N.E.E.T. Eco Interviews
Hello again, this is your eco interviewer Sarah Corley from Fashionable Conversation. Today at N.E.E.T., we have a treat especially for our vegan girls: an exclusive with Elizabeth Olsen of olsen Haus!
Based out of Tribeca in New York City, this purely vegan designer brand includes a mixture of classy, colorful, and socially-conscious footwear. Founded and headed by accessory design expert Elizabeth Olsen, olsen Haus was created to provide shoes that meet standards of the vegan lifestyle, through the materials and processes used, without looking out of style. Rich in quality and never lacking in originality, olsen Haus is changing the face of vegan fashion one shoe at a time.
Elizabeth, you have an impressive background in accessory design and have worked with many notable designers and clients. Can you tell us a little more about yourself, your experience, and what led to the launch of olsen Haus?
As a young child, I was aware that there was something very wrong in the relationship between mankind and the animal kingdom. When I was 15, I saw some PETA literature and instantly became a vegetarian and remained one for 19 years. About three years ago, I put two and two together with the dairy industry and went vegan.
After being in the fashion industry for many years, I realized there weren’t really any companies making good quality, stylish vegan garments or footwear. The companies selling synthetic shoes made ones using copied designs that looked cheap and hurt my feet. So, the creation of Olsenhaus was about filling the need for stylish vegan footwear, but, even more important, I created it to be a vehicle for exposing the truth about animal treatment, the leather industry, and the resulting environmental damages. I wanted to show that one could be conscious and still lead a fabulous lifestyle, with rad shoes!
Another mission in starting the company was to change the face and perception of what it means to be vegan. True creativity, style, and design should not be synonymous with cruelty, but rather bring conscious, stylish products into people’s fashion choices. Being vegan isn’t about depravity or lack of style; it’s actually very feeling and creative.
olsen Haus is changing the face of eco-friendly footwear by being purely vegan. Can you explain what that means in relation to materials used and practices implemented on a day-to-day basis?
Eco in its purest form is vegan. Olsenhaus is 100% animal-free, which means we do not use the product of or participate with the livestock industry, which is the largest contributor to global warming, land devastation, environmental pollution, and water supply contamination.
The leather industry is more harmful to the environment than the textile, medicine, fertilizer, and paper industries because of the resulting pollutants to the environment. Tannery waste contains large amounts of chromium, bleaching agents, oils, salts acids, alkalis, and dyes, as well as other pollutants such as protein, hair, salt, lime, sludge, sulfides, and acids. And there is nothing biodegradable about leather or fur since it is treated with caustic chemicals to stop the biodegrading process. In addition, billions of animals suffer every year.
Our Fall 2010 collection is made with a recycled upper of material that originated as TV factory waste. We are also experimenting with a recycled tire sole on a few styles, along with sustainable cork and wood detailing. A recycled heel is also in the works. Otherwise, we utilize organic cotton canvas, nylon, linen, and velvets—all breathable, high-quality products that surpass leather in all respects. The glue used for making the shoes is animal product free as well.
Your spring collection is filled with bright-colored flats, strappy pumps, and cute sandals with occasional hints of metallics. What inspired this combination of loveliness?
It’s something like “my shiny metallic tricycle meets mom’s macrame plant holders.” I was reminded of my childhood in the 70s, the mixing of nature, and modern/futuristic.
What is your favorite alternative material to work with? Why?
The Fall 2010 collection was constructed with recycled Ultrasuede created from TV waste. This material is incredible because it is recycled, breathes well, can be cleaned, and is extremely durable, but it is also created in a facility with high eco standards and is cruelty-free.
How do you stay inspired and motivated to spread the word about olsen Haus?
I don’t have to try to stay motivated – it is what I do. If I have a moment of doubt, I think of all the innocent animals that are being mistreated and killed, and the choice to speak the truth and be their voice is a no-brainer.
Check out: www.olsenhaus.com
Hello! This is Sarah Corley from Fashionable Conversation, with another Eco Interview!
How often do you get to wear something that is rooted in a greater cause yet stylish enough to be in Vogue? New York-based label Mika Organic proves that raising environmental awareness and encouraging action can be both fashionably possible and full of fun!
Known for screen-printed fabrics inspired by nature and animals, Mika Organic does more than celebrate nature; the brand is also focused on taking care of it. Through the sole use of organic materials, Mika’s founder and designer Mika Machida has proven, with each collection, that simple silhouettes can be made loud and fabulous through literal design details.
Mika, you are the designer and founder of the innovative eco-friendly label, Mika Organic. Before we dive into the unique designs that define Mika, we want to learn more about you! So please start off by telling us a little bit about yourself:
My name is Mika Machida, and I am originally from Nagoya, Japan. I moved to NYC in 1999 to study graphic design at the Fashion Institute of Technology, and that’s where I found the life-changing art of silkscreen printing! I spent quite a lot of time in the screen-printing studio rather than at the computer lab during my school days.
Apart from a required sewing class in junior and high school in Japan, I have never studied fashion design or clothing production. My designing started as an effort to save some money buying and time looking for things I wanted to wear. I began by making my own simple and fun (funky) clothes, and then I discovered silkscreen printing, which naturally led to printing on my original clothes. I never thought I would have my own clothing line back then, it’s funny how things turn out…
Also, I still do graphic design because I don’t see any separation between any creative fields, so I just keep doing what I love to do.
How did Mika Organic come about?
I started selling some of my handmade clothes at a small boutique in the lower east side of Manhattan around 2002. The store was called “ The art fiend foundation,” and everything in the store was one-of-a-kind and very beautiful. It was through this boutique that I met many wonderful designers, including the storeowner Johanna Hofring, who inspired me as I developed my own designs. Johanna renamed the boutique “Ekovaruhuset/House of Organic” in 2006 and set the new store policy to only include sustainable and organic items. Around that same time, I studied a lot about the impact of the clothing industry on nature, as well as how to live a sustainable life. It really changed my thinking and made me understand the importance of choosing sustainable and organic. When you know the facts, you never go back and make the same mistakes again.
What ideologies and eco-friendly practices are central to your brand and how do you remain true to them?
Everything has to be organically + sustainably made.
Occasionally, I use non-certified yarns from very small-scale farmers as exceptions. Knowing that it’s expensive and takes a long time to get organic certified, I speak to them and get to know the process of how the yarns are produced and processed, and then I buy the yarns directly from them.
Both your spring/summer and autumn/winter 2010 collections include screen-printed fabrics of beautiful things in nature, including land animals, tree trunks, sea life, and more. With each collection, you creatively transform these lovely screen prints into dresses, tops, and skirts, often with especially interesting details (like fringe for a horse’s mane).
Can you tell us more about your designs, what makes them special, and where their inspiration comes from?
I get inspirations from the beauty of nature, the amazing details of animals, and how animals live their lives naturally + sustainably. But the inspirations are endless. I try to go beyond printing animal or nature designs by making clothes in a way that allows the person wearing them to enjoy “being” part of the inspiration. It’s more fun that way!
It’s becoming more difficult to separate Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter, simply because of the relationship between a material’s characteristics and the design itself. To me, it’s better to have the freedom to consider design + idea first and not to think so much about the season.
In this fast-changing society, it is my hope that human life can return to a more natural and sustainable way of being, so I use my clothes to send out messages to people, especially those in urban life. Examples include my Aspen Dress (“Protect the Forest), Whale Dress (“Protect Marine Life”), and Elephant Top (“Save the Elephant”). In addition, part of sales are donated to help protect endangered species of the world.
What garments do you enjoy making the most and why?
I enjoy all! But when ideas get successfully transformed into the garments, that’s the most shining and rewarding moment of all.
What should we expect from Mika in the future? Can you tell us about anything you have in the works right now?
I traveled to Ethiopia and Kenya last year, and I am still processing the inspirations I got from the trip. It was such an amazing place, and it really changed my life…
Also, I am going to the Amazon jungle in Peru at the end of April, so I am looking forward to getting new inspirations from this upcoming trip!
Check out: www.mikaorganic.com
Hello lovelies! This is Sarah Corley from Fashionable Conversation, and I am your new Eco-Friendly Blogger here at N.E.E.T.! A few times a month, you can expect to see my chats with designers, as I will be bringing you an in-depth look into their brands. Get excited!
Kicking off this fabulous new series for us is Sublet Clothing, a New York-based brand that designs sustainable yet beautiful garments. The brainchild of Tara Eisenberg and Inessah Selditz, Sublet makes being green and socially responsible the fun and fashionable choice by using pretty colors, darling prints, and classic silhouettes as all their materials are eco-friendly. With a new collection ready for the fall, Sublet encourages others to join the sustainable lifestyle movement…
Let’s start with some introductions. Tara and Inessah, please tell us about yourselves:
Hello! We’re Tara and Inessah, the co-owners of Sublet. Tara is a New Yorker, born and raised, and is a fan of fennec foxes, any shade of taupe, and all social events (karaoke, brunch, and cheese parties especially). Inessah is originally from Okinawa, Japan, and loves graphic design books, warm gray, and potlucks. We have both been involved in making our own clothes for years.
The two of you started out as roommates, became best friends, and are now business partners. Can you tell us a little more about how this all happened and how it resulted in your brand, Sublet?
We met during the summer of 2005 through a Craigslist ad for a two-and-a-half-week sublet, which eventually turned into a three-month sublet. When Inessah graduated from design school, she moved up to NYC, and, over sandwiches one day at a deli, we decided to create a company together. We named it Sublet of course because that’s how we met, but it also kind of describes this transitional, creative lifestyle that we both gravitate toward.
Both of us are very independent people and are pretty resourceful. We like problem solving and have a love for chance and surprise. Plus, as individuals before starting Sublet, we both embraced a low-impact, sustainable lifestyle, and this helps make our brand successful.
What’s it like working with your best friend?
I think for both of us, it’s the same… it’s pretty cool. We’ve had our disagreements about things, like what font size to use or which shade of beige is right for our labels, but you’re always going to have that with another person. What has been great is that Sublet is ours, so at the end of the day whatever good things happen result because we figured it out together. Also, we always prepare a meal for each other whenever we meet, so that’s a nice bonus too.
What ideologies are central to your brand and how do you remain true to them?
At Sublet, we are focused on sustainability, creativity, and collaboration. We are always asking ourselves how we can do things better. It was definitely a lot harder when we first started out, but I think you just have to keep on trying to be better.
With our upcoming collection (A/W 10), it’s been really great because we hit all three points in an exciting way. We worked with some new materials (like tencel), created original prints for the first time (including a collaboration with Brooklyn-based artist Caroline Hwang for our Archimedes print), and photographed Annie Hart of Au Revoir Simone (one of our favorite bands) wearing our designs.
Sublet is focused on encouraging the sustainable lifestyle and taking care of the environment. How does the brand’s aesthetic represent your commitment to these standards?
Being sustainable isn’t just about using organic cotton or hemp, it’s also thinking of ‘things’ differently and trying to move away from the mindset that everything is disposable. This isn’t sexy, but at the heart of what we do is make functional garments that we hope people will love for a long time. We ride bikes and take subways and are always finding random things to take home, so if we’re wearing one of our items, we want something that’s not fussy – something you can actually move in. That girl who’s riding her bike down the street with too many grocery bags… that’s the girl we design for.
What has been your greatest accomplishment so far as designers and with Sublet?
Hmm…having Vogue call us directly?! I think honestly the best thing is that we actually went through with what we said we’d do that first day at lunch. It’s a challenging process to get everything to a point where you’re actually producing something. Also, there’s the fact that we’ve never gotten into a big argument, which is pretty remarkable since we can both be really stubborn.
Your newest collection A/W 2010 collection can be viewed online, and it reveals a genius mixture of the unexpected. What inspired your collection?
We were most inspired by the things we know and love: Sunday brunch with friends (also known as Bunday), math and geometry (one of the prints is based off a street-found book on the ancient mathematician, Archimedes), and bunnies (we can’t help it, we love cute animals).
What advice do you have for designers and fashionistas committed to being green?
Just start somewhere. It’s nearly impossible to be in a completely closed circle of sustainability, but we can all do our little part to help out. Start recycling your office paper, donate your extra fabric, and, if possible, look into ways to use sustainable fabrics and support local manufacturers. Test your fabrics and try to develop good relationships with your subcontractors. We still use the same sewers that we worked with the first season. They invite us to their parties and give us little sandwiches and candies when we’re waiting.
Check out: www.subletclothing.com
