olivine is a source of sustainable inspiration. Did I mention there’s cute baby gear too?

Three core passions inspired founder, Shana Yansen to start Jute and Jackfruit and now tie into the company’s core mission: to be smart, sustainable and chic. She accomplishes all three in her Boston based online shop filled with flattering Kelly Lane dresses, Turk+Taylor tops and Indigenous’ Fair Trade clothing.

Super girl Kate McGregor of Kaight is always on trend with her role as buyer and owner of New York City’s premier brick and mortar shops as well as having a major online presence via her blog and Facebook. McGregor can often be found working with leading sustainable designers, housing shops within her shop (Melissa shoes and a vintage section), as well as hosting fun store events. Kaight is the complete package.

In 2008, a conference speaker told Future:Standard owner/buyer Jessica Althoff  “You do not have to choose between your passions. If you want to combine them, you should.” Two years later Future:Standard was born from Althoff’s desire to support the environment, promote fair labor practices, and spend her days looking at (and wearing), beautiful clothes. We love all her indie lines that aren’t so frequently seen in other online boutiques.

Cow Jones Industrials’ owner Donna Oakes runs her vegan boutique from upstate New York as well as online with an eye for the pretty and playful: Think Popomomo tunics and dresses, Feral Childe frocks and a wide array of vegan shoes and hand bags by top designers. Vegan paradise fulfilled.

Label Gazer gives you a snapshot of socially responsible, ethical and eco-friendly fashion, then links you to where you can immediately buy it. Thieves, Elroy, The Uniform Project, Studio Jux and more, all presented so stylishly and clean with additional links to sales, sites and a designer database.

In early 2008, Mission Savvy founder Jennifer Miller picked up her journal and began writing, documenting careless acts of
animal neglect. From this introspection, Miller realized a way she could fuse both her love of clothing and animals was to open a vegan boutique (online and brick and mortar in Charleston, West Virginia). Not so strange a jump seeing as each collection of clothing is based on themed animal rights or “Missions.” Her clothing, footwear and accessories highlight not only a raised consciousness in fashion but of our furry friends.

Kate Morison and Andrea Barrett, founders of Arboretum hail from Sonoma’s wine country where the living is easy and the clothing, organic perfume and shoes coming out of this brick and mortar (as well as online eco-boutique), is refreshing. We love that they offer staple capsule collections for both men and women and only wish we lived in the same town to shop and see more!

Enjoy the pretty sounds of chirping birds as you shop. Not kidding.

Did you know that Tobi had a whole Eco Tobi section? A great selection of Matt and Nat handbags, wallets and clutches, tons of Melissa shoes, Prairie Underground and Alternative Apparel, make Tobi a perfect destination spot for those stylish staple pieces that never grow old.

Another great online boutique, Embodies also has a shop based in Larkspur, California. Owner Kenlynn Wilson bases her criteria on a few things: What fabrics are used in the clothing, where the items are manufactured (and under what conditions), what types of dyes are used in the clothing as well as the packaging the clothes are being shipped in. Curating with a careful eye, Wilson’s due diligence yields a great stable of fashion-forward eco-designers. Look for Alabama Chanin, Calleen Cordero cuff bracelets and select Linda Loudermilk.

In 2007, inspired by the fashionable direction green and ethical designers were taking, A Green Wardrobe decided to launch promoting all the organic, sustainable, or recycled and repurposed material clothing they could find from top designers. Look for Juleselin, Kris Nations jewelry, Numanu and Les Fees de Bengale.

UPDATEd 4.27.11: This post has been updated with more amazing boutiques since the original publish date.

BTC Elements combines smart style with sustainability, hand-selecting each item in their boutique’s collection of clothing, gifts, and accessories with an eye to the environment and social justice. The result: fresh, inspiring designs that are both earth friendly and ethically sourced.

Look for lines including Raw Earth & Wild Sky, Kelly B and Feral Childe.

Kathleen Rowan and Deana Bracken, run Green With Glamour from both Los Angeles and Chicago, building and curating the Green with Glamour® collection. Founded in 2007, the duo has always operated sustainably whether it’s buying for the shop or running the site on a certified carbon neutral webhost. GwG reaches eco-chic shoppers worldwide and continues to promote the concept of living with style while passionately caring for our beautiful planet.

We love that they carry Dallas based Koch, as well as a lot of L.A. based Popomomo and EcoSkin.

Equita, (Italian for fairness), is a design-conscious shop showcasing the finest in green, sweatshop-free and Fair Trade essentials for the body and home. Each item is hand-selected and thoughtfully edited to ensure a mix that is design-conscious, functional, eco-friendly, and socially conscious. In addition to ethical fashion and footwear, Equita carries green home decor, sustainable furniture, fair trade handbags and jewelry, organic and fair trade body care, ethical baby clothing, fair trade sport and wellness gear, and specialty gourmet treats.

Is that it?

Top image: Annie Novotny of Workshop, from Chicago Magazine

The post Top 15 Online Eco-Boutiques appeared first on EcoSalon.

Get all tied up in this season’s scarf trend.

Never has there been a season better suited to the pleasures of a scarf. Blame the exponentially-expanding trend for floral, feline and fringed neck-frippery on That 70’s Show that is undeniably taking center stage in spring and fall fashions.

The scarf has always been appreciated for its ability to add a silky dash of color and luxury to a monotone basic, bridge the gap between winter and spring temperatures, or distract the eye from an unfavored body part. This season witnesses the scarf come into its own as a reliable interpreter of the mood of the moment, be it Bohemian, Romantic or Disco.

Accessories have long had the power to reveal an unspoken credo. Priscilla’s Parasols, a Bay Area company I recently discovered, is devoted to resurrecting the parasol to its former glory days of the 19^th century.   Along with every parasol sold comes a little script revealing through various positions and postures a parasols potential to express the language of flirtation. Similarly, the way a scarf is tied can communicate so much. Think of some of the icons of  70’s dressing: Ali McGraw, Diane Keaton, Bianca Jagger – and imagine how each would have tied a scarf to suggest their unique fashion identity.

Finding a scarf long enough for a floor sweeping grand gesture might be the biggest problem in your search for the perfect one. There are certainly some fantastic eco and sustainable choices. As one of the few sizeless fashion items, scarves are the ultimate thrift store salvage especially if you want to sew two together to create an extra long one, as I plan to do.

The ways to wear them are endless. For minimal investment – especially if you go the thrift store route – you can create another dimension of looks to invigorate your existing wardrobe. Spending some time tying a few new looks is fun and creates a guaranteed wind down from a busy week (I recommend a nice glass of wine and playing Rod Stewart’s “Maggie May” while doing this). Here are some of the 70’s inspired looks I came up with.

• Tie a Headband or Turban. Keep it low on your forehead. Dark eyes and plummy lips and you are instantly transformed into a Biba babe.
• Fashion into a large bow at your neck for a polished look, pulling the loops until they equal the ends. The bustier you are the lower the bow should sit.
• Fold a large scarf into a triangle and tie the ends round your neck and waist as a halter top. Worn with wide-legged pants, you’ll have a slinky, Boogie Nights style. For day, try wearing over a long-sleeved tee.
• Tie as a sash around your waist, leaving the ends in the front. This was a signature YSL touch in the 70’s; it works especially well on midi to maxi length skirts.

If you need a visual guide, visit designer Dominique Mosley via Vogue.co.uk. It’s a great online resource for getting all wound up in this season’s versatile scarf trend.

Image: Green Sewn Wrap from Nimli

The post Spring Scarves: Wound Up. Wind Down. appeared first on EcoSalon.

How patterns and prints in sustainable fashion might cure social malaise.

I sometimes get really down on fashion. There seems to be no justification for colorful pageantry in a world that is literally coming apart at the seams. A military prisoner is unjustly stripped to his underclothes or less while in prolonged solitary confinement; women work their fingers to the bone in suffocating garment factories overseas; and teen models starve themselves to death for the glory of walking the runway as expressionless hangers. It is a grim concoction to ingest along with our daily intake of international news and toxic environmental affairs.

Is contemporary fashion simply a cheap visual band-aid or a deep soothing salve for less than savory current events and crises? I really can’t say, but as one friend confessed to me recently, “You know, I sometimes just need a little fun.” This was coming from a person who I consider to be a devoted animal-rights activist and discreet risk taker.

How do we incorporate luxe fashion and bold new prints and patterns into our wardrobe when we know that others might be spying on us to monitor just how indulgent or fashion-frivolous we sneakily are? Does guilt-free fashion even exist with the increasing scrutiny and lambasting of even the most valiant green carpet efforts?

Sustainable style is a great way to celebrate looking good while also rolling up one’s sleeves to delve into the pervasive mucky-muck. This is not to say that conscious-fashion cures all, but rather that visibly better ways of doing things set us on the right path to improving conditions for folks we may never meet as well as those within our immediate sphere.

With this in mind, I wanted to highlight some of the most eye-catching prints and patterns from several sustainable fashion collections of 2011. Informed choice and awareness can be a very sexy thing. The first step in altering seemingly irreversible patterns of behavior and excessive consumption begins with the right statement we make in our cheeky and unique personal style.

Electric Street Style: JoAnn Berman

Nasdq Robo Coat and turban by designer JoAnn Berman

One cannot talk about transformative fashion without referencing the street-smart repertoire of designer JoAnn Berman. This GreenShows favorite is a pistol and a half on the sustainable style scene and an editorial wizard when it comes to gritty and electrifying storytelling. Her techno-ikat digital prints and recycled vintage textiles really typify the extremes that one woman will go to in order to engage you in the fun of artful dressing and kick-ass combos. These colorful pieces available on JoAnn Berman’s online shop are total investment pieces, both for your closet and the alter ego that you would like to get to know better but have not yet met at the crossroads. JoAnn Berman’s designs coax you to get on with it already, and fashionably barrel ahead for the real work that needs to get done.

Historic Nostalgia: Feral Childe

Feral Childe’s Spring/Summer 2011 Tarquinia Collection

No surprise that Feral Childe tops the list for arty prints and historic references with their Spring/Summer 2011 ‘Tarquinia’ collection. Moriah Carlson and Alice Wu don’t hold back when it comes to textile studio experimentation and art school wit.

These latest designs unearth a whole new spirit in sustainable fashion with their laser cut detailing, sumptuous silk crepe flow, and triangle motifs on organic-cotton jersey blends. I love the hip layering effect of the ‘surplus nylon mesh’ tops, and the versatility that these pieces provide in any climate. The Tarqquinia collection offers clear optimism and an irresistible Mediterranean palette even if you have not stepped foot out of the office for several weekends in a row due to pressing deadlines and a world-changing agenda.

Native Modern Textiles: Lina Rennell

Lina Rennell Spring/Summer 2011 collection, featuring pineapples and aloe  (Rock Sunhat and Aloe Tank)

Textile/fashion designer Lina Rennell just keeps on making beautiful things without all of the hoopla and self-consciousness that typically goes with the territory, and this, for me, makes her a rather likable fashion role model. Lina incorporates green fabrics and low-impact craftsmanship into everything she does, and her limited edition production model guarantees that her exquisite designs are true fashion statement pieces. The  SS 2011 ‘Aloe Tank’ of 100% organic cotton voile literally soothes one into a state of, ‘I’m OK, You’re OK’ serenity and cool-collectedness. All of Lina Rennell’s designs are ethically made in Northern California, upping the brilliant factor even more.

Non-Linear Lyricism: BOA Studio

One-of-a-kind hand drawn illustrations on BOA Studio’s designs

My recent trip to Istanbul was all about local textile and eco-fiber research, so my visit would not have been complete without meeting up with designers, Sena Cevik and Seray Cengiz of BOA Studio. This trailblazing duo has been promoting sustainable fashion on the shores of the Bosphorus and beyond for several years now, and their signature black & white graphics are like nothing else on the planet. BOA Studio has been focused on working with organic ‘pamuk’ (cotton) since the early days of their label, but as of Spring 2011 they will be introducing their new ‘Eko-logik’ collection of edgy graphic statements on superfine bamboo fabric. The team opted to begin working with bamboo as they believe strongly that organic cotton simply uses too much water. The bamboo fabric that they are now sourcing suits their standards for low-impact and responsible design.

BOA Studio, mind over matter meets pure green thinking

It is hard to sum up how inspiring Sena and Seray are as a new generation of designers who have put down roots in their native country to support the textile traditions that reside there. Add to this their deep commitment to agricultural biodiversity, cultural preservation, and urban gardening, and it is no surprise that their designs transport you to wherever you need to be as someone who is both grounded and a believer in making the impossible possible.

lead image: Lina Rennell/Beklina; all other images courtesy of the designers; JoAnn Berman’s photos by Nina Berman

The post Prints and Patterns Inspire Us Into Action appeared first on EcoSalon.

I love a good sale and I’m going to take a wild guess and say you do too.

Here’s another round of Stylish Steals to take you into the next season, based mostly out of Body Politic in Vancouver (belts from Beklina and shoes from Juno & Jove).

I started with the pants, because of the name (Spine Pant) but also because of the sexy ladder like stitching up the back. On sale for $179.

This Dani Tunic by Lara Miller top (made from bamboo) with a cute poof on the sleeve is a nice contrast to the organic cotton of the pants. On sale for $151.50

You’ve got your slim fitting pants and your looser tunic top but now you need to pull it in a bit. I can’t stop belting things lately and love these slim, recycled leather belts from Lina Rennell. Love the fun colors, but for this outfit I’m going with the brown. Not on sale ($155).

A Teich handbag on sale? Yes! This little clutch has black to pull in the pants and brown to pull in the belt without being to matchy matchy. On sale for $119.

These Maggie May earrings from Dotted Loop pulls everything together and throws in a splash of color. No other jewelry needed. Not on sale but priced right at $48.

Shoes could be key putting this outfit together and advise these Olsen Haus Babylon Flat to keep it simple but feel free to rock this outfit with heels too. Just keep the embellishments on the shoes low key.

I couldn’t make up my mind what to do for making this more fall-focused but listen, there’s a lot of jackets and cardigans over at Body Politic, so play around a bit.

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