being written up in the vegetarian star! i feel like i have "arrived"...

http://vegetarianstar.com/2011/03/25/john-bartlett-thrilled-with-fur-free-runway-to-green-collection/

Runway To Green Promises No Fur...

mandiberg/cc by 2.0

Last year, award-winning designer John Bartlett went vegan—and so did his celebrated collections, which no longer contain any animal skins.

So when Bartlett heard about the upcoming Runway to Green eco-fashion show, he also wanted to make sure that there would be no fur flying on the runway, considering how the fur industry wreaks havoc on the environment. Bartlett penned a letter to Salma Hayek, one of the hosts of the event, outlining how fur is loaded with toxic chemicals to keep it from rotting in people's closets and how fur farms have been fined millions of dollars by the Environmental Protection Agency for hazardous-waste violations.

Bartlett was thrilled to hear back almost immediately that there will be no fur at Runway to Green. Hayek herself shuns fur, as do designers Stella McCartney and Tommy Hilfiger, who will feature pieces in the show. Now that all the other designers have agreed to follow suit, Runway to Green will truly be both Earth-friendly and animal-friendly.

Thanks People Style Watch for this sweet piece....

http://www.peoplestylewatch.com/people/stylewatch/package/gallery/0,,20222041_20466466_20912719,00.html

Wonderful Piece from nbcnewyork.com

John Bartlett: “I Want to Be a 100% Vegan Designer”

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For award-winning clothing designer John Bartlett, eating vegan isn't enough. He wants to design vegan, too.

Bartlett said he will wait to present during Fashion Week until he’s established alternatives to all animal-derived elements within his work.

“Next time I show,” Bartlett told Niteside, “I want to show a fully vegan collection. I want to make sure there’s intention behind it. Over the past year, I have taken leather out of my collections, I will no longer [use] down and, hopefully by next fall, I will no longer [use] wool.

"I want to be a one-hundred-percent vegan designer.”

Bartlett was on hand Sunday night at a ‘Fashion + Animals’ presentation given by TheDiscerningBrute.com’s Joshua Katcher, held at Jivamukti Yoga Center near Union Square.

Bartlett applauded fellow ethical designer, Stella McCartney, but said he strives to go beyond even her level of compassionate luxury.

“Stella is an incredible example," he said. "She still does work with wool and alpacas. I’d like to go all the way.”

As for his Fashion Week plans, Bartlett will be out and about, but he won't be showing his collection.

“I’m going to shows to see my friends," he said. "(But) it’s a bit uncomfortable because I know they’re using fur and they know how I feel.

“They don’t understand why fur isn’t fabulous. [Many] consider fur as fabric. There is this incredible disconnect. It’s the same kind of disconnect as eating a hamburger.”

Now, Bartlett is making moves in line with his morals, and leading by positive example.

“I’m trying to find my voice," he said. "I’m really happy that I’m on that path now.”

BY NELL ALK // 2 HOURS AGO

This coming Sunday....

I am very excited about this upcoming talk given by Joshua Katcher, who is a compassionate and inspiring fashion commentator and friend. I am also honored to be part of this event, which is being held at Jivamukti Yoga School.  Should be a groovy crowd and it is being held in the Jivamuktea cafe.

Much love-jb

Fur Free Forever Please

2010 was an incredibly interesting year and one that I will always remember as the year I woke up from a dream, of sorts. You see, earlier this year i decided to move towards a plant based diet and to move away from using leather in my main collection, John Bartlett. My boyfriend John Esty and I decided to stop wearing leather, even our shoes and belts, and have begun encouraging our friends to seek out alternatives to leather and other animal derived materials.

This journey was prompted, ironically, by all of the animal fur that has returned to the forefront of fashion this past year. The fall collections were dripping with fur from almost two-thirds of the designers showing in New York. I have learned that many of the younger designers are given free "fabric"(i.e. fur), funding for their shows and other swag like trips to visit the fur farms abroad. Designers who have never worked in fur are now using it with abandon. I asked one colleague, a fellow member of the C.F.D.A., why he used fur and he replied that he "could take it or leave it" but that he wasn't bothered about using fur because the animals are "humanely gassed". Does that sound strange to you? Am I the only one who thinks the fashion industry is light years behind other industries that have realized the unnecessary cruelty of using animals for selfish, outmoded ends.

When I realized how much work there is to be done in this fur-free arena, I met up with the Humane Society to see what i could do to help get the word out that the pitiless fur industry mistreats and kills more than 50 million animals a year. I joined the groovy team from the fur-free department at the Humane Society and spoke in front of a group of Parsons students about my feelings about fur. There is so much information to share about the dark side of the fur industry and any opportunity to get in front of students before they are brainwashed by the fur pushers is an opportunity to save lives.

If you are unclear as to what the fur industry looks like from behind the scenes please watch this video and visit the Humane Society's site:
http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/campaigns/fur_free/

There are so many wonderful options in the marketplace now and wearing fur and supporting the fur industry is unnecessary, cruel and out of touch with reality. It surprises me that there is not one high-profile editor who is willing to stand up for a fur-free industry. Why is everyone so afraid to say something about the atrocity of fur?

West Village Holiday

 some groovy scarves from my friend and artist alex stadler and candles(and incense) made by my friend eileen harcourts, both for jb!

a treasure trove of vintage-varsity inspired sweaters and the sweet holiday limited edition tiny tim angel tee!

a view from outside our store window. thank you so much chris keslar for making this window sing! love the quote in the window too