Organic Fashion

written by kyle roderick

organic and recycled fashion report
While clothing is one of our greatest vehicles for expressing personal style, the downside of fashion is that every year, the textile industry creates millions of pounds of toxins that poison our environment. The good news is that organic and recycled fashions are blooming all over in mass market retail lines, national health food stores, exclusive boutiques and even in online shops. Here’s a glimpse of who’s designing innovative, affordable and even high end organic and recycled fashions, and where to buy them.

organic fiber fashions for family and home
After discovering that it takes one-third of a pound of toxic chemicals to produce one cotton T-shirt, and that over 80 million pounds of pesticides are sprayed on cotton every year, Marci Zaroff dedicated herself to making environmentally safer clothes for the planet and its people. “I coined the concept and trademarked the term ECOfashion” she says, “and then committed myself to developing organic clothing for men, women, children and babies. The pesticides used in conventionally grown cotton are carcinogens that spread to our soils, rivers, oceans and lakes, poisoning wildlife, along with our food and water supply, Zaroff explains.

Zaroff founded Under the Canopy®, based in Boca Raton, Florida, after the birth of her first child, daughter Jade, in 1996. Under the Canopy manufactures fabrics and designs men’s women’s and children’s clothing, bed linens and home accessories made from organically grown cotton, silk, hemp, linen, wool, tencel, etc. In 2005, Under the Canopy clothing for men, women and children as well as bed and bath linens became available at WHOLE FOODS stores around the U.S.

Under the Canopy’s Web site is a lush catalogue of clothing, linens and accessories for all sexes and ages, find it at: www.underthecanopy.com. Notables such as British Princes William and Harry, Cameron Diaz, Bruce Springsteen and Darryl Hannah wear the eco-friendly clothes.

Standouts in the line are the 108 EcoFashion® Tees, 100 per cent organic cotton shirts for women and men. Printed in a range of colors with low-impact dyes and bearing elegantly trippy graphics and unisex, earth-positive statements such as Re Evolve, Light Personified and Reflect Connect Respect, the shirts cost $28.00 for women and $30.00 for mens’ styles.

“When I started, the fabric was my greatest challenge,” says Zaroff, who had few eco-friendly options to choose from. But after working with a chemist, organic farmers and textile manufacturers, she developed organic cotton, silk, denim and linen fabrics, many of which are free of dye and other harsh chemicals. Her bottom line isn’t purely economical, says Zaroff, whose business philosophy incorporates a four-pronged focus on environmental and social responsibility, affordable style and strong financial returns. “We had to define ourselves within the fashion world,” said Zaroff, whose clothing has been featured in such magazines as Lucky, Organic Style, Body & Soul; Health as well as on TV’s “The View.” “Nobody’s going to buy organic clothing just because it’s organic,” she notes. “Under the Canopy clothing and linens are intelligently designed, look stylish, and they are well-made in sweatshop-free conditions,” she says. “Most important, our clothes make you feel good.”

An international advocate for the organic fabric industry, Zaroff is a director of the Global Organic Exchange, which has created an international collective of organic fiber farmers and manufacturers such as NIKE, Timberland, Patagonia and Giorgio Armani. The 38-year-old mother of Jade and son Mason, Zaroff is a fine-boned beauty who studied business at UC Berkeley’s famed business school. “I always wanted to do something that would help the world,” she says. “I get high on my work because I love life and want to make people see how precious our planet is. You are what you wear,” says Zaroff. “Every choice we make as consumers affects our health and our environment,” she says. “You can be an environmentalist by supporting sustainable businesses, sleeping on organic cotton sheets or wearing organic fiber fashions.”

organic sportswear and everyday wear
Whether you want organic cotton tee shirts for your kids, stylish organic workout and everyday wear for yourself, chances are Patagonia has the garment for you. This eco-conscious retailer is one of the pioneers in organic sports, leisure and work clothing. For a complete listing of all organic Patagonia garments, go to: www.patagonia.com

ride It, recycle it and wear it
Genevieve Gaelyn and Atom Cianfarani created their label Gaelyn and Cianfarani in 2002 when they started showing outrageously original couture made of recycled and other materials during New York fashion week. Note to Lance Armstrong: Their sexy signature material is made by hand from recycled bicycle inner tubes.

Often mistaken for leather, this fabric is just like Lance Armstrong (and unlike leather) in that it always retains its glorious shape. Worn by such cultural creatives as Bjork, Tyra Banks, Christina Ricci, Britney Spears, Shakira, Pink and Shania Twain, designs by Gaelyn and Cianfarani define the wilder shores of avant-garde eco-fashion.

Because their alluring, innovative, durable and Animal/Earth positive couture is such a poetic contribution to our global disposable society, the duo’s place in fashion history seems assured. Their ecologically elegant mission is guided by a, “focus on preservation and revitalization. The process of creating fabric from what most would consider garbage speaks of our commitment to preserve while creating,” they note on their Web site www.gaelyn.com

Gaelyn and Cianfarani dig latex mainly for its enormously sensual potential for high style and deep design. The first designers to present latex couture garments on international catwalks, “The intellectual challenge of the fabric excites me, no one has pushed it to its limits,” says Genevieve.

Toward that end, their exquisite latex/recycled rubber designs are complemented by hemp, denim, silk, linen, chiffon, as well as bamboo and soy-based fabrics. While their silhouettes come in varying degrees of body-consciousness, Victorian lacing, postmodern prints, elegant slip dresses and Goth gowns make this a line that can be worn by fashion-forward women of all ages.

There’s an old saying, “If the shoe fits, wear it.” With Gaelyn and Cianfarani, if the inner tube fits, wear it. Embodying glammed-up 21st century innovation, the clothing and accessories of Gaelyn and Cianfarani make recycled fashion synonymous with sexy sophistication.

These clothes are made in limited numbers and are sold at just a few retail outlets. In New York, Gaelyn and Cianfarani’s designs are available at WEAR, 155 East 2nd Street, between Avenues A and B, New York City, 10009; www.wearnyc.com telephone (212) 254-9327; open seven days a week; 2 to 10 p.m. In Los Angeles, the clothes can be seen at Jack Henry, which is open by appointment only; (323) 655-6050). Address is 141 South Kings Road, Los Angeles, 90048. www.jackhenryltd.com.

organic jeanswear with rock n roll genes
Edun (nude spelled backwards) is the brainchild of human rights/environmental activist Ali Hewson and husband Bono, U2’s lead singer. The organic clothing debuted in 2005 and is aimed at fashion-conscious men and women who care about environmental sustainability, fair trade and fair labor. Edun is designed by the Hewsons and Rogan Gregory, mastermind of the Rogan Jeans line.

You can find Edun jeans, tee shirts and jackets at Barneys New York Stores and online at www.bluebeeonline.com. Prices start at $132 for women’s and men’s jeans; the women’s white hemp jean runs $180.00. Tee shirts run about $50.00. Edun’s organic mission statement declares, “Respect for the people who make our product, for the place where we make it, for the materials used, and for the consumer”.

100 percent organic Loomstate jeans are another Rogan Gregory line that combines organic fiber, funky-chic spirit and fab fit. Founded on the charming philosophy that “People who give a shit are sexy,” one can only concur when admiring Loomstate’s thigh-high jean skirt or men’s slashed-pocket loose fit jeans. Available online at www.shopbop.com, Loomstate is also sold at Barneys New York and various boutiques around the country. Jeans start at around $150.00. For a national directory of stockists, go to www.loomstate.org.

eco-luxurious threads
For those who love to live in luxury fabrics, Linda Loudermilk’s organic tee shirts, 9-foot long recycled cashmere scarves, exquisitely arty silk dresses and other fanciful organic threads are some of the most soulful, arty and upscale threads in the organic fiber fashion world.

A designer who invents “herbal wovens,” or luxurious, eco-friendly fabrics, Loudermilk offers men’s and women’s tee shirts that start at a pricey $147.00. These command respect for their sensuous cuts and honorable messages, to wit: “Who will nurture the earth?” Available at www.luxuryeco.com, Loudermilk’s designs will soon be showcased in her soon-to-be-opened Los Angeles boutique.

more organic fiber fashion Recommendations
For a diverse selection of trendy and reasonably priced organic clothing, go to www.organicauthority.com.

Scope out unisex clay-dyed organic cotton and hemp clothing, plus ultra-comfy adult jeans, at www.mamasearth.com.

At www.organicconsumers.org, you’ll find a detailed description of why organic clothing benefits citizens and the planet. The site brims with news on worldwide efforts to help clothing retailers transition to organic cotton and other organic fibers. There are some excellent links here, as well.