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Green Card: Eco-Fashion Steps Up

It used to be that eco-conscious clothing meant hemp t-shirts and organic cotton yoga pants - fashion hadn't yet entered the equation.

Now, not only are there smaller niche designers to choose from like Linda Loudermilk and Elisa Jimenez, who have long used eco-friendly fabrics and production methods, but major fashion labels like Stella McCartney, Versace and Diesel are also producing clothes with Mother Earth in mind, using fabrics made from sustainable plants like bamboo and corn.

"It doesn't have to be an aesthetic sacrifice just because it's eco-friendly," said Jimenez at an Ingeo NatureWorks "Earth Month" event in New York on April 24. Ingeo is a synthetic fabric whose selling point is that it is made from a 100 percent renewable resource, corn, which Jimenez has been using in her collections for the past three years.

"It's not a trend, it's absolutely necessary," said Melissa Sack, who designs a line of sweatshop-free clothing called Moral Fervor with Emily Santamore. "People now shop at Whole Foods, they buy organic skincare and cleaning products, but fashion is the last frontier. It's been the slowest to integrate."

Moral Fervor's mission is to be socially conscious on all levels, said Sack, from the biodegradable products they use in their offices to the mills in Portugal they've selected to produce their clothing, which have their own in-house water purification systems. In many mills, said Sack, the water used in the dyeing process turns black and it's released back into the water supply.

"It's a holistic way of operating business," said Sack.

For their current Spring 2007 line, Moral Fervor used Ingeo fabrics.

It's a cross between a natural and a synthetic fiber, says Ingeo spokesperson Tiziana Tronci. "It breathes, it's hypoallergenic and has the performance of a synthetic fiber, but it comes from nature."

Thus, it's an alternative for clothing manufacturers instead of using petroleum-based synthetic fabrics such as nylon and polyester, which do not originate from a sustainable resource and aren't biodegradable. While it's derived from natural sources, the fact that it is a synthetic makes it versatile, said Tronci.

As far as textiles go, it's been used as denim, wovens, jersey and also more unusual fabrications, such as those found in Elisa Jimenez's designs, where the fabric takes on delicate, paper doily-like qualities, yet has the strength of a traditional woven.

Ingeo is not without its critics, however, namely with those opposed to genetically engineered crops. It was reported by the Associated Press last year that Patagonia, an outdoor clothing company known for its environmental awareness, decided against using the fabric because Ingeo relies, at least partially, on genetically modified corn (known as GMO corn).

But for designers like Jimenez, the pros of using a fiber like Ingeo - its biodegradability, its sustainability – are in keeping with their business philosophy.

"I want to live more conscientiously," said Jimenez. The disposable nature of fashion is an idea Jimenez, also an artist, has incorporated into her designs, so using something like Ingeo as her medium is filled with conceptual significance.

"Where does the stuff go after we've worn it?" Jimenez asked, arguing that if something isn't designed to be kept for a long time, like fashion, then it's better to use materials that are designed to breakdown over time.

"Eco-conscious is the new luxury," she continued. "It costs more to produce, but it has more finesse."

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