What do you think of when you hear the phrase “eco-fashion”?  Does it make you think of the staid stereotype of a “crunchy-granola-hippie,” bedecked in roughhewn and hand-woven materials? Or does it make you think of the new über-environmentalist? A self-assured, spartan, and dare I say, modern representative of clean living, sequestered in an urban dwelling?

Are you following me?

It is telling of the eco-fashion industry that the references I just laid out before you don’t exactly fit together cohesively. The industry of sustainable fashion is in many ways a patchwork of ideas, a burgeoning movement that has gained a fair amount of notoriety, while its definition is still incomplete.

What defines eco-fashion? Does it come from the mind of a female, bike-friendly, design school student? Or does it hang out with two married jewelry makers using reclaimed metals in their Topanga Canyon home studio?

There is a reason you can’t pinpoint the origins of eco-fashion – it’s an anomaly.

Eco-fashion belongs to no one. It is a multi-layered phrase, open to interpretation. What makes the concept so intriguing is that almost anyone can buy in to it, if you have the materials and the vision.

There is no LEED certification system in place for clothing. There isn’t even a true arm of the Council of Fashion Designers of America that reviews “green clothing” (though the World Wildlife Fund tried). What you have is a talented crop of up-and-coming designers whose boutique clothing lines are slowly but surely building their reputation, not only because they are made in a sustainable manner, but because they are beautiful.

Is there room for aesthetics in the outpost of green? Of course. I believe that one of the true motivating forces behind anything sustainable is the human being’s appreciation for beauty. We love natural landscapes because they are beautiful, so we want to preserve them. As the famed environmental philosopher, Aldo Leopold, said, “A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.”

So we pat ourselves on the back for supporting green designers, because it is right to want to preserve natural beauty. Right? And materials sourced using low-impact methods, creating little-to-zero waste, and consuming as few extraneous materials as possible sounds pretty righteous to me.

How one goes about creating a line from such materials is another story. While a team of designers may be using non-toxic dyes to color silk they produce in India, does the travel cost of shipping their materials to the States outweigh the benefits that they created by reducing the level of toxics their garments might have unleashed into India’s waterways? Was the production of materials in this fast-developing country going to happen anyway, and the designer’s choice to use an environmentally friendly dye therefore the only ethical precaution they could have possibly taken? Or is it more “righteous” to source your materials locally (they did both), even if it means that you might incur a small amount of water waste or garbage in New Jersey, where the designers of Feral Childe had their chic leggings printed? (See it all here)

Needless to say, one must consider a seemingly infinite number of decisions in the process of designing a clothing line. I give you a few examples: Where to source raw materials? Who does the sourcing? How are these workers treated? Where to buy the material once it is made? Does the garment factory use child labor? Does it use toxic chemicals to produce the fabrics? Who should one employ to make their clothing? Should this be in a developing country? Can one partner with local women to help them become financially independent?  Can one be certain of the fair treatment of their employees? How about the fair treatment of the natural landscape in which the inevitable amount of refuse, however small or large, must be deposited? What is the lowest impact one can have when producing something? Is it worth it to produce at all, when consumption lies at the very heart of this problematic industry called fashion?

Phew… that’s a lot to consider. From reading over those questions, it is evident to me that sustainable fashion is not simply relegated to the decision of whether or not to buy your silk in India. It is also a matter of humanitarian conditions in that country, and the lasting ramifications of perpetuating consumer capitalism.

Did it just get a little stuffy in here?

I won’t apologize for the serious tone I’ve taken, but I will say this: nobody’s perfect. Like your outfit on a wintry day, this quandary is multi-layered. I like clothes as much as the next girl, but I bear the burden of knowledge. It helps that I love vintage clothing – buying recycled fashion is one way to dodge the guilt of being a compulsive spender.

See, it’s not easy being green – not for me, not for anybody. What I like to tell my friends is this: “Whatever you’re doing to help, no matter how small or large an undertaking, it’s a good thing.” Attaining consciousness of the task laid out before us is the first step. Then, becoming aware of your surroundings and the impact that your lifestyle has upon them will follow. And ultimately, we hope, this will lead to manifesting your identity as a Global Citizen. Because once we all feel a little bit more rooted to this Earth, to this entity that lends us our existence whether we recognize it or not, we will be one step closer to feeling at peace in our own skin. And that’s what I call sustainable fashion.

For some pretty lines in all shapes and sizes, check out:
•    Loup Charmant – http://loupcharmant.com
•    Mociun – http://www.mociun.com
•    Prairie Underground – http://www.prairieunderground.com
•    Cri de Coeur – http://www.cri-de-coeur.com
•    Stacy J. Lee – http://www.stacyjlee.com
•    Melissa Plastic Dreams – http://www.melissaplasticdreams.com/home/usa
•    Samantha Pleet – http://www.samanthapleet.com
•    Popomomo – http://www.popomomo.com

And finally, the fairy godmother and royal princess of eco-fashion, respectively:
•    Linda Loudermilk – http://www.lindaloudermilk.com
•    Stella McCartney – http://www.stellamccartney.com