Redefining fashion for the future

 “It’s about unifying aesthetics with ethics,” said (Italian artist Michelangelo Pistoletto (76). “The mission here is what I call ‘The Third Paradise’ — the unification of technology with nature so that both can coexist in harmony.”

This is an extract from an article I have just read at the NYT:  www.nytimes.com/2009/09/25/fashion/25iht-rcitta.html?ref=fashion

I love the way he synthesises what is needed in fashion, and in industry, even society as a whole, in two simple phrases. The fact that Italian Vogue's Franca Sozzani was part of this initiative means the fashion industry will stand up and listen. And that's good. Every little helps.

And this goes for Ms. Casiraghi and friends' "EVERManifesto", who have created an editorial project around the notion of sustainability. Kudos to them for using their mass appeal to draw attention to one of the greatest threats to our planet - our current way of life. I'd love to get a copy of that first issue and read it all up.  The whole idea of sustainability is so fraught and overwhelming, because it covers such a wide scope of issues: changing social perceptions and mores, redifining our needs and obligations while reevaluing the industrial tissue that has revolutionized everyday life since the 19th century... A tall order that we will only be able to live up to if we all work together, both in our private endeavours and in more public ones like these. 

Yes, he can!

Ok, I know politics, ecology and fashion can rarely be mentioned in the same sentence. So for this post I will concentrate exclusively on the first two. Listening to President Obama's address to the UN makes me believe that, yes, indeed, he can!

Here is the extract from the NYT coverage of the General Assembly that leads me to have hope (www.nytimes.com/2009/09/24/world/24prexy.html?_r=1&th&emc=th): 

"“We have re-engaged the United Nations,” Mr. Obama said, to cheers from world leaders and delegates in the cavernous hall. “We have paid our bills” — a direct reference to the former administration’s practice of withholding some payment due the world body while it pressed for changes there."

May I add that it wasn't just the Bush Jr. administration that held this policy? Reagan and Bush Sr.'s did too. I found that out way back in 1991 when I went to Model United Nations. The USA is supposedly the greatest contributor to the UN since its creation after WWII. But there have been long periods in which they have withheld that funding or delayed specific payments. A way to control decisions made by the UN? To dictate policy? To avoid being sanctioned by the Security Council? I leave you to reach your own conclusions...

So maybe President Obama will keep his promises, and maybe this drive to work together with other nations and entities and go beyond the short term interests of the USA will result in a new approach to all things. Maybe we can hope to hear news that the US finally decides to join the International Court of Justice ... or to sign and live up to the urgently needed treaties regarding conservation and ecological policy too... Paying up to the United Nations is definitely a good start!

Check out his full speech - available in video or written format:  http://www.un.org/ga/64/generaldebate/US.shtml

Emma Watson's tree

So you've probably heard the news! Emma Watson is quitting her acting career to go to Brown University and live "a normal life". The girl we have come to love as Hermione in the Harry Potter movies is taking time off from filming to go to college, model for Burberry Prorsum... AND help create a trendy line of ecoconscious clothing for teens with People Tree (www.peopletreeyouth.co.uk) due to hit stores in February 2010.

The news spread like wildfire throught the web this week after the company presented the collection during London Fashion Week. Alot has been said of celebrities-turned-designers, not all good. But I think that, as long as the line is well thought out, like, say, Victoria Beckham's - why not? 

Plus, you have to appreciate the earnestness of Miss Watson's words on the project: "I wanted to help People Tree produce a younger range because I was excited by the idea of using fashion as a tool to alleviate poverty and knew it was something I could help make a difference with. It has been the most incredible gap year project." Its bound to be the kind of feel good shopping were in lies the future of fashion. 26 pieces that are both ecological and fair trade, not to mention cute! Now, how much more can you ask for? (well, shipping to anywhere in Europe would be nice.)

Bottles to backpacks

Have you ever felt bad about buying a plastic water bottle? I know I have. One of the greatest things about living in Madrid is the high quality of the tap water we get from the nearby mountains, courtesy of the Canal Isabel II. So I normally get water from the tap, whether it be at home or at the office. When I need to take it with me, I've got a great Sigg aluminium thermos (you've probably heard of them, but just in case: www.sigg.com). 

The problem arises when I have to travel by plane. What with the new restrictions with liquids going through customs, they practically force you to consume bottled water - and at exorbitant prices too! 

So imagine the relief I felt when I heard about a Spanish company that actually converts all those plastic bottles into on trend luggage and bags. Ecoalf 1.0 is the name of the project created by Fun & Basics owner Javier Goyeneche. 

The idea is pretty basic, and the technology behind it pretty niffty. These bags are made of a pvc free fabric made from plastic bottles! 100% recycled and recyclable. It takes 70 PET bottles to create 1 square meter of ecoalf fabric.  And the designs aren't half bad either, thanks to their practical side. You have specific pockets for all your electronic gadgets. Perfect to resist the wear and tear of daily urban life or intercontinetal travel.  (www.funbasics.com/ecoalf.htm)

'Tis the season to recycle...

Yes, recycling! That byword of all things ecofriendly can also be the secret to the perfect wardrobe.  In a season like that of A/W 2009-10, where the '80's, the '70's, the '40's and the '90's all coalesce it is easy to "make do" with what we already have in our closets. Think about it: 

Leggings? Check

LBD? Check

Leather biker jacket? Check

Booties? Check

Skinny black trousers (jeans or otherwise)? Check

Trench coat? Check

Oversize sweater? Check

Basic T-shirt? Check

Boyfriend blazer? Check

Pencil Skirt? Check

Flat knee high boots? Check

11 items that conform the perfect winter 2009 wardrobe and that you probably already possess.  Isn't that a neat trick?! All you have to do is place them in a place of prominence in your wardrobe and check through the rest of your clothes to see what you have that works well with them. But that whole "organize your closet and work it" chapter is best left for another day.

The autumn equinox - time for a wardrobe overhaul!

Its that time of year again. 12 hour days followed by 12 hour nights, temperatures start to drop, the air changes, the leaves fire up. And every woman I know begins to look at her wardrobe with varying degrees of dissatisfaction. 

How to face the challenge of dressing over the next few months and bare the cold with style? Suddenly that prize coat from a couple of years back looks terribly wrong, and the collection of over 20 sweaters is simply not quite right... so what to do? The obvious answer until 2007 was "GO SHOPPING!" But today, that just doesn't feel right. Whether or not you can actually afford to shop is not the question. Shopping has become an act fraught with moral significance. Especially when it comes to shopping for clothes and accessories. 

Lets face it, most of us in the first world have more clothes than we actually have occasion to wear. Especially women. How many dresses do you have in your closets that you have barely worn more than once at a wedding or party? How many pairs of heels so high you wore them once but shiver at the very thought of wearing them again? I know I have more than my fair share. 

This time around I have decided to avoid temptation altogether; no window shopping what so ever! So far the experiment is working. Its almost the end of September and I have not bought a single "new season" item. But then again so far its been easy, what with all the street works going on in Madrid, window shopping has become a dangerous sport! And speaking of dangerous sport, having a bad knee also makes it much easier to avoid walking into any boutique, because it hurts!

Recycling is the key to this season. 

About time!!!

Its taken me exactly 21 months to get my act together and begin this blog! I am the queen of procrastination when it comes to the things closest to my heart. Call it stage fright, or what you will. The fact is, though I write for a living (atleast that's how I like to think of myself) being confronted to not just one blank page but a whole blank blog - limitless space... Vertigo!!

During this time I have written in my mind a couple dozen entries... But now, where do I begin?