Eco-Chic: The Fashion Industry is Going Green by Miranda Rubin

LUCKY YOU....we have a guest author today and she's pretty fabulous. Not only is Miranda finishing up school as a designer, she works for 12th St. by Cynthia Vincent, has designed and produced her own first collection and found time to update us on the heartbeat of fashion. Enjoy...

Environmental conservation is the buzz in recent years. And why shouldn’t it be? Opulence and frivolity are out, tasteful and simple are in. And yet the apparel industry, which is fueled by the quest for the next big thing, has been a little slow to pick up on the eco trend. Making clothing is an incredibly wasteful and polluting process. Natural resources and toxic chemicals are used to process fibers into textiles, and a huge amount of energy is required to turn fabric into clothing and ship items internationally. But going green has a bad rep in the apparel world, conjuring images of dread-locked slackers playing hacky sac in ripped jeans. So what’s an eco-conscious shopper to do? Proving that style and concern for the environment are not diametrically opposed, a few companies are doing their part to make a positive impact while still embodying perfectly polished class.

Going Organic with Eileen Fisher
Women’s sportswear line, Eileen Fisher, is proving its commitment to the environment through its Eco Collection: soft, simple, wearable separates made from organic cotton, sustainable lyocell, and polyester made from recycled water bottles. The New York based clothing line uses fabrics certified by GOTS, the Global Organic Textiles Standard, an international organization whose mission is to standardize worldwide requirements for organic textiles, from the farming process, to manufacturing, to labeling.

And if saving the planet wasn’t enough, Eileen Fisher also awards yearly grants to women-owned businesses devoted to environmental and economic innovation.Now this is a brand you can really feel good about!

Eileen Fisher’s organic and sustainable line can be found at Neiman Marcus and 54 Eileen Fisher stores across the country.

Closing the Loop with SOEX Group

International clothing recycler, SOEX Groupis on a mission to keep clothing and other textiles out of landfills. SOEX processes more than 300 million pounds of used clothing per year in its 14 plants around the world, which divides the items into three categories of re-wearable, re-usable, or recyclable.The company boasts a 98% recycling efficiency, with a goal of 100%.

Clothing that is deemed fit to be re-worn is gathered and sorted. The majority of these items are bailed and sold to developing countries, and a small percentage is separated and sold to vintage buyers in the U.S., Europe, and Far East.

Under the label Re-Collection, used clothing is deconstructed and reworked into one-of-a-kind designer pieces.Each item is unique so never worry about anyone showing up to the party in your dress! The line has received rave reviews and has been picked up by ShopBop.com, Barney’s New York, and boutiques across the country.
But wait, there’s more…
Nearly one-third of the items that reach SOEX are not fit for re-wear. These items are recycled into industrial products like automotive insulation and carpet underlay. Used denim is turned into eco-friendly home insulation, all the rage among the environmentalist elite like Ed Begley Jr. and Al Gore. Even the textile dust from the processing plants is recycled into alternative fuel for concrete factories, truly a Zen-like efficiency.
Made to Order with ShirtsMyWay

For the eco-conscious and style-conscious gentleman comes ShirtsMyWay.com, a website where the shopper designs his own custom-madedress shirts, from measurements to button color. Because the shirts are made to order, there’s never any waste from large production runs that didn’t sell.

ShirtsMyWay vaunts one of the most well designed websites you’ve ever seen, and makes creating a custom tailored shirt devilishly simple. Customers are guided through a wide selection of fabrics, collar and cuff shape, and choice of button color. Possibilities are endless! Well, not endless, there are 7 trillion different design variations. After designing the style of the shirt the shopper is guided through the measurement process to ensure his shirt is tailored to fit perfectly. ShirtsMyWay offers reasonable prices and tailoring at no extra charge. Other perks include free international shipping and a quick turn-around time, in as little as 9 business days.
While the apparel industry still has a long way to go in changing its wasteful ways, the coolest of the cool have already begun to prove that going green is très chic. Innovation inevitably spawns trend, so in coming seasons the style savvy can expect to be guided by the mantra, “Less is the New More”.