The Canadian media mavens at GreenLivingOnline.com have allowed me to share my interview with Heather and Wendy, which was first published on GLO a few weeks ago. Keep reading for all the juicy details about the past, present and future of Passenger Pigeon - and eco-fashion as a whole!

The label was previously named Calledyourbluff and was changed to Passenger Pigeon when the brand began using sustainable textiles. Why did the collection change to eco-fabrics? Do you find working with sustainable fibers to be more limiting when coming up with designs?

Wendy: Do we feel limited? Yes and no. In the past we’ve dyed fabric because it only came in beige, and the very reason we use prints so much is because much of the available fabric is quite basic. Working within these limitations means that we have to get pretty creative sometimes, but I think that’s where the charm of our line comes from.

There’s actually a good range of eco-friendly textiles, especially for more casual fabrics like knits and twill. The one thing that we would like to see more of is affordable organic wool and other heavier fabrics for winter. However, it seems every week we get new, exciting swatches from different suppliers. There seems to be a lot happening in the textile industry to develop beautiful, new, sustainable fabrics.

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“Our mission is to produce and sell high quality yarns from natural fibers and design classic Vermont patterns. Transforming the many types of raw fibers into luxurious and long lasting yarn. The Green Mountain Spinnery helps to sustain regional sheep farming, and to develop environmentally sound ways to process natural fibers,” says their website.

Using vintage equipment, Green Mountain Spinnery creates yarns that take any project from plain to prodigious. Also similar to Hope Spinnery, GMS will spin yarns from fibers that you provide as well. The company has also released its own book of patterns, called The Green Mountain Spinnery Knitting Book, featuring “30 of their best loved contemporary and classic patterns.”

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“I try to reflect both the human and natural environment in my work by using symbols and materials that have meaning to me and represent where I come from. From street signs to native trees, my jewelery has always been a pretty literal representation of my surroundings,” he says.

Along with the natural theme of his creations, Ashley uses small scale mined metals from his home base in New Zealand. “I found that most of the gold from my suppliers in New Zealand is mined or recycled here and in Australia. Both these countries have a relatively good track record with regards to mining practices but the idea of using a local resource and streamlining the path of the metal from the ground to the customer really appealed to me,” he says.

It was my pleasure to chat with Ashley recently about his education of the art of make jewelry, sustainable metal mining, creative inspirations and more. Read on for our full conversation and all its “hand made” details.

What first got you interested in making jewelry? When did you decide to turn it into a career?

I was at a loose end really. I’d spent a few years traveling and working overseas as a chef and knew that that lifestyle wasn’t for me anymore. I did a weekend jewelery course and loved it, It just made perfect sense to me so I bought some tools and started experimenting. Originally I never thought it would be a career. It was never really a conscious decision, it just grew and grew until in about 3 years It was all I did.

Have you even gotten flack for being a straight guy in the jewelry biz?

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Launched a month and a half ago as part of the new EcoGeek blogging network, Wearing the Future is all about “straight talk as much as style, so you won’t have to worry about fluffy, PR-soaked, greenwashing nonsense.”

I recently had the pleasure of chatting with the blog’s chief editor and head writer, Kyeann Sayer (pronounced like “cayenne” pepper). As a long-time writer for Treehugger.com, Kyeann has an impressive media resume - she has been featured on CNN, MSN, I.D. Magazine, Domino, Spin, Outside, and Women’s Wear Daily … just to name a few.

In our lively conversation, Kyeann and I talk about the beginning of Wearing the Future, her favorite eco-fashion brands, personal style’s place in the world of green living and more - read on for all the juicy details!

Victoria Everman: How did you get connected with Hank Green of EcoGeek? Did the two of you come up with the idea for Wearing the Future together or was he on the look-out for an editor and writer already? 

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Here-here to that, sister! Though it is tough to get away from cleaning the bathroom and doing laundry, most “modern” inventions and products end up making our lives more cluttered and complicated instead of relieving us of senseless stress. Keeping things simple (or at least progressing them towards that end of the spectrum) is the overall theme of Body+Soul Magazine’s April 2008 issue - right in time for Earth Day, of course.

Learning how to kick back and take things in stride is the theme of this issue’s Reader to Reader column (page 20) . In celebration of the premiere of Sundance Channel The Green’s second season on April 1st, Body+Soul is giving away a luxury goody bag (worth over $2,500!) to one lucky reader.

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“The yarn was developed with the idea to offer a yarn that comes in colours as you find it on the animal on the farm,” says the Farm Yarn website.

What’s so great about alpaca? If you’ve ever used it, you wouldn’t be asking that question. Unspeakably comfortable and versatile, Farm Yarns uses baby alpaca wool - “it is warmer than wool, but has a soft feel like silk,” they say. Naturally available in over 20 shades, baby alpaca wool is not actually from baby alpacas. “It is not a description of the age of the alpaca itself, rather a term that describes the finess of the alpaca wool.”

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Casting Notice – Untitled Teen Craft Show

Our production company, Two Bees and a Pea, is casting young adult & teen crafters for a new “untitled” craft show. This show will be guest based - so you could be the star of the show. We produce Creative Juice on DIY and HGTV and this will be a brand new show.

We are seeking crafty guests from all over the USA and will begin the process with DVD submissions. The DVD’s are not for air on TV they are for casting purposes. Fear not if you don’t have access to a video camera. Just send a photo of yourself (big smile) holding or showing off your handmade items.

Here are a few guidelines:

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Hope Spinnery has prided itself on being as eco-friendly as possible: the fiber processing mill is run completely on wind power captured on-site; all fibers are purchased locally from sustainably-dedicated Maine farms; only Earth-friendly soaps and natural dyes are used on the yarns; by-products from the spinning process are reused elsewhere at the mini-factory.

The company’s yarn, made from mostly wool and alpaca, are available by skein and in 6 different patterns kits (5 hats and 1 mitten pattern to choose from). Hope Spinnery recently launched their online store, so you can see the stock they have right away and choose the color and fiber that would be perfect for your next project.

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For the first book on our Top 5 Must-Have DIY Crochet Tomes list, most knitters will recognize Debbie Stoller as the editor-in-chief of Bust Magazine and the writer of all three Stitch ‘N Bitch books. Crafters were both surprised and delighted when she released Stitch ‘N Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker in 2006.

Similar to her first Stitch ‘N Bitch book about knitting, The Happy Hooker is an introduction to the history and process of crochet as well as a kick-ass pattern book. Whether you are an experienced knitter or new to fiber crafts all together, The Happy Hooker is the perfect first crochet book for everyone.

Crochet shares some similarities with knitting. One major likeness is that the more you know, the more likely you are to make a mistake. No crocheters’ bookshelf would be complete without The Crochet Answer Book: Solutions to Every Problem You’ll Ever Face; Answers to Every Question You’ll Ever Ask by Edie Eckman.

With line illustration, charts, details on tools, specific techniques, standard crochet abbreviations, common crochet terms and phrases, standard body measurements and sizing, suggested sizes for accessories and household items, and yarn care symbols; this is the only book you will need when your loops and hooks don’t look right.

Answers to detailed questions about all aspects of crochet is the feature element of the book, with chapters on gauge, circles, edges, and finishing. Thanks to Edie’s support, you will feel more confident to progress into more detailed crochet patterns and projects.

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“Our organically grown naturally dyed yarn is colored with plant dyes and due to their organic nature some shade variation will simply add to the yarn’s unique inherent beauty,” says the Rowan website.

Along with the release of the eight-shade color palate, Rowan has released a pattern brochure with 18 designs just for their PureLife yarn (10 for women, 4 for men, 4 for girls).

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As luck would have it, this month’s theme for the showcase is all about green:

Here we are, entering our 6th month at poppytalk handmade and we can’t think of a better way to ring it in than as an eco-themed market! As each market starts up, there’s always a bustle going on, and the anticipation to see everyone’s table come to life is my favorite part! We are thrilled to showcase this emerging talent with green spirits!

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]]> http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/11/green-pop-shop-at-poppytalk-handmade/feed/ http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/11/book-review-2-of-7-gaia-girls-way-of-water/ http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/11/book-review-2-of-7-gaia-girls-way-of-water/#comments Tue, 11 Mar 2008 14:12:10 +0000 Victoria Everman http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/11/book-review-2-of-7-gaia-girls-way-of-water/ After the immense enjoyment I got from Gaia Girls - Enter the Earth, I had some high expectations for the second book in the Gaia Girls series Way of Water. I’m happy to say that author Lee Welles delivered yet again!

With the first tome based around the element of earth, the second tome is all about water (as the title suggests). Miho’s scientist parents were lost at sea and she now has to move to Japan to live with her uncle. Though she speaks no Japanese and has never met her uncle, she has no other choice but to move in with her only living relative.

While visiting the beach house of her grandparents (who have already passed on), Miho meets the already infamous otter, Gaia. Miho is quickly swept up in the excitement of being able to talk to all the creatures of the sea and makes friends with a large group of dolphins. Of course, her adult uncle thinks she is nuts and simply can’t follow orders when he tells her to be home at a certain time and she continues to come home dripping wet.

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]]> http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/11/book-review-2-of-7-gaia-girls-way-of-water/feed/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/06/yearn-worthy-yarns-davida-fair-trade/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/06/yearn-worthy-yarns-davida-fair-trade/#comments Thu, 06 Mar 2008 13:34:58 +0000 Victoria Everman http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/06/yearn-worthy-yarns-davida-fair-trade/ Organic yarns have been the majority of the fibers featured in our Yearn-Worthy Yarns series thus far. For this week’s installment, we are covering another vital element of green living and sustainable production - fair trade.

Wikipedia explains fair trade quite clearly as “an organized social movement and market-based approach to alleviating global poverty and promoting sustainability. The movement promotes the payment of a fair price as well as social and environmental standards in areas related to the production.” Based in Oneonta, New York, the Da’vida Fair Trade Store sells its own line of hand painted and hand spun yarns made from alpaca, wool and yak fibers.

Painted by Lisa Meriam, a sheep farmer who lives in upstate New York, Da’vida’s collection of yarns come uncolored from Uruguay, Bolivia and Peru.

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]]> http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/06/yearn-worthy-yarns-davida-fair-trade/feed/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/04/join-burdastyles-first-mini-sewalong-challenge/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/04/join-burdastyles-first-mini-sewalong-challenge/#comments Tue, 04 Mar 2008 13:18:30 +0000 Victoria Everman http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/04/join-burdastyles-first-mini-sewalong-challenge/ Looking to add some spice to your Spring wardrobe? Need a new creative project to work on? We introduced you to Burda Style during the early days of our blog. Now its time to share the details for their first mini-challenge for all the sewers out there.

How do you enter? All you have to do is create your own version of Burda’s Sidonie skirt pattern. “This simple A-line mini skirt is a quick project ideal for your perfect little basic skirt that has been missing in your closet. Even better, you can use it as a base for your own designs and develop it further,” says the Burda Style website.

How long does the contest last? What do you win? Keep reading for the rest of the details, straight from Burda Style’s news blog.

Looking for some extra inspiration? Check out Burda’s own variation to get your own creative juices flowing.

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]]> http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/03/04/join-burdastyles-first-mini-sewalong-challenge/feed/ http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/03/book-review-1-of-7-gaia-girls-enter-the-earth/ http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/03/book-review-1-of-7-gaia-girls-enter-the-earth/#comments Mon, 03 Mar 2008 18:14:57 +0000 Victoria Everman http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/03/book-review-1-of-7-gaia-girls-enter-the-earth/ Finding fiction to enjoy has aways been a challenge for me. Thankfully, that issue didn’t arise while I was reading the first book of Lee Welles’ Gaia Girls series titled Enter the Earth. (Full disclosure: Lee Welles writes for this blog, but I was assigned to review her books before she came on board.) The premise of her series, listed as for ages 9 and up, is as follows:

What would you do if you could hear the Earth asking for help? In the Gaia Girls book series, that is what happens to four girls, each from a different region of the world. They are approached by Gaia, the living organism of the Earth. Each is endowed with powers over one of the four elements: earth, air, fire, and water. They must learn to use their powers to help Gaia survive the effects of modern humanity.

The first book centers around a girl named Elizabeth Angier and one very eventful summer at her family farm in New York state. She and the family’s undeniably lovable dog Maizey take on a big business factory farming operation that is trying to buy up all the farms in her town. On top of that, her best friend is moving not only out of town but out of state to Florida. Just as her troubles start to reach their boiling point, Elizabeth is greeted by an eager otter named Gaia who will change her world forever.

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]]> http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/03/03/book-review-1-of-7-gaia-girls-enter-the-earth/feed/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/03/03/shop-green-online-with-thepurplebook/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/03/03/shop-green-online-with-thepurplebook/#comments Mon, 03 Mar 2008 17:39:26 +0000 Victoria Everman http://sustainablog.org/2008/03/03/shop-green-online-with-thepurplebook/ Unless you live a Compact-like lifestyle, you are going to be shopping on a somewhat regular basis. Whether it be home improvements, gifts, furnishings, crafts, gardening, fashions, babies, sports, pets or anything else you have going on, there is a green option to be found.

But where do you buy from? I’m all for promoting local businesses and buying from small stores right in your own town. Unfortunately, depending on where you live, you may have little to no options in that category. The easiest thing to do is log on to the internet (and you already have since you are reading this) and partake in the massive variety it has to offer.

After the runaway success with their first thepurplebook: the definitive guide to exceptional online shopping in 2000, authors Hillary Mendelsohn and Ian Anderson have released a number of specialized editions. Hitting book shelves in January 2008, thepurplebook Green: an eco-friendly online shopping guide is the latest of their incarnations.

Whether you’re new to the eco-lifestyle or so sustainably settled that you have a composting toilet and solar panels, thepurplebook Green Edition has something to offer everyone. Though the book is about shopping, it continually reminds readers to reuse what they already have. “The greenest thing you can do is to extend the lifespan of the products you already own,” says Hillary in the book’s introduction. “When it comes to shopping, it’s usually a matter of buying eco-friendly versions of the same products you already use.”

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2008/03/03/shop-green-online-with-thepurplebook/feed/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/28/yearn-worthy-yarns-knit-one-crochet-too/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/28/yearn-worthy-yarns-knit-one-crochet-too/#comments Thu, 28 Feb 2008 13:23:11 +0000 Victoria Everman http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/28/yearn-worthy-yarns-knit-one-crochet-too/ It’s not often that I write about a specific yarn instead of a whole company’s collective offerings. Rare as it is, I couldn’t resist when it comes to Knit One, Crochet Too’s 2nd Time Cotton yarn.

I first heard about 2nd Time Cotton in Knit 1 Magazine’s first green issue (Summer 2007), which features the yarn in a few of its different projects. Though KOCT has a few other pseudo-sustainable yarns (Wick is made with 53% soy and BabyBoo with 45% bamboo), their 2nd Time Cotton is inherently “green” because of its recycled nature.

How is it recycled? Second Time Cotton is made from cotton fibers that are textile factory scraps and leftovers from their usual operations here in the United States.

In the picture to the left, you’ll see their solid-color 2nd Time Cotton in Artichoke. Helene from Knit One, Crochet Too was nice enough to send me a hank of this swank fiber. Available in 12 solid and 11 striped colorways, 2nd Time Cotton does contain 25% acrylic, which is “added for fiber stability.”

OK, so it is not 100% eco-friendly, but hey, you have to start somewhere … right?

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]]> http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/28/yearn-worthy-yarns-knit-one-crochet-too/feed/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/26/readymade-readers-renew-broken-umbrellas/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/26/readymade-readers-renew-broken-umbrellas/#comments Wed, 27 Feb 2008 05:38:46 +0000 Victoria Everman http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/26/readymade-readers-renew-broken-umbrellas/ When was the last time you cleaned out your attic? How about your basement? Are there still boxes sitting around from when you first moved in years ago?

Under all that dust and clutter, I bet there are some pretty random things lying around your home - you know, in those far reaches that rarely, if ever, see the light of day or the end of a Swiffer.

From VHS tapes and phone books to empty pens and packing peanuts, the readers of ReadyMade Magazine have found new uses for once useless items via the MacGyver Challenge.

In each issue, the editors choose a specific item for readers to find new uses for. The winning project from a previous issue is also featured, along with directions on how to make it yourself. In the current issue (#33), two ladies from Wisconsin won the broken umbrella challenge by making a magazine rack. Runner-up projects are now featured online; this item’s secondary ideas include two dog outfits and a gym-style parachute (now that’s a flashback, huh?).

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]]> http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/26/readymade-readers-renew-broken-umbrellas/feed/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/02/25/magazine-review-bodysoul-march-2008-issue-scents-stress-and-stomach-woes/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/02/25/magazine-review-bodysoul-march-2008-issue-scents-stress-and-stomach-woes/#comments Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:56:05 +0000 Victoria Everman http://sustainablog.org/2008/02/25/magazine-review-bodysoul-march-2008-issue-scents-stress-and-stomach-woes/ My boyfriend has a nose like a dog. Because of this, I’ve become accustomed to not wearing perfume and opening the bathroom window after I apply scented lotions. When it comes to cleaning, whether it be the kitchen counters or our weekly two loads of laundry, I have to be sure to use all natural scents that won’t make him dizzy. You could say that his nose is the same as a person with sensitive skin.

When I read the “Making Sense of Scents” feature article (page 107) in this month’s Body+Soul, I identified with it right away. As a child, I used to have terrible skin reactions when my mother would use anything other than Tide laundry detergent and Downy softener. Though I am not sure if it had anything to do with the scents in the products, reading that “skin allergies are the most common and proven adverse reactions to synthetic fragrances” sure did get me thinking.

Writer Frances Lefkowitz provides a great amount of data to back up the fact that all these unnatural smells infiltrating our senses are having nothing but negative effects. Of course, no article of this kind would be good without some helpful suggestions to avoid these chemicals, and those are provided thoroughly.

One major effect that scents can have on a human is altering emotions and moods.

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2008/02/25/magazine-review-bodysoul-march-2008-issue-scents-stress-and-stomach-woes/feed/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/21/yearn-worthy-yarns-kollage/ http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/21/yearn-worthy-yarns-kollage/#comments Thu, 21 Feb 2008 13:17:48 +0000 Victoria Everman http://craftingagreenworld.com/2008/02/21/yearn-worthy-yarns-kollage/ Pop corn, corn on the cob, creamed corn, corn chips, corn flakes … and yarn?

Admittedly, when I think of the hearty, diverse vegetable we know as corn (maize to the Native Americans who received the seeds from tribes in what is now Mexico), I don’t usually think of making sweaters and purses.

Alabama-based Kollage Yarns is looking to change that food-focused perception with not one, but two 100% corn yarns.

The first of their two corn-based yarns is called Corntastic (my kinda word!)

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