A list of the top sustainable designers currently on the fashion scene.

Sustainable fashion has come a long way since its humble beginnings with more and more designers taking chances with fabrics, silhouettes and collaborations. Here we offer you an extensive list of what we consider to be the top designers in the sustainable fashion field.

A.D.O. Organics, New York, NY: GOTS (global organic trade standard) certified fabrics, chemical-free herbal dyes, Fair Trade.

Afia, New York, NY: Sustainable women’s clothing line sourced and sewn in Ghana, West Africa.

Ajna, New York, NY: Certified organic and sustainable textiles, collaborates with indigenous textile artisans.

Alabama Chanin, Florence, Alabama: Slow design, organic fabrics, recycled materials, minimal waste, made by local artisans in Florence, Alabama.

Alder, New York, NY: Part of the Pratt Design Incubator, all made in the U.S., materials sourced locally.

Allison Parris, New York, NY: Recycled materials, end run fabrics, organic silks, made in Manhattan.

Ambika, Catskills, NY: Made from shorn and brushed Angora rabbits on Ambika Conroy’s own rabbit farm in upstate New York.

Auralis Herrero, New York/Puerto Rico: Organic fabrics, promotes sustainable economies in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

Avery by Wang, Vancouver, Canada: Recently launched, organic cotton, hemp.

Awamaki Lab, New York and Ollantaytambo, Peru: A Peruvian non-profit working with impoverished Quechua women weavers.

Carrie Parry, New York, NY Produced ethically and locally in the New York Garment District, sourcing environmentally conscious materials and textiles supporting artisanal communities worldwide.

Christopher Raeburn, London: Christopher Ræburn has become known for his utilization of re-appropriated military fabrics to create garments that are functional, intelligent and meticulously crafted.

Clary Sage Organics, San Francisco, CA: Clary Sage Organics is committed to using 100% organic or ecologically sustainable products.

Costello Tagliapietra, New York, NY: Uses AirDye waterless technology to create all their prints, made in New York City’s Garment District.

Crop by David Peck, Houston, TX: Manufactured with textiles dyed in the United States and select fabrics imported from fair trade co-operatives in India.

Curator, San Francisco, CA: Made in San Francisco, organic cottons, hemp, minimal waste.

EcoSkin, Los Angeles, CA: EcoSkin uses only environmentally sustainable luxury fabrics woven, dyed and sewn in the U.S.

Eko-Lab, New York, NY: 100% organic materials, natural vegetable dyes, all made locally by New York City artisans.

Elroy, Vancouver, BC: Uses organic cotton, bamboo, tencel, linen, hemp, wild silk, pineapple, wool and upcycled fabrics, manufactured by a small, family-run cottage industry in Indonesia, designed in Canada.

Eva Zingoni, Paris, France: Made in France from recycled materials, limited edition, surplus fabrics from Parisian fashion houses.

Feral Childe, New York City/Oakland, California: Organic textiles, recycled textiles and accessories, made in New York City.

Frei, Chicago: Organic cottons, natural dyes, and locally manufactured textiles.

Gretchen Jones, New York: Sustainable fabrics, made in New York City’s Garment District.

Harricana by Mariouche, Montreal, Canada: Recycled fur, recycled materials.

H Fredriksson, New York, NY: Silk, made in New York City.

Honest By, Antwerp, Belgium: 100% transparent company from production to sales, organic fabric, certified organic wools.

Indigenous, Santa Rosa, CA: organic fabrics, Fair Trade, low impact dyes, free range alpaca.

IOU Project, Tamil Nadu, India: The IOU Project makes unique, handmade, traceable apparel, Fair Trade.

Isoude, Newport, Rhode Island: Made in the U.S.A., silks, hand dyeing.

Juleselin, San Francisco, CA: Created from organic cotton and recycled fabrications, sweatshop free.

Kelly Lane, Pittsburgh, PA: Created from sustainable fabrics, made in New York City’s Garment District.

Koch, Dallas, TX: Sustainable fabrics, made in Dallas and LA.

Lara Miller, Chicago, IL: Multi-functional clothing, organic cottons, hand-loomed bamboo, hemp and vegan silk, made in Chicago.

Lavuk, Los Angeles, CA: Sweatshop free and made locally in Los Angeles with sustainable materials such as organic cotton, tencel, hemp and dead stock silks, multi-functional clothing.

Lina Rennell, Northern California: The Rennell line is an art brand with a heavy focus on original print work, U.S. production, sustainable textiles, craft and high-end tailoring.

Loomstate, New York, NY: Organic cotton, tencel, reduced water consumption, reduced waste, pursuing a closed loop product life cycle.

Loup Charmant, New York, NY: Organic cotton, natural dyes, silks, made in New York City’s Garment District.

Made By, Peruvian Highlands: Eco-friendly Alpaca yarns, hand knit by the local highland Artisans of Peru, Fair Trade, organic colorants.

modaspia, Placerville, CA: Organic fabrics, end run fabrics, made in San Francisco.

Nau, Portland, Oregon: Organic cottons, silks, tencel, recycled materials, cruelty-free wool, partners for change with Ashoka, Ecotrust, Kiva and Mercy Corps.

100% NY, New York, NY: Organic, recycled, and ethical materials, produced entirely in New York.

Organic by John Patrick, New York, NY: Handmade metallic lace, sustainable recycled wool, organic cotton, biodegradable cotton cupro, vegetable-tanned leather, hand-loomed Angora, digitally printed silks,

M. Patmos, New York, NY: Eco-friendly merino wool and alpaca, faux fur made from wool and alpaca, and vegetable tanned leather, handwork techniques from women’s artisan collectives in Nepal and Bolivia, as well as zero-waste seamless knitting technology from Japan.

Portland Pendleton Collection: Portland, Oregon: Pendleton fabrics are woven exclusively in Pendleton’s Northwest Mills and all of the apparel is sourced and produced in the U.S.

Partimi, London: Digitally-printed silks, organic wools, modals, milk fibers, and luxurious cashmere.

Piece x Piece, San Francisco, CA: The fabric used in each piece is selected from a changing stock of luxury discards.

The Podolls, San Francisco, CA: 100% organic Supima Cotton, made in the U.S.

Popomomo, Los Angeles, CA: Organic cottons, Cupro, recycled materials, made in Los Angeles.

Prairie Underground, Seattle, Washington: Organic cotton, hemp, designed and manufactured in the U.S.

Raleigh Denim, Raleigh, NC: Handcrafted denim on vintage machines from the 1920s, sustainable cotton, organic cotton for Fall 12.

RESTORE Clothing, New York, NY: Repreve® Recycled Nylon, made in the New York City Garment District.

Rogan, New York, NY: Silks, organic cotton, alpaca, wool, bamboo, made in the U.S.

Samantha Pleet, New York, NY: Organic cottons, silks, Made in the U.S.

Soham Dave, New York, NY: Soham Dave focuses primarily on using biodegradable fabrics, recycled materials, and hand embroideries.
 

Stewart+Brown, Los Angeles, CA: Organic cotton, organic pima cotton, hemp, surplus fabrics, Mongolian Cashmere produced through a sustainable supply chain, Fair Trade.

Study NY, New York, NY: Organic cotton, linen, recycled materials, zero waste, made in New York.

Suzanne Rae, New York, NY: Silks, organic cottons, other sustainable materials when possible, made in New York City’s Garment District.

Thieves, Toronto, Canada: Soy, hemp, organic cotton, bamboo, Tussah Silk, organic wool, Seacell, tencel.

Titania Inglis, New York, NY: Japanese organic cotton, French vegetable-tanned leather, and dead stock wool from New York’s garment industry, made in New York.

Vaute Couture, New York, NY: Vegan, fair trade.

Did we miss someone? Email amy@ecosalon.com with your tip!

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Maria Moyer goes from being a brand strategist to artist while still following a sustainable map.

What happens when you pick a road and stick to it? You get good at one thing and are ready for another. So goes the life highway of Wink Communication founder Maria Moyer. We’ve been big fans of Moyer for some time having discovered her work through an inspiring New York Times article on the Bureau of Friends back in 2009.

Successfully weaving sustainability and social issues into her work as a brand strategist at Wink, Moyer is now ready to examine the life aquatic with an art exhibit titled Blue, dedicated to the complexities of ocean based on her bi-coastal life in California and New York. The collection will be open to the public September 8th, at ROGAN in New York City and her pieces can be seen indefinitely  at BDDW.

“The collection is really a moment of reflection for me,” says Moyer, who has always lived by the ocean, having grown up in Southern California.

She says on her site that her childhood permitted frequent access to ocean landscapes and creatures, citing even at age 11, “while other kids played with dolls and Lego sets,” Moyer had an opportunity—under the watchful eye of a professor—to dissect a beached 18-foot squid. Years later, while her friends bought Eurail passes for trips abroad, she ventured farther into the Pacific, backpacking through remote areas of the Hawaiian Islands.

Susan Casey, O Magazine Editor-in-Chief and bestselling author of The Wave: In Pursuit of the Rogues, Freaks, and Giants of the Ocean and The Devil’s Teeth: A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America’s Great White Sharks, says Moyer’s work is a “gorgeous blend of sensitivity and sensibility; she never fails to spot the beauty of the natural world—even if it’s hidden 20,000 leagues beneath the sea. But it’s one thing to identify the sublime essence of, say, zooplankton or roses, and another thing to translate it into exquisite forms. For Maria, the former invariably leads to the latter.  There is no better word I can think of to describe her unique mix of whimsy, sophistication, and science than: delightful.”

While you can currently see some of Moyer’s art at BDDW in New York City, on September 7th, Bowery based fashion label ROGAN will host an invite only “cultural cross-roads of surf, fashion, arts and music in NYC creating a movement inspired by city and ocean.” ROGAN has invited friends to collaborate and create one-of-a-kind pieces and limited edition capsule collections for ROGAN VS. LOOMSTATE-SRF CTY, to be sold exclusively at the ROGAN store. The Blue collection will open to the public on September 8th, with 10% of all sales benefiting Waves for Water.

Julie Gilhart (with Anna Wintour) wearing Moyer’s Circle and Swirl necklace.

We were lucky to catch up with Moyer this week to ask a few questions about her collection and the inspiration behind it.

Here’s what she had to say.

One part of your life deals with helping others to set communication strategy and to develop clear messages (Wink Communication), the other asks you to create and tell the world who YOU are and what’s important to you through your art. Is this a challenge for you, or do they compliment each other?

I’m so glad you asked this question. It’s a good one. The answer: Both. Trying to do both is both a challenge AND these roles compliment each other. I want to be good at both. Making porcelain objects or creating things from wood is a great joy. It’s also intellectually and physically challenging. At the same time, it is somewhat solitary and a little self-absorbing as I persist in getting an idea across, or in my attempt to get a specific result from the material. On the other hand, my consulting practice is highly collaborative and in service to a person or an organization, many of whom are in pursuit of a greater good themselves. My work with Yves Behar, for example. Both compliment each other as they are the social and solitary parts of me. The challenge is time management. Isn’t it always?

“Untitled,” Unglazed stoneware frames (this piece contains 12 frames), sand, feathers, a eucalyptus leaf, a skate egg case, seaweed, and surf wax remnants.

Your Southern California childhood had a direct effect on your appreciation for ocean. Of all aspects of life lived by the ocean, why go for promoting “the tiny plants and animals at the foundation of the Earth’s food chain?”

Have you seen photos of plankton under a microscope? They are gorgeous. I will have a life-time of inspiration from them alone. Many of them come with a silica-based armor (not unlike porcelain) that protects them from predators – a most complex and miraculous architecture. If their beauty doesn’t get your attention, the facts might: Phytoplankton, including algae, sink more carbon than our Earth’s forests and they are also, as you said, a huge part of the world’s food chain. Beauty and power.
To know them is to LOVE them.

Temporary Bliss Bird Vessel (and necklace). Stoneware, unglazed porcelain and (azo, chromium and lead-free) leather cord. Available at BDDW in NYC.

What’s your favorite piece and why?

More than the resulting object itself, the process of making them is what makes something a favorite. It’s tough to choose between them. I’m very excited about a recent group that I call ‘vacuoles.’ They are in the “Blue” collection that I just (today) finished installing at Rogan in NYC. I also love and might not be able to part with an untitled wall installation at Rogan; it’s a bi-coastal archive of beach ephemera; a personal, natural-history journal. A lot of wonderful people in my life were involved in making this work. I had to get friends from all over to contribute sand from ‘my’ beaches. And I love a piece at BDDW that is a bird vessel.

Temporary Bliss Bird Vessel. Stoneware, unglazed porcelain and (azo, chromium and lead-free) leather cord. Available at BDDW in NYC.

Here’s a preview of more art from Blue at ROGAN as well as what you can find at BDDW.

Diatom. Unglazed porcelain. Approximately 6″ diameter.

Porcelain Breast Plate, (azo, chromium and lead free) leather cord.

Box of Hours. Stoneware and porcelain.

Blue Tab Necklace for ROGAN. Porcelain dipped in blue wash, (azo, chromium and lead free) leather cord. Various size and shapes.

Top image by Leslie Williamson

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This sheer sweater vest from Rogan will keep you lightly covered on cool summer nights.

Rogan always has the best silhouettes that make fashion fresh to come back to over and over. Their Planum Sweater Vest features an open netting drape with exaggerated arm holes, ribbed hem and trim. Made from 70% Tanguis and 30% Linen.

We love how this vest can serve as a light layer in the warmer months and as a textural layering piece year round.

On sale for $144.

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

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Unwrap and Unravel: Three new dresses for spring.

Nothing says easy, breezy springtime style more than throwing on a lightweight, laid-back dress. If the latest spring/summer store arrivals are any indication, dresses are so having a moment right now. Perhaps this year’s siren call, the more linear midi and maxi length stretch tube dresses don’t appeal. Admittedly, some top notch ankles and shoulders are required to carry off the look’s enticing allure. Consider instead opting for the season’s new short dress to match your elevated Vitamin D level spring cheer.

While a dependable dress is often the working girl’s wardrobe staple—faithfully turning up for every event, interview or hot date, this reincarnation can’t boast having a head for business nor a bod for sin. Office-suitable shifts and wraps or body-con bandage styles are most definitely out, the new shorter length silhouette is instead semi-structured, delicately voluminous and preferably geometrically seamed.

Sensitive to the changing mood, designers are employing bold colors, vivid prints and flattering sleeves to underscore the new dress style’s demure feminity, communicating the look’s sense of humor, personality and essential simplicity.

Now is the time to assess a winter rut of wearing the same clothes day in and day out. I’m kinda over my skinny-jean and oh so artful layering and accessorizing techniques and long for the freedom of a sunnier approach. It feels good to be in sync with nature. Ironically, as carefree as this look is, achieving its spontaneous élan vital requires careful, studied consideration. Gear down accessories to a minimum and opt for a simple strappy shoe, wedges work best.

Take a look at my sustainably made picks for this season’s best examples of the new dress:

Above: German designer, Hui Hui’s standout Silk Apron dress. Hand-crafted construction, small production and made from 100% silk, the
versatile and adjustable dress has a slant V neckline and drawstring hem that allows the dress to be worn in various ways (up or down, inside out, long or short), and has enclosed finished seams throughout. The light weight silk is printed with a Vogue Vibe print on grey base, with splashes of pink, green and yellow.

Rogan’s Electra Dress is made from white haze silk. It features a deep V neckline and draped envelope sleeves in contrast slub knit with seam detail. Comes with contrasting black slip.

The Baobab Dress by Bodkin buttons half way down, has clean lines, pockets and most of all illustrates the new crisp sense of comfort. Made of 100% Cupro. Cupro is regenerated from natural fibers. It wears like cotton (durable), but has the luxurious hand of silk.

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Favorite t-shirts from designers around the world.

T-shirts. They tell the world what we think, offer up artistic canvases, and make people laugh when they pass us by.

We have drawers full of them, our favorites worn beyond repair, each one imbued with a story that makes us love them even more. Because at some point you’re going to need another, we’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite graphic tees to replenish stock. Small, indie brands and well known sustainable designers are all here, with the common thread being they’re organic and graphically pleasing.

We know you’ll like.

FluffyCo’s premium apparel line unites organic cotton and eco heather blends printed with FluffyCo’s signature graphic prints. Printed in small batches in the Bay Area, some using water–based inks. All styles have a fabulous soft, luxe feel and hand–printed hangtags. Yes, these are alligators.

FIN is a Norwegian high fashion label producing designer womenswear in a sustainable manner. When we caught site of this fairy tale-based organic tee we were more than smitten.

L.A. based Stewart +Brown have a few great t-shirts like this Tipi Tee. Designers/founders Karen Stewart and Howard Brown are “inspired by their love and respect for nature and a passion for design.” Hard to pull off great collections and infuse them with a few great tees but we can always count on them for it.

Meow. This digitally printed t-shirt from Wiloh combines not just the pairing of cats and space, but bamboo and organic cotton in a deep scoop neck.
Designed by London based fashion and lifestyle blogger Mademoiselle Robot. Wiloh was launched in July of 2010 as a way to promote environmental and social awareness through sustainable street wear and has teamed up with Kids In Distressed Situations (K.I.D.S.), a charitable organization that reaches out to help children affected by natural disasters and poverty, to form a “Tee For Tee” initiative. Every t-shirt sale is matched with the donation of a specially-designed t-shirt to a child in need.

Famed for her high-impact slogan tees, Katherine Hamnett is best known for her political t-shirts and her ethical business philosophy. Having a Hamnett tee is like having a piece of history in your wardrobe.

The Orphan’s Arms is an English label “That harks back to a time of gin, palaces, poor houses and executions. King George IV is on the throne and Paris Hilton upon the public tongue.” Though not a 100% sustainable line, they have a fun selection of hand printed organic t-shirts to peruse.

Loomstate celebrates 41st Earth Day with a limited edition run of super soft graphic tees that includes this one. Launched in New York City in 2004 by designer Rogan Gregory and Scott Mackinlay Hahn, Loomstate was founded as a casual brand dedicated to creating demand for certified organic cotton using socially and environmentally responsible methods of production. They do an amazing job.

Boa is an Istanbul-based eco fashion label that stands out from their pack thanks to their commitment to organic cotton, and their whimsical hand-drawn illustrations.

Look For Fiddleheads is a Chicago based line that inspired by the art and writings found in very old books and bound newspapers from 1832-1845, that belonged to designer/illustrator Lee Tracy’s grandmother. We love all the witty designs that are as artistic as they are thought-filled.

Mociun says on their site that they “Explore and integrate the ever-emerging technologies and critical conceptions of sustainability; environmentally healthy production; and, as a type of de facto jouissance, the role of, and the products available to, the individual consumer in society at large.”

We appreciate their gift of supplying us with interesting product.

Blondes Make Better T-Shirts is one of the funniest lines I’ve seen in branding, admittedly at the expense of us brunettes and redheads. This one reads: “Help Global Warming. Donate a Swimming Noodle to a Polar Bear.”

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Rogan’s Barneys Co-Op Birthday Cardigan adds interest to a wardrobe.

With spring comes lighter outer shells and mid-weight cardigans are the perfect fit to ease you into the warmer months ahead. This one from New York City based Rogan, was reissued exclusively for Barneys CO-OP’s 25th Anniversary and just in time to spice up a neutral wardrobe.

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

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Not only is Scott Mackinlay Hahn a refreshing and talented designer/founder of Loomstate, he’s one of the most attractive designers cutting cloth this side of the Mississippi – and I know I’m not the only woman to think it so shut your mouths.

Physical attributes aside, Scott, who co-designs with Rogan Gregory (also of Rogan) for Loomstate is a pioneer in the sustainable field working from the soil up when it comes to his line. The designs exclude “the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, plant growth regulators, and livestock feed additives,” and only use 100 percent certified organic cotton from various regions of the world such as Turkey, Peru, Africa, India and the USA.

The Loomstate site says: “Beginning with the design process in its New York studio, Loomstate directly manages all stages of manufacturing, from the fabric mills, to the cut and sew facilities and finally the laundries to ensure all partners are participating in responsible manufacturing processes. Loomstate works with factories representing the ‘Gold Standard’ or model of excellence of responsible production methods. All Loomstate factory partners are required to adhere to a code of conduct and Terms of Engagement in our company manufacturing agreement. These factories must use the highest environmental and labor standards, controlling factory pollution, and enforcing fair labor as the cornerstone of the effort.”

Phew. The label really does work hard to be sustainable in every way. I recently caught up with Scott in his New York studio to have him talk more about what sustainability meant to him. You can catch the interview above.

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