Dress your head with recycled thread

Finding stylish, non-wool winter hats that have little impact on the environment is a tough gig. Thankfully, American Apparel has a new line of recycled cotton/acrylic winter hats! In addition, they are making recycled knit ties. Knitted ties are great for wearing in a casual setting. If you can’t find it at the thrift store, which are typically chock-full of them, this is a great option.
Check them out at americanapparel.com $16 – $26

And if you want to keep bleach, dioxin, and other toxins away from your boys, don’t forget American Apparel has a great line of organic cotton undies, and tees too!

Loden Dager & Velour

This handsome, organic cotton-twill three button suit from Loden Dager can be found at Opening Ceremony, on sale.

Try it with one of these organic shirts from Sweden’s Velour, and a pair of cruelty-free loafers from Bourgeois Boheme.

Fall Back in Style

Matt & Nat never disappoints. The new canvas collection is incredibly handsome, and made from recycled soda bottles, and recycled faux-suede lining. Better yet,  you can win one of these bags! Email Matt & Nat at blog@mattandnat.com before August 30^th at midnight and tell them what MATT & NAT means to you in 250 words, the best men’s and women’s letters will win one of our new Fall 09 handbags.

Steve Alan presents some nice, basic, organic shirts. We love the black and white, single needle check shirt!

These tapered organic cotton pants, slouch pants, and shirts from the Australian company, Bassike are not for the faint of heart. But those gents that have a love for cutting-edge trends, check these out!

Arn Mercantile offers up an organic Peruvian cotton “chore jacket” and some comfy pullovers.

The Japanese company, Kato uses organic cotton from Zimbabwe to make these jackets and shirts.

Brave New Gear

Here are some cool tools to add to your aresnal for the approaching autumn. Whether you’re headed back to school or back to work, new flax kicks, acessories, and organic cotton shirts are a good place to start.

Loomstate teams up with Jil Planter for some cool accessories.

The UO Linen Oxford combines a flax upper, a faux-leather inner, and a wood and resin sole. Now that’s smart and on sale for $39.99 .The other styles have real cow skin in them, so stick to these beige kicks.

Paul Smith has a distinguished autumn organic check shirt.

TOPMAN offers up some handsome plimsoles in poly faux-leather brown, and red tartan. These are great for back-to-school and autumn adventures.

Nordstrom has a good selection of organic cotton dress shirts for under $30.

AUGUST CONTEST: Win a $150 Gift Certificate at the Turk + Taylor online store!

Turk + Taylor creatively use organic and sustainable materials and processes to design gorgeous garments for both men and women. Their mastery of reinventing classics and capturing nostalgia makes them one of our favorite lines. All goods are manufactured locally in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Turk+Taylor Pop-Up Shop is located at 1529 Fillmore Street in San Francisco. Their phone number is 415-336-5364. They’re open Thursday through Sunday, Noon – 7pm through the end of August.

Their Online store is: http://tnt.bigcartel.com/

You can win this $150 Turk + Taylor Gift Certificate in a few simple steps:

1. Cities need trees! Friends of the Urban Forest http://www.fuf.net is one of Turk + Taylor’s favorite organizations! Check out their website and then send us anything that inspires you about greening our urban spaces! A letter about what you do, a photo of your rooftop garden, a poem about a tree on your block, a video. Anything goes as long as it’s about the urban forest. Don’t forget to send along an explanation if it’s a visual.
2. Send to TheDiscerningbrute@gmail.com. The Subject line must read: AUGUST CONTEST: TURK+TAYLOR (otherwise it may get trashed)
3. The best, most moving and creative submission wins!
4. Deadline is AUGUST 31st.
5. The winner will be announced SEPTEMBER 1st.

JULY CONTEST WINNER

Congratulations to Ralph Kelleners of Belgium. He is The Discerning Brute July Contest winner! We challenged our readers to take a photograph of themselves that demonstrates how they speak up on behalf of animals, people, or the environment! Here is our winner:

We thank him so much for the work he does on behalf of animals. The picture he submitted (above) shows how he raises awareness about painful and outdated experiments that companies like Proctor & Gamble continue to conduct on animals like rabbits.

Enjoy the organic cotton, French terry cardigan from COVET , worth $110 USD.

And thank you to all of our readers who entered for all of the amazing work you do! We are truly inspired.

JULY CONTEST!

Win this $110 COVET organic cotton, french terry cardigan!

Straight from COVET‘s fall 2009 menswear collection, this organic french terry cardigan is warm, soft, and luxurious. Tara St. James of COVET has been creating superb, handcrafted, organic garments for both men and women for years.

You can win this COVET cardigan in a few simple steps:

1. Take a photograph of yourself that demonstrates how you speak up on behalf of animals, people, or the environment!
2. Send to TheDiscerningbrute@gmail.com. The Subject line must read: JULY CONTEST: COVET (otherwise it may get trashed)
3. The best, most moving and creative photo wins!
4. Deadline is July 31st.
5. The winner will be announced August 1st.

A Fetching Friday

SOFAUX Fashion Factory makes awesome, hand-printed, hand-dyed,  organic cotton shirts. Made in Seattle. Get them at BlackBird for about $58

Also check out more organic finds from our favorite lines:

Gilded Age is famous for well-made, classic garments using the oldest looms remaining, and centuries-tested methods of dying and construction. This “Sullivan” organic cotton chambray shirt &  “Clarke” organic cotton seersucker shirt are quite fetching.

We love these organic “RIP” and “Sir Edmund” tees from Vuori AW09. Founder, Joe Kdia and Chad Alasantro,  use waterbased inks, organic cotton, and well-designed homages to eco warriors. Check out the rest HERE.

Wings & Horns & Lars Andersson organic tank tops are perfect for summer, and to show off some ink!

Sameunerneath‘s organic cotton blazer is back! This is a rare item in the world of menswear.

Cover your head! Patagonia makes a nice organic cotton cadet cap in black, brown, and green. Also check out their 100% recycled poly rainshell!

Ethical Exploits Vol. 2

The ups, downs, ins, outs, disappointments, and triumphs of a day-to-day ethical living.
By Featured Contributor, Matt Lara

There are a hundred-and-one reasons for guys to take care of their skin and hair, but so many of the products on the market are toxic, full of animal ingredients, or still perform horrible and needless tests on animals that it makes us want to give up grooming and be crust-punks!

Realizing that dreadlocks and gamy odors were not for me, I decided to do some overhaul in the grooming department. Bathroom shelf, meet your new cruelty-free, earth-conscious friends:

The first to go was that turbo-thingy razor that came free in my mailbox after high school graduation. Instead of shoveling out big bucks for more tiny replacement cartridges that are made by a company burning the eyes and skin of rabbits, I happily spent my money on a new Preserve Triple Razor. The shave is just as good, and there are some other great things to consider about Preserve Products besides smooth cheeks. I also switched to lavender and shea Moisture Shave from Kiss My Face. Now everyone wants to kiss my face. Now if they’d only make something so everyone would kiss my ass…

Also, if you’re a manly-man like me and use manly-man things like toner, consider my other big switch in the grooming department: organic cotton balls. If you are not using a spray-toner, these are great! Are they cost-effective? With cotton being one of the most highly-sprayed crops, and the price the environment pays for our single-use puffs, yes they are worth the extra dollar or two. Plus, the quality is actually better, and you’ll like that for your hunky mug.

Revitalizing Eye Cream from Avalon Organics is one of my new staples. Say what you want, I’m conscious of my smile lines! I can still feel this stuff moisturizing and firming even at the end of my most tired days. I’m also a sucker for the Soothing Lip Balm for some smooth smackers without the girlie, glossy look.

I can think of so many uses for tea trea oil, and with Trader Joe’s putting it in shampoo, I am so there. Tea Tree Tingle is quite an experience with every wash. For styling, I find David Babaii for Wildaid to be wonderful. Their motto is “It’s beautiful to be good,” and I couldn’t agree more. 10% of their profits are donated to Wildaid to help with wildlife conservation. I use their Bohemian Beach Spray and the Fibers Molding Paste.

There are several product lines like Organic Grooming by Herban Cowboy, and JASON which Joshua covered in THIS POST that make men’s grooming products, so check them out too!

Finally, Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has an excellent podcast episode dedicated to the compassionate bathroom. And hey, I didn’t buy all this stuff at once. Purchasing just one of these products is helping make for a more compassionate world.

Happy grooming!

-Matt Lara

Matt is an actor, singer, closet poet, dancer, avid reader, guitar picker, waiter, home cook, nosey coffee shop guy, animal lover…he basically has to know how to do everything. He lives in New York and Los Angeles.

Loomstate for Target: Affordable Organics

One of our favorite lines, Loomstate, has partnered with Target to do a line of affordable, organic menswear and womenswear . Founders Scott Hahn and Rogan bring us denim, tees, chinos, board shorts, jackets, and knits all around $20 – $40.

What’s so great about organic cotton anyway? Watch this vid.