While I likely will be in transit at this time...

The Alliance for the Planet is a group of environmental associations calling on all citizens to create 5 minutes of electrical rest for the planet. People all over the world should turn off their lights and electrical appliances on the first of February 2007, between 1.55 pm and 2.00 pm in New York, 18.55 for London, and 19.55 for Paris, Bruxelles, and Italy. 1.55pm in Ottawa, 10.55am on the Pacific Coast of North America.

Tomorrow I will be heading to Linda Loudermilk's fashion show which is being presented by Lexus Hybrid Living. For Fall 2006 she expanded her line to add jewelry and this Spring she launched her denim collection, so I am looking forward to seeing what surprise she might have in store tomorrow. Stay tuned.

The Limited Edition project gives fashion types the opportunity to pay more than lip service to growing concerns about global warming. In the mix at the fashion week trade show are limited-run collections by Marc Jacobs, Missoni, Libertine, and others—10 percent of the proceeds of which will benefit Al Gore's Climate Project. For those who really want to put their money where their mouth is, 100 percent of the proceeds from T-shirts produced by Buddhist Punk from designs by the likes of Kate Moss and Jade Jagger go to the charity.
(image and text courtesy style.com)

Cork has been popping up in a lot of places these days. While typically thought of in flooring or furniture applications, the eco-friendly material made it's foray into fashion long ago in the form of Birkenstocks. Every few years the sandals get a walk down the runway. Last season they were the perfect compliment to Sari Gueron's laid back bohemian chic designs, top. DDC Lab also investigated using cork and came out with some jackets, while Studio 1 a.m. gave us the unisex cork cuff below. Now, if Birkenstocks aren't your thing, you can slip into Jeffrey's cork flats for Spring.

To those of you who were excited to read about SANS on these pages awhile back, it seems congratulations are now in order for Lika Volkova and Alessandro De Vito, the team behind the label. Last week Ecco Domani announced SANS as one of their 2007 Fashion Fund recipients. The grant will allow the designers to stage a show in February during NY Fashion Week. The designs are forward thinking not only in their modern and innovative construction, but also in their use of sustainable materials. Hopefully their presence under the tents will further shatter the image that eco-friendly means a sacrifice in style. May it serve to illustrate that sustainability should be viewed as a design challenge not a sacrifice, as design that does not factor in the future can hardly be deemed visionary. So, we congratulate SANS for raising the bar in designing for the future both ethically and esthetically.

Because my New Year's Resolution is to create more and type less, I will let Ashley introduce herself and tell you the story behind these great one-of-a-kind bags and wallets made of recycled leather:

I'm from Vancouver, B.C. Canada, where I still live. I did an interdisciplinary fine art degree at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. Towards the end of my degree they started a fashion design program and I took a few classes. This got me really interested, so then I did an intensive year long fashion design program here in Vancouver. Sometime after that I was stuck on an island at my parents house and I had an idea to make myself a handbag. So having no patience to wait for new materials, I cut up one of my dad's old leather jackets. I ended up really liking the result. The seams and pockets of the jacket were a nice starting point and the worn out quality of the leather was great. After that I went to New York and did an internship with Libertine. Then it just sorta started- people were asking for bags and I ended up doing the Young Designers Market in SoHo right before I left NYC. So now I've been making them for about a year and a half. I think making them appeals to me becasue the details from the jackets give me a starting point- although I do use a pattern. I really like that there is some history to start with. Also, I try to buy all of my leather from charity thrift stores, so I know roughly that I am contributing to something from buying my materials. I also really like that they are one of a kind. I think I am more of an artist than a fashion designer and so I like that each bag has its own design problems that I need to solve and work out.

Ashley Watson bags are available at Victoria's great eco-shop, Not Just Pretty, in Vancouver at One of a Few and here in NYC at Hannah Clark.