Posh Swaps Blog

Here are the best of the weeks posts on eco fashion and sustainable style - enjoy!

Check out the natural and handcrafted bath and beauty products from Billy Jealousy, a cruelty-free men’s grooming line.

Fashion Fille just adores the Alex and Ani spike bracelet, which happens to be made from all recycled materials!

Fashion Pulse Daily has gone ga-ga for green with the new Keds Green Label Collection

Looking Sharp! is supporting the local library by going purple!

Runway To Retail has the scoop on Jessica Alba’s interview with Vogue about going Green!

RedPoppy Fashion loves the all British and organic bath and body care range Figs & Rouge.

Posh Swaps has been thinking about sustainable style and investigates by asking the question What is Eco fashion?

If you love eco boats, you have to check the Botas Dacca’s interview inQuinta Trends

We are are delighted to have joined Green Chic.  Each week we will bring you best of eco fashion and sustainable style. This week we have eco friendly trunk shows, vegan shoes, a Phillip Lim collection and lots more.

picture from Looking Sharp

Fashion Fille lets us all know about a Libertas Earth-friendly trunk show! Woo, sale clothing! Woo, helping our planet!
Fashion Pulse Daily is in awe of Phillip Lim’s eco-sensitive collection, Go Green Go
Fashiontribes steps out in fabulous shoes…that just happen to be vegan.
Join the green movement with Factio Magazine! Sign up to win this natural, green chair from IQMatics!
Looking Sharp! has an eco-chic giveaway featuring BeadforLife
Posh Swaps loves clothes swapping and gives you 10 great reasons to swap your clothes Why not try it. It’s Eco friendly, it’s frugal and it’s fun.
Quinta Trends shows Chilean eco bags: Modulab

Eco fashion is quite a general term that is bandied about quite a lot lately. As with any green or eco product their are different levels of environmental credentials and different ways that fashion and clothing can be Eco friendly. Basically Eco fashion is anything that lessens the environmental impact of clothing and fashion in some way and is more sustainable than conventional clothing. It is up to the individual buying to decide exactly how Eco friendly each piece of clothing labelled as Eco fashion is.

Organic Clothing

This is clothing made from natural fibres that are grown without the use of pesticides. Conventional cotton is grown using a lot of chemical pesticides which are damaging to the ecosystem and pose health hazards to humans. Organic cotton offers a much more sustainable option but there are also a whole host of other organic fibres including bamboo, hemp and soy which may be even more sustainable than organic cotton. There are a variety of different certifications and standards which are applied to organic fabrics, it is always worth checking that your organic clothing is certified by the relevant body. There are more details about organic clothing and certifications on Adili.

Natural Clothing

Natural clothing is made using natural fibres such as wool, silk, cotton or linen. It is better alternative to synthetic fibres which are difficult to dispose after their useful life, use petro chemicals which are a limited natural resource and have a relative large carbon footprint due to the energy used to manufacture them. Natural clothing is not necessarily sustainable, for example cotton is grown using large amounts of pestcides.

Recycled Fibres

Clothing can be made from fibres that are manufactured using recycled materials. This can include anything from rags to plastic bottles. This is a great way to reuse materials that have passed their useful life in their current form and prevent them ending up in landfill. There is also less energy used with producing synthetic fibres in this way than starting from scratch.

Recycled materials or clothes

Second hand, vintage and reworked or recycled clothing can be included in this category. It is probably the most Eco friendly type of Eco fashion as the materials do not have to be manufactured and so it is carbon neutral (or almost). It does not cause pollution as no or minimal manufacture is required and it helps to reduce waste and landfill. A really sustainable form of Eco fashion. Even better, it is usually cheaper to buy than conventional clothing, where most other forms of eco fashion are more expensive.

picture - 100% organic cotton Leila dress by Komodo at Adili

There are some other labels such as fairtrade and ethical clothing that are often associated with Eco fashion. Whilst these clothes often have more eco credentials than conventional clothing, they are not necessarily Eco fashion.

If you fancy going along to a swishing or clothes swapping party, here are just a few of those going on over the UK in July

POLAR FORD SWISHING PARTY

08 Jul 2009 19:00

Venue: POLAR FORD NEW CAR SHOWROOM

Ladies,Bring your clothes, jewellery, handbags and shoes and exchange the same amount for the same again! Nibbles and wine will be served and proceeds will to Help The Aged Charity. £5.00 entry fee

Email: maureen.mcevoy@polar-motor.co.uk

Come SWishing

08 Jul 2009 20:00

Venue: Harrison’s Bar, 15 - 17 Bedford Hill, Balham, SW12

Come SWishing!

SWish is back on 8th July at Harrison’s Bar, 15 - 19 Bedford Hill…and this time we’re upping our game! This SWish is all about those lovely items that you fell massively in love with…but just haven’t worn since, ooh, we last had a decent summer!

Step 1: Bring along 5 items of clean, stylish summer clothing, shoes or accessories that you no longer wear but you think another woman would love. Serioulsy…respect your fellow SWishers and bring along some fabulous gear!

Step 2: We get the items ready for you whilst you have a drink and wait for browsing time to begin…then the swapping starts!

Step 3: We SWish in rounds and raffle items that more than one person wants to claim

Balham Bou wowed us at the last SWish with the most amazing dress, which went to a lucky lass who had a wedding that very weekend…result!

Please bring your items at 8pm, the SWishing will begin at 8.30 pm. Entry is £5 on the door.

For more details and to book your place email jo at comeswishing@yahoo.co.uk

Clothes Swap for FUN

11 Jul 2009 11:30

Venue: The Royal School, 65 Rosslyn Hill, Hampstead

*BRING - good quality items you no longer love and SWAP - for items you will adore forever*

Look good on the outside and feel great on the inside knowing that you have supported FUN, a charity that has been helping disadvantaged children in London for over 25 years.

Advanced entry donation £5, on the door £6.
To book: email amy@friendsunitednetwork.org.uk or
call: 0207450900

On the day: sale of fantastic high-street designer clothing, cakes, refreshments and raffle.

Email: amy@friendsunitednetwork.org.uk

Clothes Swap Party

11 Jul 2009 19:30

Venue: The Nightjar, Mead Vale, Weston super Mare

This is our first swishing event, and we’re hoping it will go with a swing! If anyone in the area would like to donate clothes rails, or can offer to help with organising swishers on the night, please email.

Email: partridgebazaar@tiscali.co.uk

Swansea Summer Swish

17 Jul 2009 17:30

Venue: St. Phillips Community Hall, Bathurst Street, Swansea,

Need something new for the Summer but feeling the pinch of the credit crunch? Is your wardrobe bulging with clothes that you don’t wear and want to see go to a good home? Looking good doesn’t have to cost the earth!

Come to the second Swishing party hosted by SCRAP, as part of Swansea’s ‘Wise up to Waste Week’, for your chance to make your unwanted items another person’s treasure and take home some new delights for your own collection.

Attendees must bring at least one item of clothing, jewellery, shoes or accessories. You will be able to take home as many items as you can get your hands on. But remember, This isn’t an excuse for you to dump your ripped, stained, unwearable clothes but an opportunity to really clear out your wardrobe of all those things that don’t quite suit you or no longer fit and exchange them for something that you will truely value.

The evening will go as follows:

5pm - 6.00 Guests arrive and place their items on the appropriate rails/tables

6.00 - 6.30 Time to browse through and try the items on (but no claiming until the Swish begins)

7.00 - 7.30 The Big Swish begins, run for your favourite item (with dignity & respect please. Remember ladies, no scratching, spitting or snatching)

Please bring your clothes on hangers and lots of your friend to join in with the fun.

Entry is just £4 and all guests will be treated to a glass of wine and other refreshments. All proceeds will be donated to the Environment Centre and any items left over will be evenlyu donated to the MOre Green Project & RSPCA Llys-Nini.

We look forward to seeing you there. For more information or to volunteer to help out please e-mail.

Email: info@scrap-partnership.org.uk

Swish North East

23 Jul 2009 18:00

Venue: Thistle Hotel, Fry Street, Middlesbrough

have the ultimate girls night out in Middlesbrough, chance to go out with friends and family and get a new outfit into the bargain. Not only loads of clothes, shoes and accessories to pick from but a wide range of local retailers including hairdressers, Style and Colour Consultants, Massage, nails, shoes, bags etc etc.

Email: pauline.osborne2@ntlworld.com

We are always on the look for great products that are not only environmentally friendly and sustainable but also incredibly stylish. Alex and Ani Jewellery is very stylish range of eco friendly jewellery that is loved by celebrities including Vanessa Hudgens and Cameron DIaz. Each piece is handmade in recycled metals and features their signatre style which is adjustable to fit any size.

The designs by Carolyn Rafaelian incorporate gorgeous charms many of which have environmental significance. We love the expandable wire bracelets.

Organic and Eco friendly clothing is now right on trend but how many people consider the environmental credentials of another important aspect of their style, their hair? As with clothing and fashion, many people would like to be more environmentally friendly and opt for the more healthy and natural option but they are not prepared to compromise on style.

Louise Galvin, the well known hair colourist has just launched her own range of eco friendly and natural hair and body products. The products are also highly effective giving hair radiant and healthy shiny hair. The range hydrates and protect coloured hair from fading. They are made from completely natural ingredients and free from additives like sulphates, propylene glycol, petrochemicals, silicones, which result in build-up, artificial perfumes, parabens, phthalates and no synthetic preservatives.

The range is also carbon neutral, so any carbon dioxide produced by the manufacture has been offset. Louise previously created Louise Galvin Sacred Locks a luxury carbon neutral range that was only available to hair salons and high end boutiques. Now we can all experience some of this luxury. We love the fragrance free range for mothers to be. It is also gentle and safe for using on babies and helps you have beautiful hair when pregnant as many find their hair needs that little bit of help with shine and volume.

Green Britain Day is on 10th July and Team Green Britain is all about showing that Britain is leading the world in the race against climate change and coming together as a team to make a change for the better. Green Britain Day is the chance for everyone to do something green for the team.

You can sign up to a variety of teams on the Team Green Britain website, which suggests lots of difference ways that you can become more green and even save some money from swapping something to changing your light bulbs to low energy.

At Posh-swaps.com, we have joined the Team Green Britain, Team Swap. You can swap anything not just clothes but we are pledging to clear out out wardrobes and find lots of lovely clothes to swap. There really is no hardship as we will get lots of lovely clothes in return without spending any money.

Why not join team swap and arrange a clothes swap with your friends for 10th July or list some of your old clothes to swap on www.posh-swaps.com.

We are so excited there are yet more exciting activities in the refashioning, DIY, customising and restyling of vintage and second hand clothes. It is such a great way to recycle old clothes into something really new, unique and exciting. A pass time that is becoming really popular lately.

Oxfam has lauched a DIY competition with a prize of a custom garment designed by Mrs Jones and their winning garment will be featured on the online pages. Mrs Jones is the designer that Oxfam has recently brought on board to design the Oxfam DIY collection, a limited edition of 30 pieces, created using second hand clothes. Previously, Fee Doran AKA Mrs Jones has worked with some of biggest names in the industry and celebrities including Kylie and Goldfrapp.

You can enter the competition by submitting photographs of your creation to Flickr or by emailing them. Full details of the competition are on the Oxfam website. There is also a gallery of entries, great for inspiration.

Don’t forget, you can also sell your recycled, refashioned and restyled creations on www.posh-swaps.com.

Another great idea is to buy clothes cheap online, for wholesale clothing prices. After you wear them a bit, then refurbish them, to save even more money!

Picture from www.oxfam.org.uk