Chic En Vert: Natalie Portman

The Black Swan star, Natalie Portman is known for her concern for the environment.

She is a vegan and a strong ec0-activist, but had a hard time converting these beliefs to the red carpet when it came to outfits.
coquette.blogs.com
In 2008 she designed a vegan shoe line for Te Casan. Here's some information about it:
Portman worked closely throughout to maintain quality standards and an exceptional design aesthetic. Dazzling, playful, elegant and free of animal products, each shoe exudes the starlet’s own personal style. All of Portman’s proceeds will be donated to the Nature Conservancy, a non profit that works tirelessly to protect ecologically fragile lands and bodies of water.
teenvogue.com
Now she relies on her stylist Kate Young to steer her away from leather, conflict jewels, and non-sustainable fabrics.
A dress from the HM line for Eco-conscious fashion put out last spring.

pics from dailymail.co.uk
Natalie sporting Aldo shoes.
There have been a few perks, like when Dior produced vegan clutches expressly for the star. She recommends labels like H&M’s new Conscious Collection for recycled-polyester and organic-cotton party dresses, Charles by Charles David and Aldo for leather-free pumps and strappy sandals, and Monique Péan and Tiffany & Co. for conflict-free fine jewelry.
We should all take a cue from this passionate star!

info from teenvogue.com and coquette.blogs.com

Style Icon: Kanye West

We always knew Kanye West was a style icon.
For me it was the moment he tweeted "I jog in Lanvin" and "Clothes are my drug" in July.
But what do we think now that his style has grown to incorporate women's clothing now?

Here he is seen sporting the ubiquitous Celine print from her spring collection. The print is everywhere lately, so what's the harm in a rap icon wearing it?

Here Kanye is rocking a knee length Givenchy leather skirt over his pants for a spin on the skirt over leggings look. I personally dig both looks. I think Kanye is a very talented rapper who exudes coolness, and can make anything stylish.
The only question is, when will Lil' Wayne be seen in one?

Faboulous Fanning Sisters

From W magazine's tumblr, my new favorite site for beautiful pictures and fashion inspiration.
I love these two girls! They dress impeccably, and remind me of myself and my own sister.
Perhaps because my little sister is taller than me too...

Chic En Vert: Foam Party

This week I was more in a scrambling move for something green, there was no plan, just set out and plugged "green fashion" into my Google search bar.

I checked all of my favorite magazines and websites for the latest and greatest.
Nylon is one of my favorite magazines, it is young, hip, and always inspirational. They are aware of all the up and coming artists, the newest designer collaborations, and feature the it-girls of the month on their covers.
nativeshoes.com
In the end, I stumbled upon these hiking boots made of foam. They are called Fitzsimmons, from the Native brand.
nylon.com
They are outrageous looking, come in neon colors, and I totally want a pair. They took the stereotypical heavy hiking boot and made it light. This special foam creates 0% waste, no carbon emissions, and a cushy waterproof bubble around your feet.
nylon.com

all info from nylon.com

Chic En Vert: Eco Sunglasses

designersunglasses-store.com

Designer sunglasses are the guilty pleasures of many people out there. However, with two top designers in the game going green, we might be able to feel less guilty. Both Gucci and Stella McCartney created a line of eco-friendly sunglasses so while you're looking at the sun through the glasses, you can be protecting the earth as well!

This bottom picture is of the line of the eco-sunglasses. Gucci collaborated with the eyewear line Safilo to come up with their designs. The glasses are made up of a new type of acetate "containing a much higher percentage of naturally occurring ingredients". The line is also claimed to include shield style glasses made from castor oil seeds and should be wrapped in eco-friendly packaging.

simplyeyeglasses.com

cocoperez.com

Stella McCartney is following Gucci's lead with her own line of eco-friendly sunglasses.

The five style collection includes three acetate plastic pairs and two bio-injected plastic. Both plastics are made of 54% natural and renewable materials like castor oil seeds (just like Gucci) and natural plasticizers.

info from cocoperez.com

Halloween Inspiration

Photos of Scarlet Johansson by Tim Walker for W Magazine's June 2011 issue.

Chic En Vert: Runway to Green

vogue.com

After doing research on Oscar de la Renta's organic wedding dress last week, I stumbled upon the Runway to Green fashion show in partnership with Christie's "Bid to Save the Earth
program. It was a true gem and chock full of great effort put forth by the fashion industry to save the earth.
This charity event consisted of a runway show and an auction to benefit the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). A-list stars and fashion insiders all showed up to show their support.
The show, party, and auction were an obvious success, raising $2 million for environmental causes in the first 2 hours.

And Nicki Manaj showed up for a surprise performance of "Monster" and styled her hair to match the shrubbery. Would you expect anything else from her?

24 designers including Burberry, Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander Wang, and Marni were told to either dedicate a piece from their Fall 2011 collection or create their own for the Runway to Green show. The designers also committed further to the environment by working with NRDC's Clean by Design program to make their businesses more sustainable and environmentally-friendly. It directly addresses the pollution and efficiency problems created by the textile industry.

Some looks from the runway show:
I love this Marni look. Swim cap? Bonnet? Beanie? and necklace made from recycled plastic bottles.

Thakoon look. Love the high/low/mullet skirt trend.

Osklen, a Brazilian brand I've never heard of but another one of my favorite looks. Creatively used organically dyed salmon skin (typically wasted) to make the purse and shoes which you can't exactly see.

Burberry obviously. So sharp.



The best part? The collection available on net-a-porter.com Shop it here!

Next week I'll be reporting eco-friendly sunglasses, so stay tuned.

info from vogue.com, ecoterre.com
fashion show images from ecoterre.com
others from vogue.com

Hussein Chlayan Spring/Summer 2007

I can't believe I haven't posted about this yet!
I saw a wonderful exhibit in Paris at the Musée des Arts Decoratifs on the morning of the arrival of the bikers during the Tour de France, followed by macaroons at Lauduré--it was an amazing day to say the least.
In the museum there was Ralph Lauren's spectacular car museum, the history of jewelery, but my sister and I were blown away by the Hussein Chlayan exhibit. His clothes demonstrate not only his broad range of style, but also his impeccable design aspect.
This video of his Spring/Summer 2007 show has been talked about in every magazine, so I'm sure you'll recognize a hat or two.



Have you ever seen clothes move like that?!? The coolest. Not only that, but the clothes are stunning. Hats off to you Hussein Chlayan.

New discovery! BADAUDE

I am officially obsessed with Badaude.

Her writing is cute, her drawings are darling.
Fashion drawing at its finest.

Chic En Vert: Wedding Day

vogue.com
As I giddily flipped through the big September issue of Vogue with my girl on the cover, Kate Moss, I was pleased to stumble upon the new trends, the latest anti-wrinkle treatment, and new books to read.

vogue.com
The wedding photoshoot of Kate and her family was idyllic and joyful as it should be. The hip young couple are a vision in white. Look at all the beautiful children with these lucky genes!
As I continued toward the end, I was pleased to land on the Style Ethics portion talking about what else, Eco-friendly Fashion.
Since the entire issue had a wedding theme to it, this particular page helped even the most stylish brides stay green on their wedding day.

ecoterre.com

First, the picture showed Julia Nobis in this totally organic Oscar de la Renta gown. He's known for extravagant, glamorous, feminine gowns, but never totally organic. However, he tries to use natural fibers over synthetic whenever possible, but he is no Stella McCartney. To take this commitment further, he created this dress for the Runway to Green fashion show in March (which I plan to talk about next week). The tulle is 100% organic cotton, as are the hand embroidered flowers that cascade down the dress. A portion of the profits also benefit environmental organizations.
This image was flanked by other sustainable choices that a bride could make. Including a wedding cake from Babycakes NYC, a bouquet from New York's first sustainable florist--Gardenia Organic's, and a wedding invitation from Paperlesspost.com.

babycakesnyc.com
REFINED SUGAR FREE, GLUTEN FREE, WHEAT FREE, SOY FREE, CASEIN FREE, EGG FREE, VEGAN, KOSHER BAKERY!

gardeniaorganics.com
They deliver!
paperlesspost.com
Would you send a Wedding evite?

Stay tuned for next week!

All information from September 2011's issue of American Vogue

Latest Free People Catalog

Hope you're as excited as I am for the Free People October catalog! Loving the fur vest, sequin pants, beautiful sweaters, and blond Bridget Bardot hair.

Free People October from FreePeople on Vimeo.

Teenage Dream

30 is the new 50. 20 is the new 30.
Does that make teenage new standard for the glossy ads in the front of our favorite ads? I am well aware that 17 or below has become the norm for runway models--their prepubescent thin bodies display the clothes wonderfully, just like hangers.
I am not complaining at all, I just feel like an old hag at age 20.
Anyways... onto the meat of this post. I wanted to draw attention to a trend that may or may not have started with Marc Jacobs' ads, using Dakota Fanning as the fresh face.

I love Fanning and the ads, she just seems so young!

Another one looking adorable.

This fall another set of advertisements were put forth with a teenage startlet-- Hailey Steinfeld of True Grit. Her sophisticated fashion sense has always been ahead of her fourteen year old demeanor, but I never thought I'd see her land the Miu Miu campaign!
As shocking as it is, Miu Miu never fails to disappoint and displayed a beautiful plethora of images of the youngster.

So innocent, yet so cool.

Chic En Vert: Portland Fashion Week

My hometown of Portland is wonderful. Anyone who's never been must go. It's full of hipsters on bikes, good coffee, Powell's Books, and most importantly it's one of the most sustainable cities according to Grist.

image: dguides.com/portland
I'd like to focus the highlight on Portland Fashion Week- PFW. For those of you who don't know what fashion week is...it is a week or so of runway shows where designers debut their collections for the following season. I got the pleasure of going my sophomore year of high school with my best friend and we had a ball. For those of you in Portland it's October 5th to 9th so be sure to get your tickets!

I am posting this in my Chic en Vert segment because of PFW's commitment to sustainability. It is the world's only carbon-neutral production of fashion week. This is significant because Portland realizes the value in taking a high-profile event and associating it with sustainability to show the importance of the issue.
If you're a Project Runway fan like I am, you'll be excited to learn that Seth Aaron, the winner from season 7, presented last year at PFW on the ONLY black solar panel runway.image: www.accessories-fashion.com
He'll also be back this week presenting his collection made from recycled plastic textile on a runway made of the recycled plastic. Portland has been associated with 3 of the last 4 winners of the show, so there is no denying the emerging talent in the Northwest city.

It is also important that Anna Cohen, a top sustainable designer, will be showing her knit wear collection there and has a passion for making clothes that will sustain the world we live in. She uses green fabrics for her simple designs so that they can go back into the earth.


Enjoy this video of hers!

Portlandia!

Niki Saint Phalle

I learned about this fabulous artist the other day in my "Art After 1945" class. Her name is Niki Saint Phalle. I'm really adding her on this fashion blog because of her start as a model in vogue. This french fashion model turned artist was rebellious, innovative, creative, and at the height of the European Pop Art movement. She married her lover and they continued to work on art together for twenty years. What a great life!

Vogue Cover

With her artistic boyfriend

Literally shooting at the canvas (she would make figures out of objects and paint filled balloons and shoot at them)

In the white jumpsuit--never quite leaving Vogue behind.

Part of her Nana series in bright poppy colors. Entrance to "building" (read pregnant woman) through vagina. (she's funny!)
images from iamthechildofthemoon.blogspot.com