Birthday Week

Posted on April 29, 2012 by admin

Apart from the fact that it marks me getting another year older, I really love birthdays. I don’t have much time to myself most of the time so on my birthday like to indulge myself. This year I have managed to spread it out over a whole week of doing pretty much exactly what I want. I had some lovely pressies including delicious smelling Lush goodies from my sister, a beautiful mirrored jewellery box and a necklace from my neighbours and a vintage book from my friend but mostly I got money which I have used to treat myself to a few goodies (clothes of course!).

On Monday, I spent a very wet day wandering around the shops and researching my Vintage and Second Hand Guide to Bath, I did also manage to squeeze in some shopping and got this beautiful scarf from the Black and White Shop for just £10. I also got this amazing printed dress from Monsoon and a Monsoon cardigan from the Oxfam Boutique. I can’t wait until the weather warms up so I can wear the dress perhaps with the scarf for a really printastic outfit!

My actual birthday was really all about eating cake. I ordered up this beauty from Patisserie Valerie, it was delicious- sponge, cream, fruit and white chocolate. I did manage to fit in 2 hours of excercise classes which hopefully went some way to offsetting some of those calories.

On Thursday, I had a cup of tea and chat with the lovely Noorin Khamisani of Outsider, a fantastic label that is all about classic, wearable and beautiful clothes (that just happen to be ethical too) . I really love her latest collection which features some very lovely dresses, one of which she happens to be wearing in this photo.

It was yet another horrible and wet day so I resorted to wearing jeans (organic cotton from M&S) and boots (Dream in Green) with my new Antiform top that I got from Mr Style Eyes and the girls. I did give them a little help in deciding what to get me. Well actually I just bought it ,myself from Think Boutique. Antiform is another label which I really love and well worth checking out if you love unusual pieces. They use reclaimed fabrics and mix fashion forward shapes with heritage crafts.

I also got this People Tree top from the Zakee Shariff Collection.

And this dress by Frank and Faith (another amazing and very afforable brand) from Ethical Superstore which I wore out to dinner with my friends on Friday with leggings and necklace by People Tree, swapped denim jacket and shoes by Simple.

I have also ordered myself a few more goodies in the Ethical Superstore 20% off sale and some Melissa shoes (to keep my feet dry) which I will share once they arrive.

So that is it birthday week is over, back to reality, sensible, healthy eating and a complete shopping ban until at least the autumn, I definitely don’t need any new clothes now.

I hope you have had a lovely weekend, despite the rain!

With warmest wishes

Ceri x

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30 Days of Ethical Fashion – Melissa Shoes

Posted on December 28, 2011 by admin

Melissa shoes have earnt a name for themselves as one of the trendiest vegan shoe brands around. They are known for their brightly coloured moulded plastic styles and designer collaborations.

Probably the most well known of the designs is the Vivienne Westwood Lady Dragon, a sling back high heel adorned with either a heart or wings. Other key styles include the Vivienne Westwood booties, wedge boots and classic flat ballet pump styles.

Melissa shoes are also sustainable. Although plastic is not always though of as the most eco friendly of materials, it does last better than many other materials and in the case of Melissa shoes is also partly recycled and recyclable. They are made in Brazil, in a socially and environmentally responsible factory, where waste and water is recycled as much as possible. Melissa shoes also smell good enough to eat.

I have a cream pair wedge style brogues from the designer collaboration with Alexandre Herchcovitch and never fail to get an admiring compliment when I wear them out.

You can buy Melissa shoes at Fashion Conscience.

melissa feeling vegan shoes ethical fashion 30 Days of Ethical Fashion Melissa Shoes

I hope that you are having a lovely Christmas break. Have you checked out the rest of my 30 Days of Ethical Fashion series yet?

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

30 Days of Ethical Fashion – Po-Zu Shoes

Posted on December 19, 2011 by admin

AW10 1 30 Days of Ethical Fashion Po Zu Shoes

I have never been really fond of Ugg Boots for how they look. On the really cold days in the winter, I will have to admit that they keep your feet toasty warm but I prefer to try and look a little different than the same as everyone else. That is where Po-Zu come in. They have a range of warm and extremely comfortable boots for winter that will set you apart from the crowd in terms of style.

I have the Piper check boots and I love wearing them on those cold icy mornings to brighten up my outfit which almost always consists of a black winter coat. They also look great with a thick pair of coloured tights.

As an added bonus Po-Zu boots are great for the environment. They are made from a range of natural and sustainable materials including hemp, wool, cork, coconut husk and natural rubber. Many of the styles are also suitable for vegans. When you have finished with them, you can bury them in the ground and they will completely biodegrade. They are stitched together instead of using glue and are made in an ethical factory in Portugal.

I also couldn’t tell you about Po-Zu shoes with mentioning their amazing coconut husk foot bed. Each shoe or boot has a unique sole (or foot bed) which moulds to the shape of your foot. The website describes them as being like ‘walking on clouds’ and I have to say, they are probably the comfiest shoes that I own.

Po-Zu have also had some interesting collaborations with Timberland, Amazon Life and Maharishi.

Check out the full 30 Days of Ethical Fashion Series here.

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

30 Days of Ethical Fashion – Bourgeois Boheme Vegan and Fairtrade Shoes

Posted on December 15, 2011 by admin

I am not a vegetarian, but as I have discussed in previous posts, I am well aware of the environmental impacts and ethical implications of the leather industry, so am definitely glad to consider alternatives to leather where possible especially the products are also Fairtrade.

Borgeois Boheme has recently caught my eye as a brand whose designs are as desireable as their ethics. I love my high heels but most of the time I end up wearing flats so I am always on the lookout for a beautiful pair of ballet pumps that will make a statement. Ballet pumps are possibly the only pair of flats that look delicate, graceful and ladylike with a dress but also equally at home with a pair of jeans.

The current collection of Bourgois Boheme at Fashion Conscience includes just three styles of ballet pumps, but even with such a small choice, I would really struggle to choose between them. At the moment, I think I am swaying towards the leopard print.

Which do you like the best?

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

Ethical Fashion Conundrums

Posted on October 24, 2011 by admin

: Recycled Polyester Dress from H & M Conscious Collection

Ethical fashion is coming on leaps and bounds. There is so much more choice than there used to be and some of the bigger brands are starting to become more ethical. But there is still a lot green wash out there and confusing aspects to ethical fashion or for want of a better word conundrums. It can be difficult to know what to buy for the best.

Ethical fashion in itself is a bit of a conundrum and many question whether there can ever be such a thing as ethical fashion. Afterall fashion and the concept of being fashionable implies that it is constantly changing. It is difficult to see how this could be sustainable and ethical as it is a continous drain on natural resources and produces waste. As far as I am concerned in order for fashion to become more sustainable, we need to move away from the need to constantly update our wardrobes with new cheaply made clothes and towards buying quality clothing that we treasure and look after. Perhaps ethical style is a better term but eventually, wouldn’t it be great if we didn’t have to use the word ethical anymore because everything was ethical.

Some more of my ethical fashon conundrums include:

Synthetic or natural fabrics?

I have always considered natural fabrics to be far better for the environment than synthetic fabrics. But perhaps I have been wrong. Whilst the process for making synthetic fabrics is energy hungry and uses non renewable resources and they do not biodegrade, they do last longer, can be washed at lower temperatures and often don’t even need ironing. Conventional cotton is grown with the help of pesticides which are damaging to the environment and there are also some animal welfare issues associated with the production of wool and silk. Unlike natural fibres, polyester can be recycled to its original state. Issey Miyakes 132 5 collection include some beautiful polyester pieces that are based on origami. H & M also made good use of recycled Polyester in their recent Conscious Collection. Whilst I have always claimed to hate synthetic fabrics, I have a collection of vintage pieces many of which are made from synthetic fabrics.

Leather or vegan shoes

For those that have animal welfare high on their ethical agenda, vegan shoes seem like the best option. Both the rearing of cattle and tanning of leather have an environmental impact. But some vegan shoes are made from plastics that will not biodegrade and they can contain health damaging chemicals. Some say that leather is a bi product of the meat industry and so it doesn’t cause any additional suffering to the animals. It is not neccesarily quite this simple.

There are however lots of ethical shoe alternatives now, ranging from those made from vegetable tanned leather to shoes made from completely natural alternatives to leather and even recycled materials. But of course finding the right styles, made from the right materials continues to be a challenge.

Whether to only buy from ethical retailers

In the past I have also considered the best option to be buying from companies that are completely ethical and only sell ethical products. This makes it much easier to ensure that you don’t get greenwashed and support those companies that are really investing in ethical sourcing. But lately I have been thinking that it might be better if ethical fashion was sold amongst conventional fashion as it is likely to be seen by a much larger audience. A good example of this is the ASOS Africa collection and the H & M Conscience Collection. If we buy these collections, then perhaps the retailers will be persuaded to sell more ethical lines.

I really have no idea where to start with the issue of whether to buy locally or support Fairtrade and co operatives abroad.

I guess the truth is that as with many of the worlds problems, there is no simple answer. It would be great to go into a shop and instantly know which products had been produced most ethically with the least impact on the environment and to know that you could always find an affordable ethical option. In reality, nothing is that black and white. There are so many different impacts of the fashion industry and who decides which holds the highest priority. I just try my best to buy clothes that will last and where possible choose second hand or support ethical brands in the hope that it will make a difference.

I would love to know your thoughts. Do you try to buy ethically? If so how do you choose what to buy?

With warmest wishes

Ceri X