EcoUnique: Indie, Handmade, One of a Kind

by Jasmin Malik Chua, Jersey City, USA on 08.22.07
Fashion & Beauty

EcoUnique

Made with organic and sustainable fabrics such as hemp and tencel, Jess Fraley's line of made-to-order and one-of-a-kind clothing is sewn by Fraley herself, in her home state of Oregon. Her pieces have clean, classic lines, but are sumptuously earthy at the same time, without becoming hippy dippy. (No tie-dyes here, dudes and dudettes.)

Although EcoUnique's most-affordable garment is $110, you'll have the peace of mind that you're not purchasing disposable, pesticide-soaked togs that were mass-produced by exploited labor in a third-world sweatshop somewhere. Yeah, that was a mouthful, but we've encouraged you to know your farmer before; maybe it's time we got acquainted with the person behind the sewing machine. ::EcoUnique

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Comments (15)

I'm sorry, but draw-string pants and skirts are still pretty hippy-dippy.

jump to top Anonymous says:

I agree, these look about as "hippy dippy" as it gets. When is someone going to design normal stylish clothes from eco-fabrics?

jump to top Kelly says:

Can anyone point me to studies of clothing durability?

People often say that bespoke, ecoFabrics, & First-world manufactured clothings are better for the environment because they last longer. Unfortunately, I can not find anything on this issue to help actually *calculate* if it is true.

It seems hard to believe since in my personal experience, the clothes that I enjoyed for the most years are all synthetic, mass-manufactured from third world. I'm not implying that this is a good thing, but every additional year those clothes last reduces my ecological impact.


On a related note, does anyone have a good starting point for identifying what ecologies are displaced by cotton crops in India?

jump to top tre4 says:

drawstring does not mean "hippy dippy" ~ come on people!!
Jess makes beautiful clothing with attention to detail and beautiful fabrics, which she dyes herself. Her designs look comfortable and flattering.

jump to top bonita [TypeKey Profile Page] says:

Loved the site! Just bought a dress!

jump to top Ann says:

I have several handwoven clothing items that I am still wearing after 30 years, and they have only gotten more comfortable and have stayed good looking all that time. They weren't cheap at the time, but the real cost of clothing is in how many wearings you get for what you pay for them. Simple timeless designs that are tolerant of body changes over the years simply cannot be beat for value in those terms.

jump to top Donna Carty says:

regardless if sythetic fibers last "longer" once you do throw them away, they aren't exactly biodegradable, so think about that.

jump to top rustytoadstool says:

Isnt that marbled look of dyeing,, low immersion dyeing,, kinda that same thing as tye dye??
Not sure who wrote this,, but can we say "uppity".. yikes,, last time i checked the reason a lot of these sites are where they are is because of the hippie patchwork scene.. IM all for eco fashion but,,,
sheeessh.. pretty rude review

jump to top Cheryl says:

I don't think Eco Unique is hippy Dippy. I have purchased clothing from EcoUnique. It's great quality and it fits great. I wear my skirt to work all the time. Check out her fall line, those skirts are not hippy.

I love all the new green clothing lines coming out. Some of the handmade looks it but not Eco Unique or her counterparts at :www.thegreenstitchproject.com. It's like wearing art, it's beautiful. Plus there are "normal" stylish clothes out there that are green. Check out www.stewartbrown.com, and Deborah Linquist. Also if you look on ETSY, the have all kinds of handmade products on there that are normal. Especially the handmade knit sweaters.

jump to top Amy says:

what is the problem with hippy?
you're getting stuck on a word when its a more of a concept than a label!
by the way,
have you people read the name of this blog?
TREEHUGGER. its another term for hippy!!
Jess makes the most AMAZING clothes, both design and quality-wise. She is a super sweet woman and a great artist. Handmade is the way to go!

jump to top mary jane says:

Why such negativity towards a small local business who obviously promotes eco-friendly choices? Just because it's not your exact style doesn't mean it should be dismissed as hippy dippy.

And why would "hippie" clash with eco awareness anyway? I thought hippies were the ones who started it all so many years ago with recycling and sustainability and organic alternatives and all that...

If locally made clothing were better supported, more styles would emerge and fabric origins could be openly discussed with the maker - as opposed to bigfoot corporations hiding behind a label... who knows what the truth could be?

Knocking down someone's effort to be a part of the difference with her small artwork/clothing business is a total contradiction to the cause.

jump to top victoria says:

I think that the artist of this site is a bit on the egotistical side if you ask me. Artists that aren't up to "standards" and that is simply why they took down the links page a while ago. another thing, I dont think all women are a size 0-12. Why aren't there any bigger sizes of clothing on any of these sites. I have been a healthy organic vegetarian for 7 years and am a size14-16. where is the love????

jump to top jane says:

Jane, I just thought you may be interested but Eco Unique will make "made to order". I just had her alter the size on one of her pants to fit. Also snakemountainthreads.com makes great bustle back skirts that can be adjusted according to waist size.

On another note, I totally agree with the other posts. This is Treehugger.com, so expect some of the clothing articles to have some patchwork. We should be supporting the small guys. Have you tried shopping in a department store lately? It's 30,000 sqft of crap, there are so many choices I can't make heads or tails of it, it's all made over in China, the fabrics are cheap, the quality is gross. I would rather have a few really great "green" pieces in my wardrobe for many years then a bunch of junk I am going to give to good will in a year.

jump to top Amy says:

I'm not sure that hemp fabric is actually pesticide free. As far as I know, most hemp fabric is made in China. I think it's important to let your customers know that the fabric is NOT made in the US. Claiming it is not "pesticide soaked" is a little mis-leading. NO WHERE on the websites that sell wholesale hemp fabric (which many of the artists use) does it claim to be grown organically or pesticide-free.

Check here:http://www.envirotextile.com/

Beautiful designs and fabrics (yes, low immersion dye technique lends a tie-dye effect), and it would be nice to see some ready to buy bigger sizes at reasonable prices.

jump to top Franny says:

To Franny....
Hemp doesn't need any pesticide!!
And hemp fabrics are made in lots of places like India, Nepal, ....Fair-trade.
China made hemp for big companies....and It's not fair-trade.

Jess, your work is FANTASTIC!!! You're a great artist... Keep doing what you do....
Peace&Love
Sonia

jump to top Sonia says:

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