I haven’t been on my Eco Fashion Blog site for a while. I have been thinking about ways to take this site further. I am happy to continue to promote Eco Fashion in Asia, but I would also like to see more Eco Fashion becoming mainstream. I know a many of the big fashion stores like H&M, Marks and Spencers etc are going into this area more, but I still think there is a lot more to be done.
Two companies contacted me recently to tell me about what they have been up to.
Kenneth from Buddha jeans sent me a comment on the Eco Fashion Asia About Page. This is what he had to say about the great things he is doing to promote Eco Fashion:
I find a lot of interesting ideas and thoughts as I occationally visit it. As a fashion designer in levi Strauss for over seven years I have seen a lot of ugly things in the denim business in particular ten years back. Fashion business has a long way to go still and also the consumers of fashion must learn that the solution is not to own as many tops or jeans but fewer with better quality and in addition learn to take care off them, reduce washing etc.
I fundraise a water project and hope you could inform people about it.
I wonder if you could be so kind to post a link to this water project as you know a lot about jeans and jeans production. Jeans production demands a lot of water & chemicals that is not always good for the environment. Give a donation $2 to our water project in India & download my 53 pages denim dictionary with the most common words. Read more about the fundraising Wash Less Jeans. Designer, creative manager & founder of buddha jeans Kenneth” http://www.buddhajeans.com/downloads/denim-dictionary-a-z-download
Alexandra Du Sold has started up at wonderful business in Northern Thailand using artisan nuns to create beautiful scarves, throws and crystal power bracelets. I love the company’s philosophy:
‘ philosophy is simple yet powerful:
to combine ancient wisdoms with luxurious and soft natural fabric treasures which follow strict
principles of sustainability and social responsibility, including fair trade principles, which we
observe, and carbon offset values which we aspire to integrate.
A significant percentage of the company’s profits is earmarked to be invested in select rural
community projects to help foster traditional craftsmanship. All Vortex styles are created
purposefully to reflect a pure grassroots approach of redefining luxury living that balances and
uplifts the human body and mind.Please check out her website for further information.
Please check out their website: http://www.apoccas.com
I took all of these items off the Polyvore site and supposedly they are all organic in some form. I wanted to see if I could take pieces from everyday fashion that were organic in nature and put them together in a fashionable way
Here are some wonderful eco friendly pieces of clothing from Om Khadi and Atelier Om, India.
The fabric they use is called Khādī or khaddar. It originated in India as a fully hand crafted textile. It encompasses a lifestyle, a simple pure process of forming yarn and creating cloth by spinning and weaving by hand without electricity. The raw materials may be cotton, silk, or wool which are spun into threads on a spinning wheel called a charkha then made into a limited length of textile on a hand loom.
Khadi shot into prominence in 1920′s when the Indian political and spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi began promoting the spinning of Khadi for rural self-employment and self-reliance in India. You can read all about the fabric, it’s history and look at the designs of the clothing at
I just love their style!!
This wonderful Australian Lady, Francis Carrington, sent me information about a great fashion line that she creates in Dharamsala (the home to the Dalai Lama) in the Himalayas. What I love after reading the information on her website is she is an employer who cares about the people who work for her. Her clothing is all Fair Trade Fashion and there are some wonderful stories on the website about how she has helped Tibetans, Nepalese and Indians to create better lives for themselves and their families. It is so lovely to read about the people who actually make the garments and what they bring to the company. It adds the human element that is so often missing in the information that consumers receive. More and more consumers are wanting to make connections between what they buy and how it is produced. I think Francis is doing this beautifully.
She is offering a 15% discount to all readers of Eco Fashion Asia, who check out her website:
One of her main exports is children’s fashion, but she also does a wonderful range of women’s fashion, some men’s fashion and wonderful accessories.
Here’s an article Peppermint magazine did about Francis and Eternal Creation.
www.eternalcreation.com/workshop/images/PeppermintMagazine.pdf
This is great news via Peppermint Magazine.
http://peppermintmag.com/copenhagen-fashion-summit/
It highlights the positive changes that the fashion world is taking.
A lovely person called Suneeta has sent me the link to her website www.suneeta-womens-clothing.com
She is recycling vintage fabrics to create new designs.
“Vintage Fabrics….Indian Inspiration
Suneeta’s fabrics are sourced from India, recycling units and charities. Wherever possible she also uses recycled trimmings, lining fabrics and fastenings taken from other garments.
The other great thing about her business is that 10 pounds from each item sold also goes towards helping children ragpickers and their families in India. Well done Suneeta!
PS. She will also deliver world-wide.
This is great! So excited they have a store in Singapore now.
I’m so excited to come across this unique eco friendly clothing label in India. Here is how they describe their company:
“Indigreen is a fusion of art, high fashion, eco friendly values, fair trade ethics and a heavy dose of Bollywood & Indian kitsch”.
The company was started by designer Nidhi S and entrepreneur Gaurav G. They are committed environmentalists having worked on campaigns to address climate change. Their business is:
I just love their ideas, designs and the artwork!
I have been scouring the internet looking for Eco Fashion Labels in Asia. They are few and far between! Here are two that I would like to highlight first.
Etrican
Etrican is an eco friendly fashion label that is based in Singapore. It was started in 2009 by two young social entrepreneurs, Yumiko Uno and Dragos Necula. It is one of Singapore’s first green fashion labels and a pioneer of the local eco lifestyle movement.
They have designed a range of clothing and accessories that are made using eco fabrics, such as organic cotton or recycled materials.
Their clothing is young, hip and affordable.
They also make bags and wallets out of recycled materials such as car tyres.
Red Cocoon
Red Cocoon was started by Mihiri de Silva in Sri Lanka. Having worked in the fashion industry for the past two decades in Sri Lanka designing for big label brands such as M&S, Victoria’s Secret, PINK, Express and Intimissimi, she discovered that the majority of apparel industry waste fabric was either sent to landfill or burnt. So she formed a company that re-engineers apparel waste into fashionable and wearable clothes. She also only sources materials from factories certified under the “Garments without Guilt”, a scheme that awards accreditation to manufacturers who recognize, respect and protect the rights of it’s laborers.
So not only is she making a difference to the environment and to people, but her clothing designs are fashionable and wearable too!
A person after my own heart! She also takes Sari’s and recycles them. This is an idea I thought of a little while ago, so I am glad someone is doing this!
