Eco Chic Design

Eco-friendly fashion and home decor can help save the planet and beautify you and your home. 
Go green, go chic!

Olsenhaus

Free shoes! As in cruelty-free, linen and faux-suede Tahiti pumps created by Olsenhaus. Founder and designer Elizabeth Olsen dedicates her New York-based company to producing shoes and accessories that use natural and alternative materials that are non-animal, cruelty-free, renewable, and follow fair trade manufacturing practices. Captivating details like flirty peep-toes and platform heels kick up the "fashionista-friendly" appeal of these pumps. Strap them on and rock your inner Carrie Bradshaw!

David Trubridge

Geometric. Polyhedron. Those words agonize me but they inspire David Trubridge. For the New Zealand-based designer, polyhedric structures plus coral* patterns equals Coral Pendant light. The light has a bamboo exterior which is left natural and an interior painted in vibrant colour. Sustainably-managed plantations, not rainforests, supply the timber. The light is shipped unassembled to reduce shipping costs, energy consumption, and packaging materials. Archimedes could appreciate the lightshade's modern vibe and interlaced, geometric form.

*Did you know that corals are live marine animals? Brilliantly colored corals are used in fashion and home decor items. Consumer demand  has contributed to over-harvesting and decline of some species, according to the "Too Precious to Wear" campaign that aims to help protect them.

Anya Hindmarch

Re-useable shopping bags are earth-friendly--when you don't forget to bring them (as I often do).

toxel

Express your Canadian pride and toss some wilderness into your salad with Log Bowls! Doha Chebib, from the Alberta-based group Loyal Loot Collective, designed them for "Cabin," an international exhibition in which Canadian designers re-imagined the familiar objects of the Canadian cabin experience. The collective selects the wood from local, reclaimed trees (fallen due to stormy weather, perhaps) and paints each bowl with water-based acrylic and gloss. The contrast between the roughly hewn exteriors and the colourfully sleek interiors hint of the logs' (slightly) "extreme makeover" and...somehow, they bring to mind the transformation of Vancouver's skyline and waterfront, before and after the redevelopment of industrial lands on the former Expo 86 site.

Kyler by Joy O

Back in the '60s, James Bond's creator, Ian Fleming, must have thought Fluffy white cats are so evil! when he paired his bad guy, Ernst Blofeld, with a white Angora cat.  In the 21st century, a villain can play up his/her best feature--scars? depravity?--with bling. As in chains made of gold, mined by a company that dumps toxic wastes into rivers, or rings, studded with gems obtained by child labourers. Cats...they're so pussy!

In the real world, jewelry designers and retailers who are concerned about the social and environmental impact of precious metals and stones mining have pledged to commit to ethical material sourcing and ethical mine practices in organizations like "Ethical Metalsmiths" and campaigns like "No Dirty Gold."

Consumers looking for ethical, eco-friendly bling can find various creations that are crafted from recycled, reclaimed, or upcycled materials that will not tarnish their conscience. The Twine collar necklace in gold from San Francisco company Kyler by Joy O incorporates recycled stainless steel, recycled precious metals, and cyanide-free plating. 

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