Vegan Fashion Grabbing Attention

Most likely due to Earth Day coming up, vegan fashion has been garnering attention from mainstream fashion media. The latest example? In an online exclusive, W Magazine posted their "best vegan-friendly accessories" , which included Vivienne Westwood's capsule collection for Melissa Plastic Dreams, my favorite olsenHaus, and local vegan brand MATT & NAT. The list even included vegan-friendly options from designer staples like Marc by Marc Jacobs and Stella McCartney--although, clearly not having done their research, they featured a cashmere tunic from the vegetarian designer. A gaffe that readers didn't let slip.

olsenHaus sandalMATT & NAT bag

Marc by Marc Jacobs sequined bag

With luxury magazines like W and Vogue taking notice of the merits of vegan brands, I can't help but wonder, is vegan the new luxury goldmine?

In other vegan-related fashion news, The Humane Society announced late last week that the Benetton Group is the latest brand to commit to a fur-free policy, joining Calvin Klein, overstock.com, BCBG, and others.

Visit the HSUS website to see a complete list of fur-free companies and take the fur-free pledge yourself.

Pamela Anderson: Fashion Designer

Natalie Portman, Leona Lewis, and now Pamela Anderson. As reported by ecorazzi this week, Pam is teaming up with NYC clubkid-come-designer Richie Rich to produce an eco-friendly, vegan fashion line.

Like many of her counterparts, Pam has been a vegetarian and outspoken animal-rights activist for years.

The line, to be named Muse, will include everything from vegan footwear, to casual separates and swimwear.

When asked about designing, Pam was quoted as saying: “I really don’t like to wear clothes. I would rather go naked. But I love Richie’s designs, so I agreed to be part of Muse.” The two have been friends for years, and Pam is a regular feature at Heatherette shows.

Muse is set to debut this summer, although where has yet to be released. Think what you may of Pam Anderson, a new vegan line out on the market is pretty exciting in my books.

Leather vs. Vegan: Who is Greener?

With Earth Day fast approaching, and everyone’s “Green” issues hitting newsstands and doorsteps, there seems to be quite the controversy stirring. At its center is the ultimate debate between the staunchly cruelty-free and the not—are animal products green? Truly, when the argument is boiled down, what we are questioning is the sustainability of animal by-products vs. synthetic materials.

Fact, animal by-products originate from a natural source—namely bovine (depending on the country). Fact, synthetics are man-made materials that are traditionally rather poisonous to the environment. But when both processes are examined, which one is better environmentally?

Recently, with the move towards just about anything eco across all product categories, there has been a move towards branding animal by-products as “green”. Case in point: the Canadian Fur Council’s latest campaign and Lucky Magazine’s April issue. However, just because fur and leather originated from a natural source, i.e. some animal, it does not make it sustainable. Far from it. Approximately 250 different chemicals are used in the tanning process alone. Chemicals that eventually end up in the surrounding eco-system and render the once biodegradable material no longer—similar arguments are made to counter the sustainability of man-made products. Traditional synthetic materials, PVC and the like, are also poisonous on all levels. Such is the dilemma with synthetics. Sure, they are cruelty-free in the traditional sense, but, upon deeper consideration, this is a harder case to make. The truth of the matter is any manufacturing process has serious problems.

But with the many changes to the marketplace, including the wider and cheaper availability of sustainable and green materials in response to greater demand, more and more designers are utilizing everything and anything from hemp canvas to faux-suede made from recycled plastic bottles. This allows a greater number of fashion brands, vegan and non-vegan alike, to move away from traditional synthetics, and more alternatives available to the vegan shopper. On top of this, there has been a greater scrutiny placed on the ethics of the manufacturing industry and, as a result, greater accountability. There is, in general, a greater importance placed on these different factors from the vegan fashion brands as there is a more holistic approach to the ethics of their company. Perhaps because they have ethics in the first place.

Conscious shopping is best. Question what you are buying and who you are supporting with your dollars. Not all vegan brands are created equal, but, in my opinion at least, they are always better than animal products.

For more interesting reading, there is a great guest blog by Elizabeth Olsen of olsenHaus at GirlieGirlArmy.com, as well as lots of information available at treehugger.com.

Stella McCartney Fall Accessories

In February, vegetarian super-designer Stella McCartney presented Pre-Fall 09 at New York Fashion Week, and, this week, her Fall 09 RTW collection in Paris. With Pre-Fall, looks were the slouchy, downtown silhouette that Stella has become known for. With tons of leggings and jumpsuits, Pre-Fall had a sportswear feel. Accessories were dominated by oversized bags, the ever-pervasive ankle bootie that just won’t go away since its appearance in Fall 2007, pumps, and heavy hardware. Prints were found on everything from underpinnings, to booties, and bags.

Stella McCartney Pre-Fall 09, style.com

For Fall 09, the thigh-high boots that skimmed just past the knee in Pre-Fall have sprouted into full leggings. In latex materials, some with tattoo-like patterns, these boots-come-leggings were paired with everything from dresses to oversized men’s blazers. The cropped bootie still makes an appearance, but these too have grown in length reaching calf-height. All footwear, including the lady-like pumps, had extreme square toes in contrasting colors and materials. Colors were neutral, relying heavily on black with small doses of dove grey and a bright jade green. Bags were mainly oversized clutches, varying widely from recent collections past, with circular-quilting. Belts varied between the wide and the ultra-skinny, with no variance in between. The collection, overall, referenced 1980s Wall Street with exaggerated shoulders and masculine looks.

Stella McCartney Fall 09, style.com

But for a little taste of this season, here are three favorite looks from Spring, available online and in stores.

Stella McCartney Spring 09, styles range from $1295 to $395

Olsen Haus: Accessorizing the Evolution

If you haven't discovered Olsen Haus shoes yet, run, or whatever the cyber equivalent is, to their site right now. This 100% ethical line, founded by designer extraordinaire Elizabeth Olsen, makes this little struggling vegan's heart sing. The collection of shoes and boots is inventive, vegan, socially and environmentally responsible, and affordable. What more could a girl ask for? As a lover of both fashion and ridiculously high heels, I find footwear one of my biggest struggles. Shoes are irrestible, but, sadly, I simply don't have the budget needed to quench my shoe thirst with MacCartneys. And a girl gets really bored of cheap, synthetic shoes really fast.

But Olsen Haus solves all these problems. Currently available in only one store in Canada (in Calgary), they will ship to Canada for a mere $50 extra. So shop to your heart's content.

For Spring 09, the colors are bright electrics mixed with natural linens, microfibers, Italian ultra suede, and signature paint splatters. The collection is both fresh, sweet, and boldly unconventional. Personally, I cannot wait to get my feet into these two lovelies:

"BALANCE", Natural Linen with Microfibre, $175 USD

"LOVE", Italian Ultra Suede in Teal with signature paint splatters, $160 USD

There are also these perfect year-round, classic boots from the Fall 08 collection, which arestill available. Lust at first sight, they have rarely strayed far from my thoughts.

"LUCK", Italian Ultra Suede in Black with signature paint splatters, $215 USD

For Fall 09, Olsen Haus shot fellow super-vegans Chloe Jo Berman of The GirlieGirl Army and Discerning Brute Joshua Katcher for their lookbook. The new collection features boots galore, including a pair of micro suede riding boots that have taken over all of my daydreams, as well as the premiere of both a kid's and men's collection.

The only question left is how to convince Elizabeth to bring the evolution to Canada?