Summer Rayne Oakes and a purple ballet flat from Zoe & Zac
Image credit: ArtistInterviews.com/ Cohn & Wolfe

Payless ShoeSource, the discount footwear retailer, will launch Zoe & Zac, their first “green” line, as part of their Spring 2009 collection. Summer Rayne Oakes, Planet Green’s fashion and beauty adviser and author of Style, Naturally: The Savvy Shopping Guide to Sustainable Fashion & Beauty, has been brought on to serve as an Eco Consultant for Payless’ eco-friendly venture.

Continue reading for our conversation with Summer Rayne Oakes and details on the Zoe & Zac line!

If you’re a high school student with an idea to make your community a more sustainable place to live then there’s a new contest that just may be a great way to get the seed money you need to get your project off the ground. Put together by The Weather Channel and the National Environmental Education Foundation as a part of Classroom Earth, they’re looking for smart, innovative, and workable solutions to pressing environmental issues.

And get this; they’ll even pay you a cash stipend for being a local environmental intern to go along with the seed money you'll receive to help make it happen!

Photo via Make

There is lingerie, and there is whoa...lingerie.

Ingrid Goldbloom Bloch is creating undergarments that fall into that “whoa...” category. Her latest is bustiers, garters and panties made from recycled soda cans and hardware.

Beachcombing becomes Filiz Ateş and Christiane Alaettinoğlu--and anyone who puts on one of their driftwood brooches, necklaces, or rings.

The two artists and friends gather materials on the beaches near their home in Alanya, on Turkey's Mediterranean coast, and sell the finished products under the name Yalos Alanya, from the Greek word that locals have adopted to refer to driftwood. Their whimsical designs also include sculptures and wall decorations of fish, birds, and other animals, as well as human figures, all crafted with the same philosophy:

photo: Revenge Is

The best revenge is living well. At least that's what a new green company, Revenge Is proclaims. While the argument that the best revenge for society’s eco-problems is simply living well seems optimistic, the company has come up with a grand marketing scheme and an interesting use for discarded plastic bottles.

Photo via Charmone Shoes

Looking for that perfect something for the fashion buff in your life? Some are easy to buy for: They'll take any random piece of clothing--from a vintage fringed dress to a Stella McCartney coat--and make it look fashionable and fabulous in any situation. But finding that perfect something for the fashion buff on your list isn't always that easy: Size 6 or 8? Pink or brown? Organic cotton or hemp-silk? Lucky for you, our eco-chic guide takes out some of the guess work, with options that are organic and sustainable, and offer enduring style. Our best fashion-forward eco-shopping tip? Look for quality fabrics and timeless design; even if you have to spend a bit more upfront, garments that will stand the test of time save money and resources over the long haul. Because disposable fashion is just so last century, darling.

If you are looking for something cool to wear this autumn and feeling guilty about spending money and buying new; then Re-Shirt is for you. They are vintage, (second-hand as we used to call them) and they come with provenance. Available only on-line, the shirts, in good condition, have been donated to Re-Shirt. The story of each item of clothing, be it boring or interesting, must be included with the donation. Each shirt is then given a registered orange Re-Shirt label and number which is kept on file. So when you buy yours, you know the background of the piece of clothing and you can type in your shirt code and continue the journey by writing your chapter of the life of the shirt.

Clothing is no longer just an anonymous object, instead its story and the experiences associated with it are passed on. The longer the shirt is in circulation, the better its history becomes. And as a donor you get to watch how a personal piece of clothing takes on another life instead of just sitting around in a cupboard, taking up space.

Pistachio’s flagship Yonge & Eglinton location in Toronto. Photo courtesy of Pistachio.

Looking for beeswax crayons for the kids? Or perhaps you’re in need of unique note cards printed on recycled paper with soy ink? If your dream store carries nothing but chic, eco-friendly products, you’ll be nuts for Pistachio, a new retail store that opened in Toronto last month.

The shop with a conscience envisioned by Heather Reisman – the woman behind the Indigo Books empire (which, incidentally, has a rather impressive environmental policy for a bookstore) – goes the extra mile in greening lifestyle retail. But it all started, as the company’s mission statement reveals, with a simple idea, “being generous, environmentally sensitive and engaged with life is good for us and good for the planet.”