Eco Fashion World

The notion of a designer collective is in many ways as eco savvy as you can get. Not only do collectives find resourceful and innovate ways for creating their collections, but the mission of eco fashion and sustainability is often bolstered by a united effort. Enter NYC-based Eko-Lab and their six-person team of organic and fair-trade minded eco designers. With an impressive debut at this September’s New York Fashion Week and further accolades in store at the Green Market showcase at Designer & Agents in Los Angeles this weekend, Eko-Lab is redefining covetable, artisanal designer wear for eco fashionistas in the know.

Such is the moto of Maroussia Rebecq, the creator of the Andrea Crews collective. A jack of many trades, Rebecq surprises us at every turn with her out-of-this-world creations.

As early as 1999, Rebecq, then a fine arts student in Bordeaux, put on a fashion show at the city’s museum of Contemporary Art featuring recycled creations from the Salvation Army. In 2001, she created the Andrea Crews collective, which has since been producing fashion, events and artistic performances in Paris and abroad.

One of the trailblazers of the “fashion for development” ideas, Bangladeshi fashion designer and former super model Bibi Russell has just launched a new fashion label called Bibi for WE. The initiative is a collaboration between the United Nations Development Program and the Modern Dress Sewing Factory (MDSF) in Cambodia. The products under the Bibi for WE label will initially comprise designer bags meant for a global market. The design will use local materials such as Cambodian silk and will be rich in local cultural motifs. Bibi has trained HIV positive women in the selection of materials, design, finishing and quality control.