Does “high-fashion fanny pack” seem like a contradiction in terms? Suspend your disbelief for a moment, just long enough to check out the fanny clutch by upcycling designer Fahmina.

The beauty of the clutch design is that it adds no bulk to your hips (because honestly, what woman wants to add inches there?) while keeping your hands free and fitting in all your daily essentials.

But Fahmina also has an eco-secret: Her accessories been made with 95 percent reclaimed and “precycled” leather that’s been salvaged from other designers’ waste bins. Other leatherworkers throw away “defective” leather by the ton for something as little as a scratch. Fahmina works by hand around the defects for a piece that is still high-quality but a little less wasteful.

Envelope Fanny Clutch, $180 at Fahmina.com.

(via YourDailyThread.com)

Forget the LBD — the little green dress is where it’s at for spring, says the Houston Chronicle in its profile of eco-fashion brand Doucette Duvall. (It’s also one of our favorite brands.)

Annabet Duvall, one-half of the brand’s design team, says she scours New York’s Garment District for dead-stock fabric and then creates limited-edition upcycled dresses and accessories from their hauls of silk, cotton, and wool.

Duvall was in town this week for a trunk show of her “simple and very wearable” spring 2010 looks at Coquette, where she unveiled bright shorts and a full skirt cut from an animal print covered in tropical flowers. (She estimates the fabric was produced in the 1980s.) The brand does exceptionally well in her home state, she said, where customers like supporting one of their own. “Texans are very loyal,” she says. They also “appreciate the ‘eco’ part of what we do. They like the individuality of it.”

Because the simple silhouettes are inspired by found fabrics rather than runway trends, Duvall said the looks are ageless. “We don’t want to make disposable clothing. We want the girls to love what they buy for a long time.”

An excellent sentiment. Does the idea of dead-stock designs intrigue you? Check out our slideshow of other offerings here.

Don’t think you can DIY? Courtesy of the ever-fabulous Ashley at Monsterbites365.com comes this incredibly easy, foolproof DIY circle-scarf project that absolutely anyone can do.

All you need is a cozy XXL men’s tee-shirt or fleece (bonus points for thrifting an old one) and a sharp pair of scissors:

Directions:
1. Find a super soft, super big XXL men’s T-shirt with NO seams along the sides.
2. Fold the T-shirt in half length-wise to help you cut out your scarf.
3. First, cut a straight line along the bottom hem.
4. Then, cut a straight line just under the armpits of the T-shift (see diagram below).
5. Finally, experiment to your heart’s content with this versatile fashion accessory.

Need advice on how to wear your fancy new scarf? Check out our guide to chic neckwarming.

If you’re a scarf aficionado, you know the Hermès silk scarf is the holy grail of neckwarmers. And if you don’t want to plunk down serious plastic for a new one, there are abundant vintage options available.

But since you don’t want to get burned on a counterfeit, ThePerfectRedBox.com offers a guide to spotting a fake on eBay or in the consignment shop. Among the tips:

Weight The weight of the counterfeits I’ve felt were quite different from an authentic Hermès.  All but one has been much lighter -  most were made of polyester and not silk.  A new 35” x 35” Hermès carrè should weigh in around 63 grams or 2.2. ounces.

When in doubt Weigh it.

Back of carrè Almost every counterfeit I’ve seen had very little detail on the back.  The design on an authentic Hermès carrè can be clearly seen from the back – it is colour saturated.

When in doubt Look closely at the back of the carrè.

Hem Almost all Hermès scarves have hand rolled and hand stitched hems, to the front. There are a few exceptions to this, but generally an authentic scarf will be hand rolled and hand stitched. Many of the counterfeits I’ve seen were very clearly and very pooly machine hemmed/finished.

When in doubt If it looks machine sewn, seek further authentication.

Useful, right? See the whole guide here.

It’s pouring rain in L.A. today and I could really use a pick-me-up to get me in the mood for the weekend. My top contender is this pair of goldtone pyramid stud earrings by Etsy seller BRadleyBB.

I really like how they’re softer than hard-edged pyramid studs, and edgier than too-basic gold posts, like the kind they pierce ears with. And best of all, they’re made from upcycled buttons from a vintage shirt (hence the speckled look of wear).

Oh yeah, and they cost less than a panini. Also available in silver if yellow gold isn’t your thing.

BRadleyBB Zone Stud Earrings in Gold, $5 at Etsy.com.

It’s been a while since we did a Friday Etsy Find, but this week’s pick is so great you’ll forgive the delay.

If you’re constantly trying to stay organized — and let’s face it, who isn’t? — you’ll discover the In Touch Clutch by Etsy seller DownstairsDesigns fills a black hole in your life. This multipocket organizer has space for everything you might need on the go, whether it’s a notebook and crayons to keep your kids occupied or your passport and boarding pass when you’re leaving for the airport.

The clutch folds up flat and stays shut courtesy of faux pearl snaps to keep everything secure. It comes in 600 different designs that you can custom order to pair with a sturdy and utilitarian unbleached linen.

We seriously might need two or three to keep everything we need at the ready.

DownstairsDesigns In Touch Clutch in Wallflower Greens, $27 at Etsy.com.

Hundreds of stalls line the street during a Sunday handicrafts market in Buenos Aires. (M.J. Prest/EthicalStyle.com)

Ola chicas! Kara picked up my blogging slack while I was on vacation in South America, and I want to publicly thank her for doing such a bang-up job keeping everyone entertained.

I plan to write more about what I saw fashion-wise while in Brazil and Argentina, but the first thought I’d like to explore focuses specifically on Argentina. The peso crisis of 2001, a disastrous decision by the government to devalue the Argentinian peso to next to nothing, still resonates throughout the country today. When the majority of Argentina’s citizens woke up one morning to find their life’s savings had become worthless, people had to get creative in how they would make money.

One industry that flourished as a result? Handicrafts. In most of the touristy sections of Buenos Aires, you can find artisans selling handmade beaded necklaces, beautiful earrings, silver rings, and all manner of small goods using Argentina’s famous leathers — from belts to bags to wallets to sandals. Some of the artisans have set up boutiques and some sell their goods on the street, but what they all have in common is a commitment to high craftsmanship — and quality that only improves as the artisans have more practice.

It made us think of how Etsy has really exploded since the United States suffered its own economic meltdown in 2008. We’ve heard anecdotal evidence of people who have lost their jobs only to find their passion in their previously-neglected hobbies. Not everyone is lucky enough to make a living out of making jewelry, but for some it can be a side business that satisfies creative urges while bringing in a little income.

Etsy shop owners, care to comment?

In honor of our tee-shirt giveaway courtesy of Fashion Loves People — a brand that donates $1 from every tee sold to fight human trafficking — we’ve found a bunch of other stylish gifts that support nonprofit groups. If you’ve procrastinated on your Christmas shopping, these couldn’t come at a better time:

• John Hardy plants a bamboo sapling in Bali for every Woven Leather Bracelet ($195) sold — perfect for the tree-hugger in your life.
• Have a niece who’s a miniature fashion plate? Ann Taylor is donating a  generous 60 percent of the sales from its adorable Cashmere Toddler Cardigan ($98) to St. Jude Children’s Hospital.
• Paige Premium Denim designed the Be Comfortable in Your Genes Bracelet ($25) to raise awareness of bulimia and anorexia among young women, and proceeds benefit the National Eating Disorders Association.
• MAC Cosmetics’s longrunning Viva Glam line ($14) has expanded to seven shades of lipstick and three shades of lipgloss — but as always, 100 percent of the sales are donated to the nonprofit MAC AIDS Fund.
• Send a Sweet Home ($35.95) box of cookies from the Dancing Deer Baking Company and 35 percent of the proceeds will support One Family, a nonprofit coalition that helps homeless women and children.

Scarves are synonymous with winter, and just because you are pairing them with a boring black coat, your scarves don’t have to be! Frankly, a gorgeous scarf is one of the most exciting things about the part of the year when you can’t see the sun.  And I can’t resist sharing some lovely DIY scarf ideas, just in time for Christmas (and Christmas gifts!). I focused on jersey and polar fleece — two fabrics that don’t fray.

Jersey DIY

The internet has several variations of an easy DIY scarf made out of jersey knit, but here is the one I followed most closely for a boho look.

I purchased 2.5 yards of gray viscose jersey, and evenly cut it lengthwise into 3 long pieces, roughly 20 inches wide (three new scarves!). You can also cut and sew together strips from 3 old t-shirts to make a similar scarf.

Cut off the shirt beneath the arm holes, so you effectively have a t-shirt tube, pick a place and cut it open. Once you have done this three times, even out the width, and sew them together into a long strip. I cut each end inward 15 inches into three even sections, and then split each section into seven even strips, also 15 inches long.

I braided each end into 7 braids total and then secured them with rubber bands, which I later removed.   Instead of just knotting the braids, I decided to be more festive. I spent a few dollars on silver metallic thread and threaded it around and through the end of the braids with a sewing needle, before taking several feet of the thread and wrapping it around the end of the braid.

For a fun DIY scarf, you can pick any color jersey you want, and any color thread you want. All that said, you don’t even have to put the braided fringe on the jersey scarf for it to be cute.

Polar Fleece DIY

The classic DIY scarf is the polar fleece scarf. During the holiday season, fabric stores are flush with bolts of festive fleeces. Snow flakes on a navy background, candy canes on a red background, snow-families caroling in bucolic settings.  Very Grandma Moses!

If you find a fun pattern or solid color you like, 2.5 to 3 yards (at 60 inches wide) of fleece can be enough fleece for 5 or 6 scarves, 10 to 12 inches wide.

Fringe the ends by cutting inch wide slits about 4 inches long, then knot them individually at their base and pull them tight. You can make the fringe as skinny or as wide as you like — and you don’t even have to knot them, since it won’t fray. A sharp pair of scissors and you are good to go. That’s the great thing about fleece!

Appliqué DIY

To jazz up your fleece with contrasting colors (like white on a navy background), sew on appliqués. Cut out a basic shape from another swath of fleece and with a sewing machine or simple needle and thread, affix the cut-out to your scarf.

You could add a trio of cute snowflakes to the end of a fleece scarf, for example. Or a trio of brown polka dots to the end of a pink scarf. A wide zig-zag stitch (use more of that metallic thread!) can be adorable, if you are careful to be accurate. Pay attention to your stitching with appliqué, because they will stand out.

Quick and Dirty DIY

Only have enough patience for a fast project? Try these guerilla DIY techniques:

Sew on a ribbon to a scarf than needs some pizzaz.

Find three or four silk scarves and carefully stitch them together to make one long scarf (if you sew carefully, you can always undo the stitch later).

Pick any fabric you want, like a family plaid, and carefully iron over the edges (twice, so there is no fraying) to sew a hem.

Felt, another fabric that does not fray, makes for great appliqué. And beads and sequins will serve you well as embellishments.

I don’t remember the year, but I have this childhood memory of my mom getting a brooch from some relative for Christmas. The thing was just ugly. A jumble of beads and ribbon, a lot of pink and primary colors, and two tiny theater masks had been glued onto the monstrosity. She loathed it, and there and then is when I gave up the institution of the brooch. I left cameos and pins out of it, and I never wore a brooch.

Until now.

This summer I inherited a lot jewelry from a relative (not the one who had given my mom the awful brooch!), and became the skeptical yet curious owner of a handful of lovely vintage brooches — something I had long avoided learning how to wear. After some searching the internet and keeping my eyes peeled, I found a thousand ways girls like me have creatively worn their brooches.

The History of the Brooch:

Brooches (or broaches) have been around since ancient history. The Romans would secure their cloaks and clothes with them (togas, anyone?), calling them fibula. (The fibula’s descendant is, you guessed it, the safety pin.) Think Roman, bejeweled Vivienne Westwood.

Today, brooches are excavated in archaelogical digs across the planet, and although they are one of the best indicators the particular date of an ancient find, a brooch from 1,000 years ago wouldn’t be all that out of place on a cute sweater today. Seriously.

A Brooch’s Bottom Line:

Brooches are all about combining function and beauty. If you have to pin something together, down, across, or up, why not use a beautiful jewel to do it?

Below are two lists. One suggests uses for a brooch that combine both function and beauty — the traditional usage of a brooch, shall we say.  The second list is uses of a brooch that are purely for aesthetic value, no function required.

Let’s get on with it!

Functional:

• Nip a blazer in
• Hold a sweater shut
• Use as a clasp for a ribbon belt
• Wrap a winter scarf around your neck and secure with a brooch
• Slip on a silk head scarf and pin in place at the back
• Take a long thin nice scarf and throw one end over the shoulder and secure where the pieces intersect with a pin
• Make a layered ribbon bracelet and secure it with a brooch
• Place front and center, to secure the neckline of a wrap dress or shirt.

Decorative:

• Pin on the side of a turtle neck
• Top a hat with an outrageous decoration to make even Robin Hood jealous
• Spruce up the lapel of a blazer
• Use a cluster of pins to make a lapel where a lapel would be
• Secure it on a necklace of several strands of pearls or beads
• Put a brooch, and perhaps a few more, on the straps of a bag
• Attract all eyes to the neckline of your favorite winter wool dress
• Attach to a headband, off to one side
• Pin the collar of a cowl neck sweater in place.

A Few Last Tips:

I was raised in the South, and while I imagine a progressive woman can wear a brooch on whichever side of her body she chooses, I wear them on the left. It’s proper, traditional etiquette.

And one more thing: Maybe instead of always trying to “hide the safety pin,” we could all try a brooch once in a while. If you don’t feel think the brooch is strong enough to hold something in place, use safety pins, and then cover the metal evidence with a brooch.

As for a vintage brooch that by some happy circumstance has come into your possession with matching earrings, it’s crucial to style them right to avoid looking “dowdy.” My solution has been to tone down my outfit’s complexity — say, basic black pants and a purple cowl neck sweater — but make my hair and overall aesthetic a little more professional punk rocker. Like a high pony tail with a teased-up bump in the front. It’s as close as you can get to a faux hawk in the office!