We couldn’t help but giggle a little at this quote from Steve Madden, the shoe knockoff king:

“We design shoes every day, and we are as creative as Prada. We are creating as much as the Pradas and the Chloés of the world. Do we make $900 shoes that are in Neiman Marcus? Have we made shoes just like that, which are less than $100 and have been great? Yes, we have. We’re out there creating and designing every day, making and building a meal for our customers. That creativity is not appreciated, and I would argue that what we do is harder. I could design an $800 shoe line; it’s easy. You use the best materials and you can make beautiful shoes. It’s easier than making great shoes for $90.”

But as The Cut rightly points out, Steve Madden’s company has on more than one occasion been the defendant in intellectual-property lawsuits from those top designers for ripping off their designs. He’s made an industry of copying high-end shoes for pennies on the dollar, and even if you respect his desire to bring big style to the little people, how creative do you have to be to manufacture replicas?

Above: In December, Balenciaga (the maker of the original Lego-inspired shoe on the right) sued Steve Madden over its uncanny knockoff, pictured on the left.

Carrie Bradshaw may be the world’s most famous (fictional) shoe maven, so it should come as no surprise that she’s rocking some ethical sandals by Swedish Hasbeens in the Sex and the City sequel, due out in theatres this summer.

In this photo from the set, Carrie (played by the ever-stylish Sarah Jessica Parker) sits with Miranda’s son Brady on a brownstone’s steps rocking the Super High Peep Toe sandal.

Swedish Hasbeens is known for its handcrafted quality and chrome-free designs made with sustainable wood and natural leather. And in spite of its 3.5 inch heel, this sandal is über-comfortable.

Says the shoe’s designer (who is understandably thrilled by the plug):

“This is the sign that modern women in the US have started to appreciate high-quality eco-fashion”, says Cilla Wingård Neuman CEO of Swedish Hasbeens. “The time has come to throw away those plastic high-heels that don’t last for your grandkids and just hurt your feet.”

Want a pair of your own before the movie comes out? You can pre-order them at the link below!

Swedish Hasbeens Super High Peep Toe Sandal in Natural, $219 at ShopRobertson.com.

You may love your shoes, but can your shoes find you love? If they’re TOMS, they just might!

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, the TOMS blog is asking for stories about how their charity-minded shoes have helped you out in the romantic department. The first story is pretty cute:

When we were in Virginia on vacation this past summer (from our home in CA) our delightful, 22 year old bearded, tattooed web designer son and our family were eating burgers at little retro diner in Williamsburg.

We were approached by a (brave!) girl “My friend wanted me to give you her number” is what she told our son.   Yes, this cute and stylish 20 year old thought our son was cute… but what clinched it was that he was wearing TOMS!  Because he was fashionable AND socially conscious she could NOT let this opportunity pass by!

Even cuter? They’re engaged now — and they’re outfitting their wedding party in TOMS. Super fitting.

If you’re not in love with TOMS yet, check out our review of this awesomely aware company.

It may not look much like spring outside, but in all of our catalogs and email inboxes, the fashion is warming up fast. So for the February edition of E.S. Eco-Over — where we take a hot trend and find a stylish equivalent from an ethical source — we tackle the hot flat-sandals trend.

In its weekly “Lust-Have Low Down” email, Neiman Marcus spoiled us with its top contenders for spring; from top to bottom, they are by Sigerson Morrison, Valentino, Emilio Pucci, and Antik Batik. While undeniably gorgeous, these selections range in price from $215 to $695 and use conventionally tanned leather.

Enter Matt Bernson to the rescue. His flat sandals for spring have every bit of the style and quality construction that these high-end competitors offer, but with vegetable-dyed leather stitched together in his fair-trade factory in Brazil. (Not to mention the comfort level is unreal.) Top to bottom, the styles here are imaginatively named Barracuda, Nouer III, and The Wanderer.

And given that his sandals range in price from $125 to $174, the choice is a bit of a no-brainer, isn’t it?

Apologies if we got your hopes up, but last week’s news of a Leona Lewis leather-free fashion collaboration with Stella McCartney turned out to be a hoax.

Not a hoax, however: Stella has confirmed that she and singer Morrissey will be turning out a line of vegan footwear in the coming year.

Morrissey has historically worn leather shoes, despite his vegetarian ideals:

Despite being a staunch supporter of animal rights, the singer was often spotted wearing leather and suede footwear, and once said of his favourite shoes, (a pair of suede moccasins that were a gift from Pete Burns) ‘I find shoes difficult to be ethical about – one just can’t seem to avoid leather. One is trapped, ultimately.’

Admittedly, our favorite shoes are leather too — we have yet to find a synthetic that breaks in so nicely, lasts as long, or feels as comfortable as leather. But best of luck to Morrissey in his endeavor to make that holy grail of vegan footwear.

British singer Leona Lewis is said to be planning to release a vegan clothing line with the help of her friend Stella McCartney.

According to the tabs:

A friend claims Leona said: “I’m on a mission. I’d love to promote a line of non-leather bags and shoes that are affordable. I think more needs to be available and not so expensive.

“There’s so much I want to do. I’ve always wanted to have my own fashion line, and that’s something I want to focus on next year.”

A quick word of advice for Leona: Make sure the clothes are actually affordable. Stella McCartney’s leather-free shoes and handbags start at $495 for rubber wedge boots — so we’re not sure that she’s one to counsel on what Average Jane considers a bargain.

And vegan actress Natalie Portman tried this route a few years ago but her idea of a reasonable price point was $200+ for pleather pumps. It’s no surprise that her collaboration with designer Té Casan went belly-up pretty quickly.

There are already a few brands that have cornered the market for non-leather bags that are a step above Target prices and a few steps below Stella, so we have to wonder whether Leona — who has no background in design — is merely aiming to reinvent the wheel.

Stressed out about doorbusters and early-bird sales on Friday? Give your Thanksgiving food baby a well-deserved nap and shop Nimli.com’s Black Friday sale from the comfort of your couch.

Nimli is loaded with great green gifts for everyone on your list. We can personally vouch for the supersoft cashmere-blend pashminas that happen to be fair trade, but also be sure to check out vegan shoes by Olsen Haus, a sustainable mahogany spice block for your design-obsessed best friend, plush soy bathrobes for the man in your life, and recycled leather jewelry that is certain to delight a picky teenager.

Take 25 percent off everything on the site this Friday by using coupon code BLACKFRIDAY09. That’s something to be thankful for!

With cold weather coming, you might be falling for the siren song of the Ugg boot. Derided as anti-fashion by critics and hailed as a fluffy white cloud heaven-sent for tired feet by surfers and skiers everywhere, there’s no denying that Uggs have managed to remain consistently popular ever since Paris Hilton started wearing the sheepskin boots with miniskirts in 2003.

At $180 for the most popular tall style, they are not cheap. Which is why there are so many unauthorized dealers selling Ugg-branded boots without the consent of the Ugg company in Australia. Even well-meaning fashion reporters are getting duped:

Due to the popularity of last week’s post on cheap Ugg boots, I can’t hold on to this one.

511stores.com is offering as much as 50 percent off Ugg boots. While that may not be quite the steep discount we saw last week, this one doesn’t have a deadline.

The only problem is, as the Times Union commenters were quick to point out, is that the Uggs sold by 511stores.com are faker than Paris Hilton’s tan.

Ugg Australia is well aware of the problem and has installed an anti-counterfeiting section on its website to help consumers identify too-good-to-be-true deals by entering the URLs of discount dealers claiming to sell authentic goods. (511stores.com got the “Known Counterfeit Website” designation.)

Such a great idea. It seems like a no-brainer for more companies that are prone to knock-offs to follow suit.

A forthcoming high-performance running shoe by Brooks that uses recycled materials guaranteed to biodegrade in 20 years -- as compared with 1,000 years for conventional runners. (Courtesy of Brooks)

Here at EthicalStyle, we spend a lot of time talking about how clothing looks and what our clothes are made of: sumptuous peace silk, luscious recycled leather, and awesome organic cotton. We also talk about the importance of quality and clothing that has benefited from tender loving care (henceforth, TLC) while it was being made. But beyond someone doing an amazing job stitching the seems on my new silk shirt, there is another kind of TLC we want to consider more.

I think the best thing to call it is “Intellectual TLC” or “Design TLC.”

Beyond simply executing a wonderfully-made item of clothing, this is the part of the process I like to call the “math and science” of a piece of clothing. This is the design you don’t see. The effort that goes into making sure a product serves its use well is a part of the process of expert design to maximize a garment’s purpose for its owner. Great designers ensure the products used in the manufacturing process correlate with the item’s eventual function.

Sound complicated? Let me ask this simple question: What sense does it make to have a pair of cotton-soled shoes that must be replaced every other day? Wasteful, right? I doubt many people would disagree. So let’s consider items, like shoes, and the design and substances that make them ethical. (This doesn’t always mean organic, per se. But the “design you don’t see” may just make a few surprising garments worthy of the ethical style” designation.)

There are truly some amazing design-focused brands out there:

Terra Plana

I first came across this company because a dear friend was sporting a pair of awesome shoes that she told me made her “feel barefoot.” She even passed along this article about feet.

I’ve concluded she must have been wearing one of their VIVOBAREFOOT shoes. Terra Plana defines sustainability as “lightness, anatomic design, disassembly and durability.” Its goal with each shoe is twofold: “minimize waste and toxin use” and “maximize product use and love.” And while they seek to use as many organic products as they can, they prefer to use the most durable synthetics and crazy-tough soles to maximize the lifetime of the shoe. (Click here to watch a video of the Terra Plana POP technology.)

You may not see inside the sole of your shoe, but Terra Plana puts the time into designing footwear for the whole body. They even provide an environmental impact matrix for the shoes you purchase. How many companies can boast that?

Helly Hanson

Maybe its EkoLab line of shirts, jackets, and pants isn’t exclusively organic cotton, but a great deal of meditation is behind its clothing design. Made out of nylon, for example, a women’s jacket is designed for extreme weather condition but to also have a “minimum impact on the planet.” They embrace waste-free methods of cutting, fabrics that eliminate the need for chemicals, multiple layers, and water resistant zippers. For a company that has been around for 130 years, Helly Hanson is pretty up to speed. If I am ever stuck out in the cold, I for sure want one of their jackets.

Brooks

A shoe company I have always loved is debuting an incredible new running shoe in February 2010. The performance racing shoe called Green Silence and it looks freaking cool. Not to mention it’s made from 75 percent recycled materials, soy-based inks, water-based adhesives, nothing toxic, a biodegradable insoles and collar foams — and the first ever biodegradable midsole for running shoes, a substance called BioMoGo.  Apparantly, traditional soles can last upwards of 1,000 years in a land fill (slightly longer than you’ll use your sneakers). This Brooks sole won’t biodegrade on your foot, but once “landfill” conditions are met, the sole will be eaten away in 20 years. Apparently, Brooks is so proud of their invention, they are not even patenting it, hoping to encourage other companies to use it.

You may not see the design. It may be invisible to the naked eye, or on the bottom of your foot. But the “math and science” that goes into the above products offer an exciting future of what ethical design can be when we put our heads — not just our hearts — into sustainable fashion.

We were so happy with our discovery of DenimTherapy.com and its miraculous rehabbing of our favorite jeans that we decided to test out a local option to see how it stacked up. Our search led us to the Denim Doctors, located inside the Hollywood Trading Company in West Hollywood.

And — success! They fixed a broken zipper on a beloved pair of Citizens of Humanity jeans in about 10 days for $22. (We plan to wear them out tonight in celebration.)

Man, this shop just drips with cool. Today we chatted with Ben (pictured right) about what else the store has going for it — other than flawless denim repair, of course — and it turns out he’s a curator of vintage belts, leather jackets, and boots. He told us women’s combat boots are a specialty, and showed us a pair of motorcycle boots from the 1940’s that they recently resoled.

When we asked about Fryes (a die-hard E.S. favorite), he said he prefers the older ones that were union-made to the newer styles, so we have a feeling this is a guy who knows his stuff.

The Hollywood Trading Company has shops throughout Europe, Australia, and Asia, so if boots and belts with street cred are your thing, give them a second look.

Denim Doctors/Hollywood Trading Company, 7383 Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles, Calif. (323) 964-0080.