Eco-friendly fashion

A dress from AuH20 made entirely of MetroCards. (Handout)

By Kristen V. Brown | Special to amNewYork

January 7, 2008

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Thanks to global warming, wacky weather has brought on a whole new set of style dilemmas -- like what to wear when it's 60 degrees in the middle of winter. Luckily, a host of new, fashion-forward designers are offering up stylish solutions to ensure your closet can help combat environmental issues without looking like you took a trip back to the '60s.

Go green
Converting your wardrobe to green means more than just organic cotton. Today mills produce fabrics ranging from bamboo and soy silks to fleece made from plastic soda pop bottles. Many designers create their lines locally and sweatshop free. Some, like Kate Goldwater of AuH2O designs are even finding new life in materials like old T-shirts or Metrocards.

Nina Valenti, designer for NaturevsFuture, uses fabrics like organic wool and recycled Polartec fleece to make her her chic offerings. "Five years ago it was hard to find any green fabrics, but now more and more mills are including green fabrics in their productions," she said. This spring, Valenti is taking things one step further with a line fashioned out of 100 percent sustainable fabrics.

Eco chic
A few years ago, eco-style was pretty much restricted to yoga gear. Today even high-end designers and stores like Barney's are putting an emphasis on saving Mother Earth.

"A lot of young designers are realizing they can design whatever they want and also take care of the environment," says Jenny Hwa, the mind behind the enviro-friendly Loyale Clothing.

Loyale's collection features fashion-forward designs like an empire-waisted tunic made from organic cotton twill and a cap sleeve shift crafted out of bamboo jersey.

Accessorize
Even accessories designers are hopping on the eco-bandwagon. From JaK Random Art cuffs crafted from recycled records to Charmone vegan shoes, designers are finding style potential in anything and everything.

Charmone, a sustainable shoe company, uses non-leather materials because of the toxins leather production puts into the environment. The designs, thankfully, are more Jimmy Choo than Food Not Bombs, with sleek choices like giraffe print or metallic open-toed pumps.

"Consumers are frustrated because they are concerned about the environment, but they don't really know what to do about it," says Lauren Caroll, of Charmone. "We're just giving them better options."

Where to find it:

Loyale Clothing:
Organic Avenue

$130 for dress
Kaight
83 Orchard St
Organic Avenue
101 Stanton St