Garden State Green Fest 2014: Green Eileen
If you missed my recap of the Garden State Green Fest including a Q&A with Ed Begley, Jr and details of his green talk, check it out here.
Onward to another great company to feature! After listening to Ed’s talk, there was a good amount of time until the next lecture I was considering attending so I browsed around the many booths and companies, mostly related to being green. But many companies weren’t and I couldn’t understand why they were there. The Star-Ledger Newspaper? We’re trying to conserve trees here, not trying to chop them down to print on. Disney Radio? Thanks for providing upbeat music I suppose but that’s about all they seemed to be good for with no eco value.
Some of the companies that were there that actually do have something to do with being earth conscious include Green Eileen, from parent company Eileen Fisher, Cox Printers, Groovy Globe, Save the Chimps, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and Bridge of Faith. These above companies were not all the companies that were attending, but they were the ones that caught my eye the most regarding their initiatives to be helpful regarding the environment. Read on to see our first featured company.
The upscale clothing company has found a fantastic way to repurpose gently worn Eileen Fisher clothing to upcycle them into jewelry pieces, new clothing and resell clothing still viable at a deep discount. All of these actions help to extend the life of these garments and keep them out of our landfills. For each Eileen Fisher item donated the company rewards those customers by giving them a $5 credit towards any purchase.
Besides having gently used garments to purchase at this event, they also had a workshop to have you learn how to make your own upcycled necklace from scraps of clothes that could be resold. Green Eileen also has workshops you can attend for a fee in their Irvington, NY or Seattle, WA Lab store. I made two gray necklaces that were combined into one, just by simply knotting fabric.
Eileen Fisher also has a program, Eileen Fisher Leadership Institute which promotes leadership in young women through self empowerment, connection with others and activism in their communities. It all helps women to find and proclaim their voices, explore their passions and builds connections with self, each other and the community.
The Eileen Fisher brand certainly is doing more than just making fashionable clothing. With their great ways of giving back, they have made a name for themselves in the fashion community and now in the environmental community. Check out their websites for details, Green Eileen, Eileen Fisher and Eileen Fisher Leadership Institute.
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