From PERU to YOU.

Photo: Kate Reeder for Awamaki Lab

Peruvian non-profit Awamaki Lab has released an inaugural collection head up by designer Nieli Vallin, a student from Paris's Chambre Syndical de la Couture.

Vallin participated in a four-month residency program that brings designers to the Patacancha Valley of Ollantaytambo, Peru where they work with impoverished Quencha women weavers and develop contemporary clothing for a western market using fair trade textiles.

The made-to-order Awamaki Lab collection launched in New York at Guilded, the design studio of designers Tara St. James, who mentored Vallin on sustainable design processes, and Bahar Shahpar. At the event, I sat down with Vallin to discuss the difference between working in luxury fashion and with artisans in Peru, and more.

From Parisian RTW to Peruvian Made-to-Order 
Vallin first heard about the Awamaki project from friends in Paris, where she was living at the time. She was unhappy working in the luxury and ready-to-wear scene there--though she calls working with Yves Saint Laurent "an amazing experience"--and wanted to do something more ethical. Awamaki Lab was an opportunity for her to work both in ethical fashion and break into the fashion scene in the United States, another one of her goals.
Vallin sewed the entire collection in Peru. All of the garments on view--with the exception of one--were made entirely by Vallin and the weavers.

Photo: Kate Reeder for Awamaki Lab


TreeHugger: You spend four months living and working to develop this collection in Peru. Can you share an unexpected experience from your stay?

Awamaki Lab Designer Nieli Vallin: I went there with an un-judging mind. Everything was very observational.
My perception was most shaped by my favorite experiences, like working with one of the weavers, Daniel, who sells to Awamaki. In his community, Awamaki offers these dyeing retreats where you go and hunt your own dyes--all of the colors of the rainbow--under this natural palette. It's amazing to see that come together, especially if you're used to synthetic colors.

Photo: Emma Grady

The Western World is Saturated with Synthetic Material

We never know exactly where our colors come from, where our dyes are coming from, and how they're hurting the environment, so it was amazing to be using plants and natural dyes to come up with amazing colors.

Photo: Emma Grady

The amount of synthetic material that we use in the Western world is overbearing at times. In Peru, it was nice to say, "Okay, we're taking our dyes from the earth and we're taking our wool from the sheep."
When you're a designer, you're working with fabric, you're not working with paint. In this process, you get to see from A to B, from sheep to clothing, from plant to clothing. That is one of the most important things for a fashion designer: knowing the origin of your work.


Photo: Emma Grady


TH: So this was the first time you were able to fully see the life cycle of garment production?
NV: Yes, the full life cycle of any construction of fashion. The clothing on our back all comes from a natural source unless, of course, it has been created in a factory with synthetic materials.
TH: You used all hand-dyed and hand-woven alpaca and wool. As a designer, were there any challenges working with these Artisan-made textiles?
NV: No. I love textiles. I guess that's one of my strengths. Every textile presents a different opportunity for design. You've go to love all of them, if you don't you're a one-trick pony.



Photo: Emma Grady


TH: Can other designers source the textiles you used in this collection?
NV: Awamaki is really hoping to do that. I think that's one of their really important long-term goals: to create a buzz for Peruvian fabric. There's a surplus right now and it needs to be accessed. There needs to be a buzz.
TH: Could the surplus satisfy major demand or would it strain communities?
NV: If that happens, that's a very good thing. You don't want to overwork someone, but you want to give work where there's a need.
TH: And what are next steps for you?
NV: After I fill all these orders, I hope to continue designing whether it be with a company out in L.A. or on my own.



Photo: Kate Reeder for Awamaki Lab


The final collection, which is comprised of nine garments, is entirely made-to-order and made-to-measure. Vallin says it is important to get input from the client. Production turn-around time is about six months, and should be ready for next fall.
Awamaki Lab hopes the fashion design residency will help Ollanta women develop long-term economic growth and also aid the preservation of endangered weaving traditions. In addition to their fair trade textile initiative, Awamaki runs a sustainable tourism program based in the Sacred Valley of Peru.
They are still in the early stages of developing the Awamaki Lab and need all the help they can get. Browse the Awamaki shop online or consider making a donation toAwamaki Lab on Global Giving.

Read the original post at Treehugger.com

More to come soon!

As Always,

Peace, Love and Sustainable Fashion <3

Good Planets Are Hard To Find

In honor of my favorite label Gypsy 05, I am centering this post around their top and a pair of Level 99 jeans that I'm wearing. 

Basically, Gypsy 05 is my favorite eco-friendly brand because of their ethics and all-around coolness. 

The great thing about Gypsy 05 is their motto: "Good planets are hard to find" and the effortless style that is inherently sewn into all their garments. Not only are they made with organic materials, but they print with low-impact and water-based dyes in beautiful hues and shades on each piece. It's a very efficient and productive method of being an eco-friendly clothing line and exactly what Gypsy 05 is all about: natural beauty and environmental awareness. 

The company is owned by two siblings, who have continued to manufacture and produce Gypsy 05 since 2005 when it began. As a side-note: I have come to find that many products that were created with a story and meaning behind them are many times the best, not just in quality but in heart. 

Gypsy 05 is all about art, self-expression and sustainability. Noice.

The Level 99 jeans I'm sporting are made out of a half synthetic, half natural fiber called tencel, which is also referred to as lyocell. 

It is created from cellulose found in wood pulp that is very eco-friendly, insofar that everything involved in the production of the fiber itself can be re-used or re-cycled in some way, shape or form and is also biodegradable. 

The fiber is environmentally sustainable, yes, however, it doesn't have a significant effect on the environment because of the toxic chemicals used to create the fiber into a garment. Here is the catch, although it does little to no environmental harm in the beginning half, the last stretch is where it falls short. So, I would still consider tencel to be a somewhat eco-friendly material, however, there is much to be improved upon on the garment manufacturer's end of the spectrum. 

Learn more about this here: http://organicclothing.blogs.com/my_weblog/2005/11/tencel_sustaina.html

My point is: as always, be educated, be informed and know what is on your body; because although you may think it doesn't effect you, there is really no way of knowing unless you find out for yourself what's really going on behind the scenes. 

Oh...and by the way...

 Thanks to my friend David who took these pictures. Talented, is he not? 

Haha. Neither one of these pictures have anything to do with sustainability, but I wanted to share them with you readers, regardless. 

I call this one: "Boots On Toilet"...yes, I know, creativity just flows through me and I can't stop it. 

ANYWAY,

Until next post,

Peace, Love and Sustainable Fashion to you all ;]

Green As Can Be.

Oh, hey everyone. So, in the spirit of blogging I decided to insert my own style into Eco-Fashionability For Today, in an attempt to share my personal eco-friendly style with you all to show how easy it can be.  I hope I don't look like too much of a fool, but hey, that's fine by me. (P.S. Those aren't prescription glasses...more like fake, plastic frames, but they were ten dollars and I mean, come on, how could I resist?)

Here, I'm wearing my favorite Urban Renewal Sweater Shorts, which are cool and eco-friendly because they are up-cycled/re-cycled from discarded vintage pieces. Get a pair here. The top is American Apparel's Viscose Dolman Sleeve T, which is made in the USA and in a sweatshop-free facility. Fair trade is a big part of sustainability, so although it isn't organic material, it was made by workers who aren't being overworked and underpaid. American Apparel is starting to branch out into organic products though, so take a peek, here. 

On my feet are my beloved TOMS Shoes. If you don't know about TOMS already, then I highly suggest learning about this phenomenal company. Every pair of shoes you buy goes to a child without shoes in a poverty-stricken, third world country. These specific shoes I have on are the Women's Botas. They are made from recycled plastic bottles and faux-shearling on the inside for warmth in these chilly winter months. AWESOME. GO TOMS!  

Also, I'm sporting some of American Apparel's funky new line of toxin-free nail polish. It's cheap ($6 a bottle and $15 for 3) and eco-friendly. Doesn't get better than that.

Last but not least, I've got on all vintage and fairly-traded jewelry. The silver ring with the purple and blue stones is from a co-op I volunteered at in Costa Rica over the summer, called CASEM. It's a place close to my heart and all the products are made by local women who are inspiring and very talented. Learn more about this fantastic place at their website: http://www.casemcoop.org/.

Just a few vintage watches chillin' on my gold unicorn statue, given to me by my grandmother, who is a fabulous women herself. 

There you have it, folks. Green done easy. Everything I'm wearing did not cost me a pretty penny nor did it take forever to hunt down. Like I've said in the past, it's a lot easier than you'd think to have an eco-friendly wardrobe. If you're still a little hesitant, don't worry I've got plenty more where this came from. So, stay tuned.

Until then,

Peace, Love and Sustainable Fashion To You all <3

Summer Rayne Oakes On Sustainable Fashion

Here is a short video for you guys, that I love, with Summer Rayne Oakes. She's always been my favorite spokesperson on sustainability because her approach to the concept doesn't scare people away but rather welcomes and encourages them to do what they can, no matter how small the task may be. Enjoy!