Farming · Eco-Chick

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Ms. Green Jeans

Check out this interview (from Grist) of Tierra del Forte, the designer behind Del Forte Denim. The questions after the jump are a little more ‘fun’ than the first few shown here, so read on!

24 Jul 2006

What work do you do?

I’m a designer and the founder of Del Forte Denim.

How does it relate to the environment?

We design and manufacture a line of premium organic denim for women. We also strive to educate consumers about the dangers of conventional cotton agriculture and the restorative effect of organic farming. Non-organic cotton can cause permanent damage to the soil, the water, the air, and to farm workers. Our jeans are made entirely in the U.S., and we’ve chosen to use 100 percent organic cotton.

What are you working on at the moment? Any major projects?

I’m working on shipping our first round of production (very exciting!); on launching Project Rejeaneration, which will allow customers to return their used Del Forte jeans to us for inspired reuse; and on creating our website.

I’m also still buzzing from the excitement of two recent fashion events: Walk the Talk and Eco-Petal (Eco Chick Note: See Summer’s coverage of the event below). Walk the Talk, in June, was an eco-fashion gala in San Francisco that brought together social entrepreneurs, visionaries, and celebrities to encourage global leadership and a sustainable future for our planet. Eco-Petal, which just wrapped up, was a 10-day fashion show and boutique event in Los Angeles for a small group of eco-fashion designers like me. The main purpose of the event was to draw attention to the world of eco-fashion and to show people that caring about the environment doesn’t mean compromising your sense of style.

How do you get to work?

Most days, I work out of the studio in my home, so I have a very green commute! For meetings, I do have to drive because I carry around a huge suitcase full of samples of my jeans, jackets, and skirts. I can’t wait for the Saab hybrid convertible to make it to market (and to be able to afford a new car!).

What long and winding road led you to your current position?

I’ve been working in denim design since I graduated design school in 1999. After six years, the excitement was gone and all that was left was a lot of stress and the realization that I wasn’t contributing to the world in any way that I could feel good about. Fashion is glamorous and lighthearted, but there is definitely a dark side. Most of our clothing is made in overseas factories by people who are not protected by the kind of labor laws we have here. It is also produced with no regard for environmental impact. Although I never stopped enjoying the design process, I didn’t want to be involved in such an exploitative industry.

agriculture, book, car, cars, celebrities, clothing, community, consumption, cotton, denim, design, designer, designers, eating, Events, fall, farm, farming, Fashion, fashion show, fiat, Food, fruit, fur, garden, gas, Home, interview, jeans, kyoto protocol, labor, Los Angeles, model, mom, Music, oil, Organic, organic cotton, parties, PETA, produce, reuse, spring, style, summer, Summer Rayne Oakes, sustainability, sustainable, tv, water, women

The Meatrix II: Revolting

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by Kimberly Jordan Allen · 04/12/06

Continuing the fight against factory farming and unsustainable practices is something Sustainable Table has been doing through their entertaining and informative Meatrix short film and website. Now, their sequel, The Meatrix II: Revolting is circulating on the net continuing the revolution against big agri-business. GRACE, which stands for Global Resource Action Center for the Environment, founded the Sustainable Table as a consumer campaign to inform and incite action against the horrendous conditions of factory farms, and the importance of supporting humane and ecologically sound practices. In this current online clip, the dairy industry is largely under fire for its use of rBGH. On the ‘get involved’ page readers are encouraged to solicit Starbucks to stop their use of non-organic dairy products that contain the artificial hormone. While there are many vegans who have eluded the Meatrix in their complete avoidance of animal-based products, there are still many who search for more responsible ways to satisfy their carnivorous hankerings. For those who eat dairy or meat there is the eatwell guide which is a useful resource for finding healthy food.

business, car, Dairy Products, Eco-Chick, farm, farming, farms, Food, health, Home, meat, Organic, Starbucks, sustainable, vegan

UnCommon Scents

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by Kimberly Jordan Allen · 01/10/06

There is nothing more odious (pardon the impending pun) than that heavy, pungent perfume you can smell from a mile away. And many of us have spent time perusing the shelves of that ubiquitous modern shrine to plasticity called Sephora only to leave with a pounding headache that has that “fake vanilla” scent stamped all over it.

Ugh.

I have been a true scent-junky for at least fifteen years and recently, upon applying a commercial fragrance, noticed I started sneezing almost instantly. I started to wonder just what exactly is in these products we apply on a daily basis. Being one who tries to always buy organic, it dawned on me that my personal doctrine to “stay natural” had not penetrated my hankering for smells.

Many companies, even those claiming to be “natural”, use synthetic fragrance and chemical additives such as preservatives and artificial coloring, and contain dangerous chemicals such as phtalates that are proven endocrine disruptors whose activity has been found to mimic hormonal signals in the body.

There are what I have always considered to be more natural alternatives to smelling like “Calvin Clone,” but often you end up smelling like a head shop or your grandma’s lavender garden when using organically derived essential oils. Some of us like smelling like a head shop, but for those who want something more unique, there are some interesting alternatives.

Rich Hippie is a line of completely organic, wild-crafted perfume, founded in LA. Through the use of carefully selected plant extracts and the implementation of traditional perfumery practices, Rich Hippie has created an environmentally conscious fragrance line that is original and hip.

The line boasts scents such as “Psychedelic – a sensual, lush, mysterious and romantic scent with extracts of organic Madagascan vanilla bean, organic ginger root and organic sweet orange peel,” “Nirvana” – a “unisex scent with extracts of organic sandalwood, West Indian bay leaf and organic Italian bergamot peel,” and “Wild Thing – an intoxicating, romantic, and sensual floral with rare Indian jasmine, Albanian Orris root and Egyptian rose.” There is also the signature scent, “Rich Hippie” – a “hip, bohemian, seductive floral with extracts of exotic African flowers, Madagascan Vanilla bean and Guatemalan Cardamom.”

These perfumes ain’t cheap, at an average of $85.00 per 1/2oz, but to support a small company that is investing in organic farming practices is worthwhile compared to the minimum $35 to $40 that is typically spent on factory-made fragrances that are known health hazards. According to the FDA, perfume companies don’t have to publish their ingredients anywhere, because they are considered “trade secrets”. Through growing consumer pressure to monitor cosmetics companies and clearly substantiate the safety of perfumes and other products, the FDA has clearly delineated its authority over this domain on its website This means there is no way for us to know what is in common colognes until independent labs do their own analysis and there aren’t a lot of scientists lining up to joust with big name cosmetics.

California is actually the first state in the union to implement the “Safe Cosmetics Act,” signed into law by Governor Schwarzenegger in 2005, which states that manufacturers must disclose (to the state) any ingredient that is on state or federal lists of chemicals linked to cancer or birth defects.

For more information on what is actually in your beauty products see NOT TOO PRETTY, SAFE COSMETICS and how they are affecting the environment see MARINE LIFE

Africa, Alba, Beauty, beauty products, Cancer, car, cosmetics, Eco-Chick, essential oils, farm, farming, FDA, garden, gas, health, India, junk, Lavender, Lush, mom, News, oil, oils, Organic, plastic, scents, wood

Farmed and Dangerous

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by Starre Vartan · 11/21/05

So we all know that eating fish is a good way to get Omega 3′s, but because we’re all so hungry for the slippery suckers, wild-caught fish is expensive. But hell, we can farm corn and wheat, why not farm fish? Problem solved. Turns out that farming fish causes as many problems, if not more, than catching them from the ocean.

According to luluzine: Vol 2.6:

“The high PCB content these fish contain, not to mention their ubiquitous sea
lice problem, flow over into wild salmon runs and are responsible for 90-97%
of the collapse of these runs, according to marine researcher Alexandra
Morton. Add to that the fact that these fish find all kinds of escape
routes, (there are over a million reported to have gone missing last year,
and it’s suspected that number is actually much higher), and you’ve got
runaway Atlantic salmon breeding in open water, competing with indigenous
fish and consequentially spreading disease.”
According to a 2004 study called, “A Global Assessment of Organic
Contaminants in Farmed vs. Wild Salmon: Geographical Differences and Health
Risks,” (reported to be the most thorough study on the subject done to
date), consuming farmed salmon more than once a month could increase your
risk of getting cancer by, “an unacceptable amount.”