Kiddy chic: let's think a bit more creatively

With sums like these, no wonder parents countrywide are beginning to be inventive with money saving ideas.  The ‘Make do and Mend’ ethos seems to have been reinvented, after a lengthy absence, primarily because we now find ourselves in the grips of a recession.

There is some disparity in the way our minds work when it comes to our children and what they wear, but it’s great to see that more and more parents are making a concerted effort to discover alternative, cheaper, more environmentally friendly ways to keep their little ones fashionable.

Borrowing clothes from friends and relatives is the most obvious solution, especially when a new baby arrives, as they are guaranteed to only be worn a few times.  Washed and bagged up after use, they are then ready and waiting for the next little one’s arrival, whether it be your own, a friends or a relative’s baby.   All my children were lucky enough to be able to sleep under the same beautiful cotton sheets that my own Mother made for me when I was a baby and both girls wore, amongst other things, a lovely pinafore style bib, of mine, that felt fabulously retro.  It certainly felts very special re-using something that has played a part in your own upbringing.  Being creative and making things for your children could also leave possible air looms, to be handed down through future generations

Supplementing new with old clothing is always a good compromise as it has to be said that only those of us with an extremely strong willpower would be able to resist all the lovely children’s items available in the shops.  Shopping online for second hand children’s clothes is becoming increasingly popular and several websites are now offering retro style clothing for children, many of which have been re-cycled from unwanted adult clothing.   These websites are also a great source of clothes for our label conscious children in the eight to ten year old bracket, as they are the ones greatly influenced by peer pressure and are also the most capable of exerting a strong influence on their parents in the decision making process.

We need to instil this ’Make do and mend’ ethos into our children as it’s a valuable tool to go through life with.  Being frugal and creative with the family budget is both sensible and liberating for all, and perfectly feasible considering the options available. 

Visit www.swop2shop.co.uk and go to ‘Visit Kids’ to browse affordable, second hand children’s clothes, sized from baby to young teens.

‘ the raw and symbolic beauty of the natural

world sharply into play with

a regal, noble, architectural force’

With this in mind I couldn’t believe my luck at finding this stunning piece during a visit to a Designer sale in London, just days before his tragic death.

For me, a fashion item that generates such a strong emotional reaction will be deserving of the timeless tag and is already on the road to becoming labeled as ‘Vintage’.

The benefits of clothes that ‘speak to you’ will become self evident, when in years to come they still hold their appeal, to you or their new owner.

Wearing Vintage doesn’t just express who you are now, but echoes what has shaped and inspired you from your past.  The wearing of a vintage item evokes a whole range of thoughts regarding its history, previous owners and experiences.

It’s a great feeling to know that you are giving an item of clothing a new lease of life and for the individualists amongst you it is a great way of expressing your personality.

The message is therefore to ‘dust off’ that timeless piece from your wardrobe and even if your classic item fails to ‘speak to you’ in quite the same way as it used to, odds are it will have plenty to say to the next person on its journey!

If you want to find out more about swapping Vintage log on to Swop2Shop.co.uk

A writer for an advertising agency by day, Jen Holmes spends her free time hunting out charity shop and eBay bargains and then customising her finds to make them girly, chic and eco friendly. Jen abides by the eco friendly fashion laws of ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ and exercises her green credentials by never throwing anything away.

I caught up with Jen to find out the secrets to her success and how she creates a style so unique…

Where do you shop for clothes?

I mostly shop on the high street and eBay, but I’m getting into charity shops, car boot sales and vintage fairs more and more.

Why do you never throw anything away?

It’s just so wasteful! I get bored of my clothes very quickly, but I’d much rather see them go to a happy new home rather than into the bin. 

Tell me some of your favourite clothes/accessories that you have customised?

I worked in a denim shop when I was 17 and learnt how to alter jeans. While I worked there, I bought some straight leg ripped jeans. A few years ago, I dug them out and decided to make them wearable again by altering the shape. I made the legs skinnier to give them a modern feel. I love them now! 

What do you do to recycle your clothes?

I clear out my wardrobe and sort things into four piles – keep, donate, sell and sister! I give some bits to charity, sell others on eBay and hand lots down to my sister, who has the best free wardrobe around! 

What do you do if you have an item that has really gone out of fashion?

There are always ways to rework high fashion items – a belt can transform a dated shape, layers can be added or removed, simple cardigans and jumpers can hide fussy details. And if there’s nothing you can do, clothes can be relegated to the dressing up box!

Any tips for our readers how they can recycle their clothes?

Be ruthless. Evaluate everything in your wardrobe regularly and decide what goes and what stays. Try things on, wear them in different ways and if it’s not working – recycle! The easiest way is to donate to charity or a lucky friend, but eBay is also good. If something’s damaged beyond repair, the fabric can be recycled – this is something I’ll be doing now I’ve found my nearest recycling centre. You could even rip up old t-shirts and use them as cleaning cloths!

Have any disasters happened along the way?

I had to buy a cute clutch bag back from the charity shop I donated it to – you can be too ruthless! And many of my alterations have gone horribly wrong, so I’m a pro at unpicking stitches. 

What inspired you to start recycling your clothes?

I’m always looking for ways to save money, and throwing old clothes away seemed like such a waste. My sister and I have shared clothes since we were little girls so handing things down to her was an easy progression… the rest just followed! 

To read more about Jen visit her blog:

http://littlebirdfashion.blogspot.com

Let’s take a look at what Sommerset House had to offer…

Nicola from Beautiful Soul brings vintage kimonos into the limelight for A/W 2010 – luxury fabrics the are durable teamed with a design that can be worn in a multitude of ways. Recycled jeans turned our heads – who would’ve guessed that a beautiful and elegant top could be produced from your old pair of jeans? If LFW is all about innovation, Nicola has it in abundance.

Beautiful: Vintage kimonos

Lu Flux took us by surprise. Upbeat, full of energy and raring to go with their eco credentials, there’s something in this range for everyone who wants to unleash their inner child. From hand knit mittens to eccentric dresses you’ll want to touch and play with something in the range this year.

Fun: Florals are on trend

Possibly our pick of the show, Kayu Design showcased a range of bamboo sunglasses – handcrafted. As a resource that grows twice as fast as a tree and restores itself in just 5 years, we’re loving bamboo. They look hot and by buying a pair, Kayu funds one sight restoring surgery in the developing world (best not ask for a complimentary press sample then!)

Inspiring: bamboo glasses

The highlight of the show was a collection by Leafric Designs, founded by sisters Sashana and Melissa Miller. The bold and striking designs were presented by models strutting down the runway in a bizarre ostrich style walk (which made us chuckle). This edgy fairtrade couture stood out from the rest of the Fairwear show where the majority of the collections did little to break down the ethical clothing stereotypes of dowdy cotton garments.

Cotton Candy brought some fun to the night with their bright and breezy range. They used head turning coloured tights to set off the old faithful little black dress and bows and beads to sweeten up basic t’s and shirts.

People Tree showed off their new pieces created with the help of Emma Watson. The best word to describe this range is prepy, the Jack Will’s of the Fair Trade fashion world.

Fairtrade fashion is definitely going places and with the face of Burberry turning green, who knows who we’ll welcome to the fair-trade fashion arena next year?

Ethical fashion hits Bristol

 The fashion show, taking place on 25^th February, aims to promote Fairtrade to improve the lives of producers in developing countries.

So how is it going to out do itself this year? Well since the Fairwear brand has become established the ‘Fairwear Fashion Show’ has become an important date in everyone’s fashion calendar – displaying the changes that should be happening in fashion all over the world.

This year sees Harry Potter’s very own Emma Watson showcasing her fair-trade range in association with leading fair-trade designer brand, People Tree. Emma’s collections brings a little bit if edginess to the show:

I wanted to help People Tree produce a younger range because I was excited by the idea of using fashion as a tool to alleviate poverty and knew it was something I could help make a difference with.

As more and more people become aware of the positive message being promoted with the use of fair-trade fashion it’s not just the great British public becoming involved – many designers, actors and musicians are showing an interest in the constantly changing world of fashion; and luckily it’s changing for the better.

So what will you lucky people be seeing? Well fantastic collection from of course Emma Watson; Debenhams 5G range which involves Sir Steve Redgrave’s stunning designs who simply uses Fairtrade cotton from Mall; I think we love him already.

Bishopston trading fashion company are unveiling their collection. Along with ‘Life’s not fair but my knickers are’, Bristol based company; ‘Spunky’. Not to mention the spectacular Laura Ashley, Warehouse fairtrade range which include Bibico, Leafric, Wombat and Ethics Girls.

But guess what? It doesn’t stop there, musicians from Sarodplayer, contemporary dancers from the Invisible circus known as ‘Movement Collective’ will be amazing us with their fabulous piece also. And if that’s not enough for you then get ready to say hello to a whole host of celebrities. Actor James Redmond is acting as compare at the show. As well as BBC3’s very own Tara Starlet from ‘Blood Sweat and T-shirts’ will be talking about some of her experiences.

Fairwear Fashion Show is hosting some pretty big names but also it’s letting some fresh new talent on to its runways; the fashion students from Filton College are creating a collection for the show as well as the their media students creating a 2 minute advert on fair-trade fashion which will be shown at the event then judged by a celebrity panel. So big stakes for the new talent!

The Fairtrade fashion show is endorsed by the Fairtrade Foundation and the Ethical FashionForum. All Fairwear fashion houses use certified Fairtrade cotton or are members of the World Fair Trade Organisation (WFTO).

So all in all this is an event you don’t want to miss. Show your support for fair-trade fashion and get on down there; what’s the worse that can happen you save the world one piece of clothing at a time.

Get your tickets now: 25^th February 2010, 4pm & 7pm at Century Bristol Cathedral.

After the extravagances of the Christmas period, most of us feel the need to ‘cleanse’ our lives in some way, shape or form.  Making this a reality isn’t easy when, lets face it, life nowadays is hectic for us all and the demands on our time are greater than ever before. 

In reality, we would all benefit from a little help putting those resolutions into practice, especially when it comes to recycling and making the material things in life far more sustainable.

Those of us with bulging wardrobes, filled with items that are unworn or unloved are likely to be looking for ways to rectify this.  Just emptying your wardrobe doesn’t really tick any boxes, something constructive needs to be done with it all.

Deciding what to do with your unwanted items can be a somewhat time consuming and daunting task.  There are, however an array of environmentally friendly routes out there, tailor made for their disposal.  These range from charity shops and second hand dress agencies right through to local clothes swishing events and several online clothes swapping websites.  All of these encourage the recycling of your unwanted items but offer very different consumer experiences.

You could  ‘Swish’ your way through 2010 by supporting your local swishing events, as this is a great way of swapping your old clothes for new and making new friends in the process.

Tried and tested dress agencies are also great for realizing some cash for unwanted garments and you’ll be safe in the knowledge that those items will continue to be worn by others when they are re-sold.

The largest growth area in the clothes recycling industry has been the emergence of online clothes swapping websites that offer a range of swapping and selling options, for those wanting to swap from the comfort of their own homes.  These sites are ideal for those who are short of time, but wish to see the lives of their clothes continue.  They are great for seasonal offers and incentives too and from an environmental point of view couldn’t be better.

Take a look at Swop2Shop.co.uk .  For a limited period they are offering all those who register with them a freepost bag to start the clothes swapping process. This certainly is a big incentive to keep at least one of those New Year’s resolutions!

From Flock to Frock

Three years ago The British Fashion Council founded “Estethica” to showcase the growing movement in London of cutting edge designers devoted to working in an eco sustainable way. Now in its seventh season, it has evolved to become the epicentre for London’s ethical fashion industry, and I can see why.

It was more than a refreshing experience to walk into a room with so many talented and energetic designers clearly genuinely passionate about using environmental sustainable materials.  One of the people I met in this room was brand and business developer Beate Kubitz at “Makepiece”. She tells me how she 5 years ago was working in a city corporation living an unsustainable lifestyle and just feeling tired all the time. She needed to do something meaningful and exiting and so she quit her job, moved back to Yorkshire where she grew up and started to spin sheep wool for fun. She then met young designer Nicola Sherlock who shared the same thoughts as herself to an extent it was almost scary.  A year later they started to work together and put up a small firm.

“All our clothes are made from British farmed wool, alpaca and mohair, and are manufactured – from flock to frock – in the UK. We even keep our own sheep”

Kubitz reveals as she laughs. Additionally she explains that to her sustainable lifestyle and being eco friendly is to buy less and value what you have.

After walking around in this very boutiquey showroom at the Mayfair hotel wanting everything that was being displayed it was finally time for the announcement of the designers selected to receive support from industry mentors. Six lucky designers were picked out, and Ashley Ashby at “The North circular” was one of them.

“It feels absolutely amazing to be one of the six to have been selected by the industry’s professional”, Ashby says with sparkling eyes.

Ashby graduated last year from Central St. Martins and together with her model friends Lily Cole and Katherine Poulton they joined forces with Isobel Davis (founder of Izzy Lane sheep sanctuary) to produce a range of 16 knitted pieces.

“The garments are made using ethical wool from rescued Wensleydale sheep, housed at the sanctuary in North Yorkshire. We use hand-knitting-experts in the age 21-91 and if you like you can create your own piece in choice of five naturally dyed colours. This season we have created a ski-wear-collection where we have also used ethical jewellers”, Ashby says exited.

Even though green is the future “Esthetica” mentor Baroness Lola Young says that it will take time to fully change people’s way of consuming.

“It’s all about strategy approach and changing how people think, so it is not a short-time strategy but the medium and long term-strategies”, Young says.

Simon Ward Joint CEO at BFC says that although there are many more obstacles for an ethical designer and even if it will take some time to change people’s way of consuming, ethical fashion will be the normality and not the difference in the future.

Honesty works this Christmas

This really opened my eyes to the extravagances of the Christmas season and how, in order to reduce these statistics, we all need to modify our consumer habits.

There won’t be one of us that can say that they have never received an unwanted gift at Christmas time, and this is particularly true of items of clothing that have been lovingly chosen and given to us by friends and family.

Although the exchanging and returning of unwanted gifts is an option for us all post Christmas there are still lots of us that feel that once given something, the obligation is there to hold on to that item, as we don’t want to offend the giver.

The way to combat this is to be brutally honest with each other by letting people know exactly what item of clothing you wish for.

Isn’t this taking the fun out of Christmas? You’re probably asking.

Well the answer is definitely “no” as we all need to start appreciating that making fashion sustainable and not disposable is an essential part of saving our planet.

If this all seems very serious and un-festive, fear not, as there are lots of ways to  savor that fun, present buying experience, while being safe in the knowledge that you’re doing something worthwhile too.

Taking The Pain Out Of Giving And Receiving

Looking at things from the Giver’s perspective, a few basic rules apply:-

• Remember that for most of us clothes are very personal and go a long way to reflect our personalities.  With this in mind take note of the style of the person you are buying for to enable your choice of gift to reflect this.
• If you know that the recipient always purchases expensive clothing that would be out of your present buying budget, think of an alternative gift idea.
• Bear in mind the lifestyle of the recipient so that something unsuitable is not purchased.  The classic example of this are ties which everybody loves giving but not every man loves wearing!
• Receiving an article of clothing as a gift which co-ordinates well with existing wardrobe pieces is always a joy and is less likely to be rendered redundant.  Having the knowledge of where the recipient usually shops and the brands they buy will dramatically increase your chances of purchasing a well- loved present.

From a receiver’s point of view it is a mistake to think that honesty is an all or nothing phenomenon.  Equipping the giver with a few essential criteria regarding the clothing gift you would like, still allows some element of surprise whilst reducing the chances of it being totally unsuitable and a potentially unworn gift.

Of course, if the thought of all this data gathering and detective work seems overwhelming you can always resort to on-line Christmas wish list companies.  Here, families and social groups can post their Christmas lists for the ultimate, no wastage present buying experience.

If all else fails try Facebook and Twitter to communicate your wishes or there is always the tried and tested gift voucher alternative.

Let’s give it our all this Christmas to try and be less wasteful, but without compromising our fun, after all it has always been a time for giving and receiving so why should that change.

All that remains, is to say a very Merry Christmas to all Hello Eco Living readers from all of us at Swop2Shop.co.uk and here’s to many happy hours of present buying!

Flip flops washed up and reused

UniquEco is a foundation set up from East Africa; the project was founded by the woman of Kiwayu, which is a small island in Northern Kenyan Coastline. Not only does this project help the environment it gives the women of Kiwayu, who live in Africa a source of power. In the remote areas of Africa there are very few ways to earn a living; now woman’s roles in the community have grown; they are now economic decision markers paying for households; food and education for the families.

Why flip flops then, why not plastic or snack wrappers? Well flip flops are washed up on East African Beaches. Waste is a problem all around the world but in East Africa it was becoming a real big problem and the locals needed to do something with the sudden growth of rubbish on their beaches.

So what does this organisation do then? UniquEco collects the flip flops; recycles and cleans everything they find; create their wonderful work; sells all the products to tourist and local residents in all the shops and craft fairs; amazingly 80% of their goods are exported all over the world; the sales generated are put into buying more flip flops and getting 150 people employed; it rises education in Africa, by recycling all rubbish and flip flops that end up on the beaches. UniquEco are spreading the word about recycling and making everyone think we should do something about it.

So from all this do you still think high Street is the best? With companies like UniquEco around that are helping the environment and have such good intentions behind them not just to making you look good. Then is it really a good plan to splash your hard earned money on a £25 bracelet that might only last a few weeks in the cutting edge of fashion or your money on something that will look good all year round and that is made with love and attention.