Amande, VBN & New York Times Fashion Greenwashing

• Eric Adams, Kirk Von Heifner and Devon Craychee's menswear collection, under the label VBN (Vicarious By Nature) is a confident balance between comfort and style. According to the trio, "Our objective is to create fashionable clothing that is very soft and comfortable, leveraging organic raw materials as certified by our vendors.  As a company, our goal is to be forward thinking environmentally, while still being fashion forward." The clothing is predominantly organic cotton, and organic cotton blends. GQ recently interviewed the designers, and you can read the interview here.

•  Back on June 22nd The New York Times Fashion & Style writer Suzy Menkes stated the following about the PIOMBO menswear collection:

Eco-friendly but with a bit of elegance

Nature, ecology and a thought for the planet is embraced enthusiastically by Massimo Piombo, whose elegantly disheveled clothes — like terry toweling jackets — weave in the colors and textures of nature’s artistry.

Not only would I call this greenwashing, considering that PIOMBO's textiles, production methods and brand philosophy haven't the slightest seasoning of sustainability,  but MASSIMO PIOMBO would beg to disagree with Ms. Menkes:

"Our man portrays himself to be at the centre of society and modern fashion...He believes that consistency is the last refuge of those lacking in imagination... PIOMBO is the passionate foolishness of those – and there are many of us – who want to beautify the natural legacy of the majority, from an aesthetic and spiritual point of view" - www.piomboworld.com

Citing "Eco-Friendly" and  "Nature, ecology and a thought for the planet" is not something sustainable designers take lightly. I'd urge Ms. Menkes and other fashion journalists to better understand ecological and environmental thought as it applies to garment production; it is more than an aesthetic. Furthermore, there are plenty of elegant, chic, awe-inspiring brands who are both eco-friendly and chic (no buts). It appears, at least, that that brand may be fur-free, but this has not been confirmed.

• Yogurt is not just for the ladies, despite what every commercial tells you. Those good little monsters known as probiotics can change your whole digestive system for the better. But seriously, cow-boob secretions are such bad news for our health and the animals (some cancer or veal with your yogurt?) that it's rad when a non-boob-milk yogurt comes out. My new favorite is this almond-based yogurt called Amande. It's chock-full of creature-cultures, and is fruit juice sweetened. It's vegan, soy-free, and rad in a smoothie or frozen as an ice-cream pop.