(Courtesy of QuinceAndCo.com)

A website that provides not just the tools and supplies you need to get started knitting your very own DIY fall wardrobe, but the patterns and indie fashion ideas too? We had to know more about Quince & Co. the minute we heard about it.

Quince & Co. was founded by two designers and a spinning mill owner with a penchant for natural, sustainably grown fibers. It’s eco through and through, as the website recounts:

We offer wool yarns that are sourced and spun in the US. Known in the trade as “territory wool,” our fiber comes from Merino, Rambouillet, and Columbia-based sheep that roam the ranges of Montana and Wyoming. All our wool and wool-blend yarns are spun in a New England mill with a venerable history. By sourcing our wool in the US and manufacturing our yarn locally, we minimize our carbon footprint.

But, hey, as much as we want to promote our American sheep and yarns, we also want to enjoy the pleasures of fibers that aren’t readily available in the US. We also want to be responsible for what we import. So, when we blend our wool with other fibers, we find out as much as possible where, how, and by whom they came to be. If we’re sourcing a yarn from a plant fiber, we want to know if it was grown in conditions that are healthy for the soil and for those who tend and harvest it.

If we’re looking for an animal fiber, we want to know if the animal was raised in a way that sustains the earth and preserves the culture of the people who raise it.

You can purchase four types of eco-friendly yarns by the skein and download your favorite from a plethora of patterns — from cozy sweaters to stylish berets — for $6 or less. Our entry-level DIY pick? The cuddly Cullin Cowl pictured here, using Quince’s chunky and felted Puffin yarn in “frost.”

(via DailyCandy)

Sometimes the best ideas strike purely by happenstance. Take the colorful “Electric Love” rings by Grain, a Seattle-area jewelry company. Co-designer James Minola whipped this up from scrap electrical wire while waiting for his partner, Chelsea Green, to finish an art class. Ms. Green’s friends admired the ring so much that they’ve added it as a permanent addition to their jewelry line.

Made to order from upcycled electrical wire from a building-materials supplier on Bainbridge Island, the hand-knotted ring comes in a rainbow of bright colors. From an email the designers sent us:

“Electric Love gives a second life to something that was headed for a landfill,” says Minola, “It is a small gesture but one that we always consider in our design work.”

Also, Grain is a member of 1% for the Planet, an association of businesses around the globe pledging to donate at least 1% of their annual sales to environmental groups. Feel-good all around.

“Electric Love” Rings, $19 at GrainDesign.com.

Looking for a unique hostess gift, or maybe a little pick-me-up for yourself? This solid lotion bar by Owens Acres will hit the spot.

Coming in scents like juicy mango and bright lemon, these bars are made with natural oils and butters that melt on contact with your skin. Formulated with coconut butter, mango butter, apricot oil, shea butter, and pistachio butter, all the ingredients are grown on a small family farm in Placerville, Calif.

Each bar comes in a tin and is hand-stamped with a bee motif in the small size, or a sunflower design for the large.

The company is a member of Co-op America, Farm Trails, CAFF, and Buy Fresh-Buy Local, and founder Laura Owens is a certified master herbalist, so you’ll give your support to a non-GMO farm with your purchase.

Owens Acres Lemon Lotion Bar, $6.95 at WorldofGood.com.

The deliciousness of a three-day weekend looms just within reach, and the writers at E.S. wish you all a happy Independence Day.

On that note, want more inspirational stories on free-thinking designers showing serious moxie? We’ve got you covered for reading material:

• Indie rocker Morrissey offers his candid reasons for why he makes allowances for leather shoes, even though he’s a vegan.
• These small businesses are sticking to their ideals and succeeding at every turn.
• Help silk weavers in Thailand achieve financial independence by buying one of these fair-trade silk shirts and scarves by Kohtrad. Part of the proceeds support microfinance programs overseas through Kiva.org.
• Want to know what you’re really getting when you buy organic? Independent third-party certification is the way to go.
• Maggie Gyllenhaal, our favorite independent movie star, also shows serious commitment to eco-ideals in fashion.

Enjoy the break, and we’ll be back at you on Tuesday.

This week’s Friday Etsy Find is so pretty, we literally gasped upon glimpsing it for the first time. Handbag designer Paulina Carcach makes each and every one of her shoulder bags by hand from her studio in California using natural, full-grain leather.

The “Alba” design is the quintessential timeless satchel in a seasonless burgundy shade. We can easily envision ourselves carrying this throughout the year, from summer happy hour to braving the masses while Christmas shopping.

It’s also designed with the multitasking woman in mind, with pockets galore and enough space for books and files. It’s the perfect balance between form and function, and it’s made right here at a small business in the USA.

Brown too basic for you? It also comes in a soothing sea green.

Paulina Carcach “Alba” Lambskin Satchel, $141 at Etsy.com.

It’s been a few months since it was published in Forbes magazine, but we only just now saw this profile on eco-designer Susan Woo. We were impressed by the ways she’s imbued her designs with her personal environmental and moral values as well as her sense of style.

Observe:

Does the greening of fashion cause you to shudder as thoughts of hemp and recycled underwear cross your mind? Not to worry. Susan Woo–that is, her eponymous label–is proof that the right design can transform the usual sustainable fabrics like alpaca wool, vegetable-tanned leather, organic cotton jersey and sustainable silk crepe into clothes that make a woman look glamorous, sexy and in control.

Also striking is her commitment to fair labor. All her clothes are designed in a workshop in New York City, under her watchful eye. Born to Korean-immigrant parents, this Manhattan native says she always keeps the difficulties that immigrants face in perspective–doing so diminishes the challenges she faces in keeping her business alive. After all, tripling her first-year revenues in the face of a recession is no mean feat.

This is precisely what more designers ought to consider doing, we’d argue, especially because it make the delineation between artist and person seamless. Meaning: As people, all designers have their individual causes and principles. Why not structure their work in such a way that they can bring the spotlight to their personal priorities?

As many of our readers know, we have very mixed feelings about American Apparel. On the one hand, its vertical integration model means all of its clothes are made in the USA and we admire the label’s commitment to designing with recycled and organic textiles. On the other, American Apparel’s advertising strategy could stand to objectify women less. (A lot less.)

Now we have another negative to add to Column B. On Gawker.com, a tipster leaked the company’s confidentiality agreement, which must be signed by all new hires and limits employees’ ability to report questionable behavior. From the legalese:

You understand that the Company is a high profile publicly traded company that is vulnerable from a media perspective. You also understand that that the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Dov Charney, is considered an international business celebrity and has become one of the most recognized CEOs in the fashion industry. …

Further, you agree not to disparage the Company or Mr. Charney in public or online on blogs or any other similar media. Further, you understand and agree that all communications concerning Confidential Information in public, even with fellow employees of the Company, that are or reasonably could be overheard by a third party (e.g., and without limitation, in bars and restaurants) shall be deemed a breach of this Confidentiality Agreement. …

In the event of any breach by you (or your agents) of this Confidentiality Agreement, you shall pay as liquidated damages, and not as a penalty, the sum of One Million Dollars ($1,000,000) for each such breach, which the parties agree represents reasonable compensation for the harm incurred as a result of such breach.

The contract seems explicitly designed to protect Mr. Charney, who is no stranger to accusations of sexual harassment and unethical accounting practices. We can’t help but wonder what he has to hide if he’s willing to threaten his employees with a million-dollar penalty for speaking up.

The Los Angeles Times this week reviewed some of the newcomers to the eco-beauty bandwagon, and they all have one unique trait in common: a food-based ingredient list.

“It’s happening like crazy,” Karen Young, chief executive of the Young Group, a consulting company that works with beauty brands, said of the increased prevalence of food in skin care. “We’re learning more and more about skin and nature, and about the interaction between the two.” Young said segments of the U.S. beauty industry are increasingly leaning toward natural, organic and homegrown products as customers veer away from chemicals and synthetics.

“In other parts of the world, it is normal to use food and elements of nature for medicinal or beauty purposes,” she said. “In America we are just waking up to that now.”

The article cites brands like the Body Deli out of Palm Desert, Calif., and Farmhouse Fresh from Frisco, Tex. One maker we can vouch for is Elique Organic Skin Food, which sources its foodie-quality ingredients from Los Angeles’s famed farmers markets. And coming this summer, Elique’s founder Elisha Reverby will be offering classes out of her salon in Venice, Calif., to teach students how to make their own eco-beauty products at home (details TBA here). Sign us up!

Moop makes my all-time favorite summertime purse, the Market Bag. With its oversize slouchy shape, pockets galore, and sturdy-but-lightweight cotton twill fabric, you’ll bring it everywhere from the farmers’ market to the movies to the beach. And the adjustable strap means it instantly converts from a hobo to a cross-body messenger bag, making it versatile for a variety of purposes.

All of Moop’s bags are stitched by hand using grown-in-the-USA cotton. In fact, she’s known for having quite a following on Etsy.

To celebrate its third anniversary and the introduction of its organic cotton Market Bags, Moop is offering 10 percent off all orders through Wednesday. Just enter coupon code MOOPLOVESYOU during checkout.

Market Bag in Organic Bright Cherry Red, $113 at MoopShop.com.

To fight sluggish sales and an unpaid loan that is threatening to pull the company under, American Apparel is re-launching its upcycled vintage line, California Select.

Says an AA press release:

“We’re passionate about and inspired by the unique nature of vintage items here at American Apparel and have amassed a really amazing collection of one-of-a-kind vintage pieces. We decided to switch from the difficult auction platform to our own webstore, not only to showcase our vintage findings to our online shoppers, but also to better meet the growing demand for the line,” said Iris Alonzo, a creative director for American Apparel.

We especially admire the innovative spirit evident in California Select’s reworked garments, deconstructed from deadstock and vintage fabrics and occasionally modernized with new materials. The dress pictured here, for example — you’d never guess it was upcycled from vintage cranberry polyester!

California Select Original Cut Out Schoolgirl Dress, $55 at AmericanApparel.net.