Victoria Bartlett, VPL SS10

It’s Fashion week in NYC! Here is my interview with Victoria Bartlett about her show at the Chelsea Piers for Spring/Summer 2010.

In regard to her sponsorship by the Humane Society of the United States, she had this to say:

“I’ve always been anti-fur – I love my pets…and I could never see them being worn. It’s a very human time right now, and what’s the sense in more carnage? There are other things in life to celebrate and design doesn’t have to be draped with dead animals.” - Voctoria Bartlett

Stupid Age, Vegan Firefighters & Ed Hardy’s Fur Drama

1. The Age of Stupid. Oscar-nominated Pete Postlethwaite (In The Name of the Father, Brassed Off) stars as a man living alone in the devasted world of 2055, looking back at “archive” footage from 2007 and asking: why didn’t we stop climate change when we had the chance?

2. High-tops from TOPMAN. These killer sneaks are all synthetic, textile, and poly.

3. If you think you’re too manly to eat a plant-based diet, you’ve got another thing coming. The Engine 2 Diet, a 28 day total-body overhaul, is based on a crew of real Texas firefighters who took control of their health:

Professional athlete-turned-firefighter Rip Esselstyn is used to responding to emergencies. So, when he learned that some of his fellow Engine 2 firefighters in Austin, TX, were in dire physical condition-several had dangerously high cholesterol levels (the highest was 344!)- he sprang into action and created a life-saving plan for the firehouse. By following Rip’s program, everyone lost weight (some more than 20 lbs.), lowered their cholesterol (Mr. 344′s dropped to 196), and improved their overall health. Now, Rip outlines his proven plan in this book. With Rip as your expert coach and motivator, you’ll transform your body and lifestyle in a month. His plant-powered eating plan is based on a diet of whole foods, including vegetables, whole grains, fruit, legumes, seeds and nuts. – http://www.theengine2diet.com

Look out soon for my interview with author Rip Esselstyn!

4. Ed Hardy says Eff fur! He got a hand from HSUS to stop licensee’s from using fur on products with his name and art on them. Read the Full Article

5. Meat The Truth. Finally a documentary that fills in the giant void left by Al Gore’s ‘Inconvenient Truth’ – the reality that meat production is the top global warming offender! The trailer:

You can order the film on Amazon.Click here to order your copy now!

Pink & Ricky Gervais Star in Incredible PETA ad

PETA’s brilliant, new video features the voices of Pink and Ricky Gervais as a rabbit and alligator duo who have a very interesting confrontation with some people at the coat check. Read More

• Enter to Win Cruelty-Free Fashions!

Prelovers, Superfoods, Fur Foibles, & Veganic Farming

From the left: Shelley Whelan - Montreal Retail Manager & Rep, Julia Grieve - Founder & CEO, Colin Seymour - Toronto Retail Manager & Rep

PRELOVED held their first US in-store event on Sunday evening at the Greenpoint, Brooklyn boutique, ALTER. The Spring ‘o9 collection is made entirely of reclaimed items like bed sheets, shirts, suiting, and even curtains! These items would otherwise end up in a landfill, and have been reconstucted into really gorgeous garments for ladies and gentalmen, alike. Founder and CEO,  Julia Grieve told me that she never intended to be an environemntalist, she just liked working with reclaimed fabrics. But now, as Preloved heads to the forefront of the green-fashion movement, she realized the importence and gravity of making sustainability ‘cool’. Nothing says sustainable like turning trash into gorgeous, head-turning garments. You won’t find find any granola on their runway!

The Zuri Tee $169.00 at ALTER

The line does include wool, but it is recycled from old sweaters that would otherwise be garbage. I’m not going to be complaining about it. Hopefully this trend will catch on, and with styles as awesome as the Zuri Tee, who can resist?

ALTER consists of two boutiques across the street from eachother in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Owned and operated by Roy Caires and Tommy Cole, they carry a great selection of eco and veg-friendly items incuding their own repurposed line “This Old Thing?” as well as Matt & Nat accessories, Melissa shoes, and they have more coming! ALTER is carrying the women’s collecion for Preloved currently, and will be carring the men’s collection within a few weeks.

Speaking of Matt & Nat, I love their new vegan, canvas, Bauhaus bag with 100% recycled lining.

Girlie Girl Army shows us how to get superpowers from superfoods! This is a 101 for anyone who wants to know the basics of the superfood phenomenon! This is for dudes too! Wanna stop chugging sugary, milk-protein-laden workout ‘food’ and get a longer-lasting, healthy high for that extra curl, press, or pull-up? Try these foods! Also, if you didn’t hear Chloe’s sexy visit to the boys at Hot97, click here.

Veganic farming is wha…? Veganic farming takes organic farming and brings it to it’s logical conclusion. Who wants to eat organic potatoes that grew in factory-farm feces and blood? Ugh..  the vegan permaculture movement is taking hold! The Huguenot Street Farm in New Paltz, NY is one successful example. Check out their funny video here, and stay tuned for more updates on the veganic farming movement:

FICA is full of it. The ‘Fur Information Council of America’ insists that fur is the “natural, responsible choice“.

If you’ve already started rolling your eyes or laughing, you are not alone. In WWD, for the final day of NY Fashion Week (The Feb 20th, 2009 issue), FICA paid for an ad that was disguised as a part of the paper to make it seem as though fur garments were heavily talked-about in the publication.

In fact, aside from one shawl by Issac Mizrahiny, there wouldn’t have been any fur in the publication that day. Boo hiss to Issac for his hideous new fur collection. Also watch his attempt to lose weight eating “vegan” M&Ms.

"Peanut M&M's are vegan" ...right

Also boo, hiss to TV Host and supposed ‘style expert’, Robert Verdi who I spotted in the lobby, surrounded by plastic fur-hags, wearing this atrocious hood (Did his Court-Dress wig fall back, or was he going for the evil Skeksis look?).

Skeksis from "The Dark Crystal"

Tim Gunn should give them both a stern talking-to in the ways of educated and compassionate elegance. The only way to look like a bigger jerk is to have tan-lines in the shape of aviators on your head. Oh wait…

What I love (and by love, I mean hate) about FICA’s pretty-in-pink website is the total avoidance of ever mentioning an animal oustside of abstractions like “species” or “populations”. If they did acknowlegde that individual animals with brains and nervous systems existed, they’d have to follow through with logic that would contradict their reference of animals as “natural resources” to be used “responsibly”. I won’t even make the historical comparisons, you can do that yourself.

Wu Hoo! Vday Vid with Todd Oldham & Pizza Crust for the Gods

We love Todd Oldham, that crafty, veg, designer-genius! He’ll be featured in an EXCLUSIVE DB Video in the coming days! We’ll school you on some Valentines Day awesomeness, and talk about really macho stuff… So stay tuned!

Photo: Page Six Magazine

Wu Hoo! for us. Boo Hoo, for Jason Wu.
According to Womens Wear Daily (WWD Issue 02/03/2009 ) Jason Wu, who we blogged about the other day, has decided to put his nasty fur collection on hold. An anonymous DB source linked Tim Gunn (Project Runway), who is very anti-fur, to being Jason Wu’s teacher at Parsons. Maybe he inked a letter? Or it could have been the huge uproar, the thousands of letters we wrote, and the realization that if you’re going to dress our liberal, animal-loving First Lady – your next move should probably not be an economically short-sighted horror-show of cruelty, supposed ‘luxury’, and excess.

After Michelle Obama sported a Jason Wu gown for the inaugural balls, the designer has been basking in all the attention. The overnight fame has made him shift gears slightly. Wu was scheduled to launch a fur collection with Sara Furs for fall but, according to him, it’s been put on the back burner until further notice. “As a result of increased interest and demand from our global retailers, we’ve decided to put our fur license on hold and concentrate on our growing ready-to-wear business,” Wu said.- (WWD Issue 02/03/2009 )

One-fourth of their menu is vegan. 100% of it is vegetarian. This, of course, is incidental – but I’m not complaining. There are only four things on the menu, after all. The vegan “Marinara” pie is simply: San Marzano tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, oregano, fresh garlic, fresh basil, sea salt. Definitely go check it out. but the magic is in the painstaking dough process, involving yeast that dates back 2000 years! You’ll believe it when you taste it.

“Who in the their right mind would spend $20 on a personal pizza?” You ask.  Well, I was skeptical at first, until my friend Jodi convinced me to bite the bullet and bite into the most amazing pasta per pizza I’ve had in my life. At Una Pizza Napoletana in NYC’s East Village – you’ll find the art of Neapolitan pizza most excellently executed. If you are a lover of artisan pizza, this is it’s chapel. Plus, the owner, Anthony, has got some sick tatts.

Paul Smith F09, Our Enemy Jason Wu & UK Hospitals to Go Veg

It seems that Europe is always strides ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to health, environment, and social justice. Meat-free menus are to be promoted in UK hospitals as part of a strategy to cut global warming emissions across the National Health Service. This will have several benefits in addition to cutting the #1 cause of global warming, considering the number of diseases associated with meat consumption. ♦LISTEN♦ to Juliette Jowit on her proposal to cut NHS carbon emissions.

Paul Smith’s Paris runway collection for Fall ’09 took flight 2 days ago. My favorite parts of the collection are the double-breasted, high contrast plaid waistcoats, mis-matched tartans,  the meticulous layering, and obviously  – the bow tie. The weathered chelsea boots and hearty twill jackets with pops of color are great for urban boys with bucolic nostalgia – or country boys with city dreams. Collections like these remain a fantasy for many of us who have ethical and ecological aspirations that designers like Paul  Smith haven’t quite been enlightened to yet.  It seems many designers have some fashionable chip on their shoulders, and the thought of doing ‘good’ can’t play into their rebel ambitions. By oh contraire mon frere, the only real iconoclasts are those challenging the great myth. Since Paul has been know to use rabbit fur in his collections, I am thrilled to not see any of that grotesque stuff for Fall ’09. My ideal? All organics, recycled fabrics, and cruelty-free -  don’t change a thing about the aesthetic. Oh, to dream!

Jason Wu is about to become my enemy. After designing Mrs. Obama’s evening gown, he recieved 4 million hits to his website, and what do you think he’s doing with this newfound stardom? Unfortunately, I was absolutely horrified and disgusted when I read his quote on Ecorazzi: “I’m doing a significant fur collection, and the message will be all about luxury.” Ugh! Jason! Please don’t use your powers for evil! Not only is the stone age over, but it would be so typical and thoughless! (Not to mention that promoting luxury in this economic climate might come across as poorly planned). We need visionaries here, not the same old crap. We need to redefine glamour and luxury in ways that don’t torture helpless animals.

Project Gunnway, Big in ’09, and Faux Gras Foibles

VegBuzz:

According to VegNews, PETA is partnering with the popular television personality Tim Gunn (Project Runway) to front a new video to be unveiled at New York’s Fashion Week this February in order to raise awareness of the atrocities of the fur industry. I’ll be there to see it – will you?

Speaking of Fashion, Some of the big trends to look out for in ‘o9 include beach-bum hoodies, windbreakers, striped button-downs, high-contrast plaids, and harrington jackets. The fortune tellers at Men.Style.com continue to promote garments and designers without an inkling of social or environmental accountability. Here’s a few ethical versions:

Faux-Foie Foibles. Ecorazzi recently covered the response from Chef Michael Ginor of Hudson Valley Foie Grasabout PETAs Faux-Foie Gras contest. He had this to say: “I think it’s great. People should always have alternatives. I also think it’s ridiculous in a sense, because you can find substitutes for steak. It’s another vegetarian thing. It’s not going to be foie gras, it’s obviously another PR campaign to try and get people to not eat foie gras. They’re not going to find an alternative to foie gras because there just isn’t one.”

Knightly Knit, Cookie Pies & Music You Must

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The folks at Sound Fix, a music boutique in Williamsburg, Brooklyn – know more about good music than all of the professors at Juilliard, combined. It could be that they are located in the same spot that almost every good band has their practice spaces, or it could be that they just rule. Sound Fix has just released their top 50 albums of the year, and if you want to be in audio-bliss for the next year, you’ll get some of these albums. From Bon Iver, Crystal Castles, and MGMT – to Girl Talk and Herculues and the Love Affair – you may not have heard of them, but once you do, you’ll wonder where they were all your life.

Two caps, one pup. Photo © Matt Lara

I enjoyed two caps the other day, a soy cappuccino from Gimme! Coffee – probably the best espresso ever,  and a naturally dyed cotton knit cap made by the elusive Filipino designer, Eairth from Kaight. Enzo my lil’ rescued pup (thanks to sugarmutts.org) is sporting his “Have a Heart” anti-fur pin. Believe me, it’s much more effective on him. Especially when we’re walking and I offer him up to the fur-clad :  “would you like to anally electrocute him and add a few extra inches to your coat?“

RECIPE: Cookie Pies!

Easy Cookie Pies! © Discerning Brute 2008

These cookies are perfect for the holidays. Add anything you want to the center! Chocolate, marzipan, jam, pumpkin pie mix, peanut butter, or even leave the sugar out and go for a savory mini pastry with mashed potato, tampenade, or a chunk of marinated seitan in the center!

What you’ll need (makes 2 dozen):
• 2/3 cup non-hydrogenated,vegan margerine or shortening (Earthbalance or Spectrum is great!)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 2 tblsp  sunflower seed butter
• 1/3 cup organic brown sugar
• 2/3 cup unrefined, organic sugar
• 1 tblsp vanilla extract (you can also use almond or coconut)
• 1/4 cup egg replacer (Energie is great!)
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 2-3 cups all purpose organic, unbleached flour

Directions:
1. In a mixer, or with a fork, combine chilled margarine/shortening, coconut oil, sugar, vanilla, egg replacer, and sunflower seed butter.
2. Once it is creamy, add the baking powder and vinegar. It should start fizzing a bit.
3. Slowly mix in the flower until it is like play-dough, dry enough so it doesn’t stick to your fingers too much, but moist enough to roll out. Usually it’s 2.5 cups. For chewier cookies, add more flour. For crispier, add less.
4. Roll out to 1/4 inch thick on a floured pastry sheet or wax paper.
5. Using a circular cookie cutter, and a smaller circle (you can even use a bottle cap for the hole) make a solid base, and doughnut shaped top.
6. Place your base on an ungreased cookie sheet, add your filling, then place the top on!
7. bake on 350 for about 15-20 minutes or until golden.

Fresh Friday Finds

1. BUY NOTHING DAY is a holiday that is more important than Thanksgiving, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Ramadan, Hanukkah, and yes – even New Years? Why, you ask? Because the integrity of the ecosystems we depend upon for survival hang in the balance. Consumption – something Americans are better at than the rest of the world, requires production. Production requires resource extraction. Every product has to be dug up, ripped out, cut down, or gathered – it doesn’t magically appear! Even greenwashed products, unless totally recycled or thrift, requires a piece of the landbase in some form. So on November 28th, let freedom ring – exercise your right NOT to go shopping!

2. A Breaking Investigation Reveals That Turkeys Were Stomped, Punched, and Kicked. With Thanksgiving just around the corner, do you really need to condone this by choosing to eat a big, dead bird? Really?

What can you do about it? Don’t pay the callous people who do this by purchasingthe body of a turkey this Thanksgiving. Instead – adopt a turkey!

3. Like the Peacoat look, but hate the wool? If you need a really warm, non-wool peacoat, check this out from VeganStore. $199

4. Emilie at The Conscious Kitchen has prepared some mouth-watering thanksgiving fare. If you need inspiration, she is your go-to gal for sure!

5. Where Does Donna Karan Stand On Fur? I love the new ad campaign from PETA that is being wheatpasted up all around Donna’s office and apartment.

Coats for Blokes

Jack Frost would have bit my big Jew-nose really hard this morning had I not had a cozy winter coat. It’s not so easy to find really warm, well-built winter coats that aren’t filled with feathers, lined with leather, made of wool, or trimmed with fur. My first recommendation is to check out your local thrift store. My second recommendation are this organic, fair-trade, and vegan coat:

If those don’t work out, here are some awesome, animal-friendly coats to keep the chill out! I have these broken into three categories: Money to Burn, Big Spender, & Average Joe.

MONEY TO BURN

BIG SPENDER

AVERAGE JOE

And lastly, don’t forget to stand around on the porch in your organic thermal undies!