Natural (Fashion) Selection: 9 Top Sustainable Style Stories

green fashion

Environmentally friendly fashion? It used to be an oxymoron, but designers are finally catching up to those of us who want to look great while keeping the Earth a happy, healthy place to live. From our friends at Treehugger, here are 10 of the most interesting “green fashion” stories from the past few weeks.

Sustainable Fashion

copenhagen sustainable fashion show

(image via: COP15)

The United Nations Climate Change Conference starts December 7th in Copenhagen, and the world is watching anxiously. In preparation for the big event, the Center for Responsible Design and Copenhagen Fashion Fair teamed up to present the “Innovating Sustainable Fashion” show on December 3rd. Prizes were awarded to designers who excelled in one of three categories: Design for Inclusion, Design Considering Use, and Design for Environment. Among the designs presented: rainwear made of recycled plastic bottles.

Sustainable Jeans

raleigh denim

(image via: Treehugger)

Sustainability is a big movement in fashion at the moment, but it’s hard to know where to start for more sustainable everyday clothing. Raleigh Denim is a company that’s starting right at home. Every pair of their jeans is hand-stitched by one of the two company founders, and all of the material used comes from within 200 miles of Raleigh, North Carolina. Their designs are sold in very limited quantities, so if you fancy looking awesome and distinctive, here’s your chance.

Fashioning the Future

centre for sustainable fashion

(image via: Guardian)

The London College of Fashion Design recently held an international design competition for students called “Fashioning the Future.” They called for designs which were sustainable, and they got amazing entries from around the world. Some of the leading designs were made with recycled fibers, reworked from existing discarded clothing, and designed to require less laundering. The goal of the competition was to prove that “being sustainable does not mean compromising style or quality.” More information, including notes from the designers, can be found at the Guardian.

Solar Winter Wear

solar hat

(image via: Treehugger)

If you can just never seem to stay warm enough in the frigid winter months, this solar-powered hat and gloves concept could be just the thing to up your comfort levels in the coming months. The integrated thin solar panels provide small amounts of power to heat the hat and gloves, keeping you toastier than ever. Of course, there’s that pesky problem of lower amounts of sunlight in the winter, but hopefully the devices wouldn’t need too much solar power to work. It’s only a concept at the moment, but someone is bound to manufacture it (or something very similar) eventually.

Solar Jacket

solar jacket

This is one piece of solar-powered apparel that you can buy right now – if you have $750 to spare, that is. The Zegna Ecotech Solar Jacket is pretty stylish, especially when compared with previous generations of solar coats that looked downright nerdy. The solar panels are removable and the wiring is washable, meaning that you just have to pop those panels off and you’ve got an easy-care coat that can power all of your must-have gadgets.

Sustainable Amazon Jewelry

haia trading sustainable amazon jewelry

(image via: Treehugger)

Some of the most beautiful sustainable jewelry we’ve ever seen is coming from natural, sustainable materials in Brazil. The seeds, nuts, leaves, stones and wood used by Haia Trading are all sustainable and indigenous to the Amazon rain forest. But besides being stunning and eco-friendly, they’re assembled by local artisans. The jewelry trade helps to improve their communities and the artisans’ quality of life.

Sustainable Style Primer

sustainable style primer

Sure, you’re seeing sustainable fashion on the runway, but how does it translate into what you might find in the stores? Treehugger TV went on a tour with green style blogger Jill Danyelle as she revealed how the fashion world is incorporating more sustainable materials and  practices into their lines.

Learning to Reuse

patch jeans

(image via: craftgossip)

Of course, sustainable style isn’t just about buying new or recycled items. It’s also about making what you have last as long as possible. Planet Green gives us a short rundown of how to patch jeans and sweater elbows, two very important skills for any eco-minded clothing lover to learn.

Making, Not Buying, Holiday Gifts

recycled coat tea cozies

(image via: Planet Green)

Here are another five projects for the eco-friendly do-it-yourselfer. With  just one old coat, you can make these five lovely and fashionable stocking stuffer gifts. For coats that have outlived their usefulness or been ruined by rips or stains, this is the perfect way to ensure that their materials won’t be going to waste in a landfill.