Vintage Shopping 101

by Samantha Gray

[This guest post is by Samantha]

We all know that green fashion can sometimes be a little pricey. For ladies still feeling the brunt of the recession or the college student who hasn’t made it into a full-time job yet, vintage clothingboutiques offer unique items at lower prices.

Purchasing vintage and resale fashion is another form of recycling, and it doesn’t take any manpower or chemicals to recycle a fabulous retro garment. All it takes is a little bit of time and creativity. Oh yeah, and a little bit of money.

If you’ve never shopped vintage before, you may be reluctant to try it. My first experience with vintage shopping was when I tagged along with my college roommate to the Salvation Army and Goodwill stores so she could find quirky vintage tees.

I’m not generally patient enough to treasure hunt through thrift stores, so I hop right on over to vintage boutiques or resale clothing shops. These stores generally have a specific set of buying guidelines and can sometimes offer alterations.

Vintage shopping presents a few challenges to those who are accustomed to shopping in a more organized store. Because there are no visual cues to help you build your outfits (mannequins, advertisements, and displays are sparse), the best plan is to do a little research before you dive in. Not only will this give you a direction, but it will help you appreciate the different styles.

Research fashion trends across decades so you will be familiar with styles beyond the millennium. You may already be interested in an iconic celebrity or two who will point you in the right direction. Edie Sedgwick, Audrey Hepburn and Twiggy are my go-to gals for inspiration in vintage looks.

Zooey Deschanel is a perfect example for the modern girl who can pull together looks from different decades. But even Zooey can look like she’s going to a costume party every now and then (sorry, love!), which brings me to the next challenge of vintage shopping. Sometimes vintage clothing can be so bold and overpowering that it looks overdone. You should always wear your clothing. Your clothing should never wear you.

Finding the balance between something borrowed and something you is a huge part of the fun of vintage shopping. Etsy, eBay and other online resale shops are a great way to search certain looks with vintage specifications. Remember, vintage shopping requires a whole lot of sifting through the good and bad; but you’re exercising your fashionista skills while helping the Earth! Yay, you!

Happy shopping!

Samantha Gray is an expert in online education and a freelance writer. Pursuing an online bachelor’s degree is often fraught with myths and misconceptions. Samantha shows her readers the way. She wants to hear your feedback and ideas, too,

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Paris For Peace And Yoga

Modeled after the NYC Day of Yoga, free and open to willing participants, Paris organizers of the event admitted they’d had 6,500 people sign up on the website to attend this morning’s hour-long practice in the 7th Arrondissement, en plein air. They had organized for and expected 2000 participants.

The practice was led in both English and French and an elegant Cellist played on stage, accompanying the entire session with live sitar-like music. Practitioners were from all ages, mature to the young, and attendees included mothers with infants, families with children, young couples, men, women and even a few of our furry friends.

Sponsors of the event which included BeYoga, Go Sport, SportForUs.com, Soy Joy, Lole, VaiVai and the Mairie de Paris, passed out complimentary yoga mats, t-shirts, energy bars, coconut water and tea and re-usable tote bags.

On this gorgeous October Sunday morning of Paris Fashion Week, a yoga respite en plein air was a welcomed and stimulating detox! Namaste!!

All photos by Paige Donner c. 2011  http://greeningparis.blogspot.com

Hollywood’s Green Moguls Take Home Top Awards

James Cameron and wife Suzy speak on EMA Red Carpet at Warner Bros. backlot for Saturday’s Environmental Media Awards, for which Avatar took home top Feature Film Award. Photo courtesy Ann Murray.

Ed Begley Jr. was also honored with top prize at EMA Awards for Life With Ed Tv Series.                                    Photo courtesy Ann Photo Courtesy Ann Murray.

By: Ann Murray

The green carpet rolled out for The Environmental Media Association’s EMA Awards this Saturday at the Warner Bros. movie lot, which was hosted by Olivia Munn and Jason Ritter. The event, which was completely plastic water bottle free, honored environmental films and television series, tackled topics such as alternative fuel sources and even featured a live Native American Dance troupe.

Celebrity guests included the brilliant James Cameron and his beautiful and green conscious wife, Suzy Amis Cameron (famous for her own green fashion choices). They were both on hand when Avatar snagged the night’s award for Feature Film. On the green carpet, Cameron explained the significance of how his film was shot and its overall environmental impact.

“Let’s look at the big picture,” he said. “Avatar was a film that took place in an enormous rain forest. Can’t shoot big battle scenes in a rain forest. It was 100 percent CGI. There were a few people playing multiple roles so the footprint compared to the visual impact was very tiny. But ultimately it’s a multi-hundred million dollar movie, there are a lot of people working on computers, and those computers are absorbing energy. There’s no way you can say this movie was made with one watt of power. But you have to weigh the value of the film with the environmental impact in the public consciousness.” – James Cameron,  on making Avatar

 

Rosario Dawson is all for Greening Hollywood. At EMA Awards Oct. 16th, Warner Bros. lot. Photo courtesy Ann Murray.

Warner Bros. backlot just before EMA Awards Oct. 16, 2010. Photo courtesy Ann Murray.

 

EMA Awards Oct. 16, 2010. Warner Bros. Photo Courtesy Ann Murray.

Other stars gave us the scoop on how their television sets are enviro-friendly and waste-free. Sarah Drew from Grey’s Anatomy took tips from a fellow star on the set: “I was very inspired by Sandra Oh, because she never uses paper products on set,” she told us on the red carpet. “She uses her own mugs that say “Oh” on it, and she has her own plates. I went out and bought a reusable mug that looks like one of those coffee cups. I also bring my water bottle to set every day.”

Katrina Bowden took us inside 30 Rock’s very serious green policies;  “Our show is green, we have done away with all plastic bottles,” she said. “At the beginning of the season we get our own mugs with our names on it, there’s recycling bins everywhere, efficient light bulbs everywhere. The same thing I am doing at home too.”

Native American dancing at EMA Awards, Oct. 16, 2010. Photo courtesy Ann Murray.

Mark Paul Gosselaar, on the other hand, told us it hasn’t always been easy to keep a set’s waste and energy consumption down, but that now being green on set is the norm. “So much so that when they gave my character a car, I asked that they made it a Prius” he told us about his time on ‘Raising the Bar’. “They said “we’ll get you a Prius!” but I don’t think that would have happened years ago.”

 

EMA Awards Silent Auction. Film Production and Eco Travel, a Natural Fit. Photo courtesy Ann Murray.

But if a film or TV series still finds it difficult to keep their carbon footprint in check, they might want to follow green guru Ed Begley Jr.’s guidance. “Contact EMA and get that green checklist for production,” he told us. “It’s simple things like recycling on the set, not printing scripts – if you have to print them, do so on recycled paper. Use pdf files. As an actor, I like to use pdfs. Shuttling people around, get a low mileage vehicle and more fuel efficient shuttles, buy green energy, have efficient lighting in the production office. Really it’s as easy as checking out the EMA list.”

In addition to “Avatar,” “30 Rock,” the documentary “Gasland” and Begley’s “Living With Ed” took home top honors of the night.

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Africa Rising

By Paige Donner

The new mood in Africa is positive,” – Bono

Africa Rising is the contemporary African Art exhibit that opened in Paris on October 6th, the last day of Paris Fashion week.  It is the love-child of Ali Hewson and husband Bono who have directed the world’s focus towards the living conditions of the peoples of Africa for decades. This time, they want the focus to be on all the positive things happening on the continent.

L to R: Antoine Arnault, Ali Hewson, Angelique Kidjo, Bono, Yves Carcelle

Joining Ali and Bono in their efforts this year is the French Luxury Brand LVMH. Louis Vuitton, a company recognized for its support of the arts and its Core Values program, collaborated with designer Ali Hewson to manufacture a signature bag, the Edun bag, named after her line of designer clothing. It is the first time LV  has manufactured anything 100% in Africa, in this instance, Kenya.

Founder of Edun, Ali Hewson stated that it’s great to be partnered with a luxury worldwide recognized brand such as Louis Vuitton, because “you are stronger as a team.”

Artwork on display at Africa Rising Exhibit 1, rue Pont Neuf, Paris

That a contemporary art exhibit dominated the social scene of Paris Fashion Week is both fitting and triumphant. It probably helped the cause just a little bit that rockstars such as Angelique Kidjo and – of course – Bono, took the stage to perform for the select crowd in support of the cause.

Alexandra Richards, daughter of Keith, provided DJ tunes. But the real stars of the show were the contemporary artists and their artwork on display.

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