Feelgood Style

Photo Courtesy of Brandon Hickman

At the Global Green Pre-Oscar party last week, Suzy Amis Cameron’s eco Oscar gown was unveiled. It was lovely, but there was no mention of what made this gown more sustainable than most, other than it was colored “Na’vi blue”. This sort of vagueness is how people can easily be accused of greenwashing.  Even the interview with the designer did not include this pertinent information, only her discussing the challenge of creating an eco gown. Yes, it’s a little harder, but when price is not an issue it’s no harder than designing any other couture-quality gown.

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Thanks to EcoStiletto’s “Best of 2009″ post, I was able to catch a video of Julia Stiles that I previously missed. For anyone else who may have missed Julia’s breathtaking debut as an eco-friendly fashion designer, catch up to the rest of the eco-world by watching the following short film! Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve been following this series, not only have you learned about how to make Angelina’s top choice in fabric much greener, you also picked up on what to do to avoid looking gaudy or trashy in a sleek leather skirt or pair of leather pants.  But what if you just don’t think you can pull off that much leather the way Angelina can?

Good news!  Angelina has an answer to that one too.  In this photo, you’ll notice that Angelina is devoid of any leather, but she is utilizing one style trick that can easily be transferred to the leather look.  This is her at the Academy Awards, can you pinpoint her secret weapon?

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PHOTO BY PR PHOTOS

This season, if you’re going to try Angelina’s signature leather look, only in an eco-conscious kind of way, like we covered in Part I, you have got to pair it with the right pieces. A boyish $5 tee, like the one Angelina is wearing from her more rebellious days, is NOT going to do it. If you want to crash and burn in leather, the fastest way to do it is by teaming it up with grungy accents that make the entire look just plain gaudy. Doing this ensures a drab, ultra masculine get-up that is anything but flattering. The key to pulling off an edgy leather-anchored ensemble is to balance it with feminine tones and cuts.

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PHOTO BY PR PHOTOs (Angelina Jolie in sexy black leather mini dress at Inglorious Bastards premiere) If there is one fall/winter garment Angelina Jolie knows how to work, it’s leather. In fact, aside from her lips, it’s probably the most well-known feature on her body.  And there is no doubt that, for fall 2009, leather is in. Unfortunately, the material stirs up about as much controversy as some of the larger-than-life celebrities that wear it. If you’re vegan, an animal rights activist, or just plain socially-conscious, leather is a material you’ve learned to live without…until now. Eco-fashion has finally caught up to demand and there are now ethical options for leather and leather-like clothing and accessories. In this 3-part series, I’ll give you the scoop on:

1.where to find ethical leather options
2.how to avoid looking gaudy in leather (no chaps for this lady!)
3.the #1 hottest, must-have leather piece that will pull any look together

Let’s start with exploring more ethical sources for leather…

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When veteran celebrity makeup artist Christy Coleman decided to toss her top of the line makeup kit and use nothing but natural cosmetics on her clientele, she had no idea what would happen next. It was a risk, to be sure, showing up without the typical high-end makeup brands here clientele were used to. Furthermore, she had no book to peddle, no Makeup by Christy Coleman line to sell; she was doing this solely because she believed shunning the toxic chemicals in commercial cosmetics was the right thing to do.

But quietly swapping out her professional kit seemed insufficient, and thus Coleman created ChristyColeman.com to educate everyday consumers about the best natural and organic makeup and skin care products on the market.

Still, it wasn’t enough. She was consistently achieving gorgeous, high-fashion looks with nothing but natural products (click here to see her “natural portfolio”), something her peers thought was impossible. She knew she could make a bigger impact on the mainstream industry. So ChristyColeman.com underwent an extreme makeover. Read the rest of this entry »

With this year’s Emmy’s just around the corner, the talented members of the Costume Guild are already feeling the spotlight. This past weekend FIDM hosted the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Costume Design and Supervision Peer Group as they honored the 61st Primetime Emmy Award nominees for outstanding costumes. Several of the collections on display are vintage-era designs and re-purposed style from our Grandmother’s day.

Nominees included Janie Bryant, Costume Designer, Mad Men; Jo Katsaras, Emmy nominated Costume Designer for The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency; as well as Kim Martinez and Jennifer Kamrath, Emmy nominated Costume Designer and Supervisor, respectively, for The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice.

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Paige Donner, Founder of Greening Hollywood and Greening Hollywood: Guild by Guild, her seminar and workshop series for the entertainment industry’s guilds, guild members and entertainment professionals, interviews Rachelle Carson Begley, co-Star of Living With Ed about the importance of using clean – and safe – cosmetics and personal care products in your daily beauty regime.

Greening Hollywood: Guild by Guild panelists: L-R Nikoletta Skarlatos, Make Up Artist, Pirates of The Caribbean; Robert Hallowell, Hair Stylist, Dancing With The Stars; Christina Marcaccini, founder, Raw Natural Beauty; Rachelle Carson Begley, Co-Star, Living With Ed; Lisa Archer, Campaign for Safe Cosmetics; Paige Donner, Founder, Greening Hollywood.

There’s more to bringing the beauty industry and green scientists together, all at one table, then might first meet the eye. By the time I presented our panel of beauty experts, moderated by Rachelle Carson Begley, last weekend in my Greening Hollywood: Guild by Guild seminar and workshop, I had learned a lot. I had learned more than just that Tarte has come out with a game-changing mascara called Lights, Camera, Lashes! and that O.P.I. had removed all three of the most harmful chemicals in their nail polish, and that Suki Pure has re-defined how to be profitable and committed to pure ingredients in the cosmetic industry. Read the rest of this entry »

Chris Our latest ongoing EcoPreneur Salon was graciously hosted at Chris Paine’s Marrakesh House in Culver City.  Marrakesh House is documentary filmmaker Chris Paine’s (Who Killed The Electric Car?) new green demonstration home.  Paine is currently at work on the documentary sequel.

Paige Donner, Founder of Greening Hollywood and EcoPreneur Salon; and Janine Johnson, Founder of GreenWave Enterprises Host EcoPreneur Salon at Marrakesh House, Culver City, May ‘09.

Paine, owner of Marrakesh House used Shellie Collier, noted LEED AP, as his green building consultant.

Paige Donner’s Greening Hollywood presented the EcoPreneur Salon with co-host Janine Johnson, founder of non-profit Greenwave Enterprises. “We recognize that global progress is unstoppable, what makes us different are our wholistic solutions vs. simply green solutions. Our solutions are green, sustainable, forward-thinking, and ever-changing,” states Johnson who is now touring with band Crystal Method.   Johnson’s day job is working for environmentally sustainable property developer Kalia Living whose eco-communities are centered in Costa Rica. Read the rest of this entry »