Turn up the Summer Heat with Stylish Eco Sandals

It's summertime and sustainable shoes never looked so good. Here are some of my favorite sandals this summer season. Get ready to show off your style while being good to the planet!

Fiel "Sula" Thong  Sandal in Bronze

I really love this shoes as well as the name of this company. In Spanish "Fiel" means loyal or faithful. These shoes are designed in Venice Beach and produced in one of Brazil's most recognized workshops in terms of environmental safety fair wages and employee benefit.

Shop: Fiel "Sula" Sandals, $155. www.fielshoes.com

 

Olsen Haus "Journey" Shoes
Follow your journey with this awesome couture vegan sandals. These are made from an ultrasuede-like material created from 100% recycled industrial waste from television screens!
Shop: Olsen Haus "Journey" Shoes, $190. www.olsenhaus.com

Cri de Ceour Emma Elastic Wedge Sandal
Cri de Ceour makes some of the most beautiful hand-crafted shoes and the attention to detail is outstanding. In French, Cri de Ceour means "Cry from the heart". These sandals made from vegan materials are seductive, super stylish and comfortable thanks to their elastic detail. It features faux snake detail.
Shop: Cri de Ceour Emma Elastic Wedge Sandals, $220. www.crideceour.com

Beyond Skin Sunny Platforms
Beyond skin footwear is not only stylish and fun but completely vegan, handmade, sweatshop-free, recycled, eco-friendly and ethical. These shoes are made in India and Spain using local materials to reduce their carbon footprint.
Shop: Beyond Skin Sunny Platforms, $250 www.endless.com

TOMS Yellow Calypso Sandal Wedges
This is a fantastic color for these summer season.These are newest and tallest member of the TOMS family, the Wedge. These are super cute and I heard they were really comfortable too!
Shop: TOMS Yellow Calypso Sandal Wedges, $69. www.toms.com

Naya Mayher Shoes in Moonstone
These eco-friendly wedge sandals are made from chrome-free leather, nickel-free buckle, Cork and rubber footbed with cushioning biodegradable latex foam under chrome-free leather lining. These are great and will go nicely with any breezy summer outfit.
Shop: Naya Mayher Shoes, $99. www.naturalizer.com

Greenbees "Stephania" grecian sandal in Rustic
These fabulous sandals are handcrafted and fair trade in Mexico processed traditionally, without heavy metals or formaldehyde. Greenbees is committed to reuse and recycle which is why the sole of every shoe is made from 100% recycled tires! Totally eco glam.
Shop: Greenbees "Stephania" Sandals, $79. www.branchboutique.com

Enjoy!


The Eco Glamourista

NYC Event: 2010 Sustainable Planet Film Festival

The Sustainable Planet Film Festival is a two day event that will be held on June 7th and 8th, 2010 in New York City.  It’s the second time being held in NYC, previous festivals were held in Belgium and Jordan. The Sustainable Planet film festival was launched in 2005 as to celebrate the UNESCO DECADE on Sustainable Education.

Eco celebrity Pamela Peeters the mastermind behind this amazing project, is an environmental economist and certified eco consultant, has produced over 200 television episodes of the lifestyle magazine "Our Planet", various short films and several radio segments. She is also a published writer, lectures internationally and contributes in making sustainable development topics become a part of the mainstream media. She also is the creator of Sustainable Styles Magazine.

I met Pamela a week ago at the NYC ECO-friendly Expo where she was part of the "Power of Green Lecture Series" where she introduced a really phenomenal sustainability workshop.

Pamela Peeters on the Film Festival:
“Sustainable Planet" is a film festival that promotes sustainable development. It is the first platform where moviemakers can meet with for-profit and non-profit organizations in order to watch movies and discuss sustainable solutions in an entertaining way. Films to screen come from India, Belgium, the USA, France, Haiti, Lebanon, Germany, Australia, and Brazil and showcase community building efforts and/or environmental care practices."

Confirmed Speakers: 
Tara DePorte - Program Director from the Lower East Side Ecology Center
Almudena Fernandez - Spanish top model, spokesperson for Al Gore and owner of a line of Eco shoes
Maria Snyder - Artist and designer, former top model and creator of Eco Boys and Girls, education for children
Ana Joanes - The Director and Producer of the movie FRESH
Steve Ritz - Teacher/communityadvocate
And more to come...

Film Festival Program: 
"Climate chaos in the South, the victims story", Director: Geert De Belder
"Fresh", Director: Ana Joanes
"Eco Boys and Girls", Director/Producer : Maria Snyder
"Native Wind: powering America", Director : Chip Comins
"Urban farming NYC -Bronx NY", Directors: Steve Ritz and Adam Liebowitz
"Ethical Markets", Director: Hazel Henderson

If you are in the NYC area be sure to check out this amazing event that promotes sustainable development!

For more information and to purchase festival passes visit the Sustainable Planet website at: www.sustainable-planet.net/

DIY Exfoliating Scrubs for a Smoother Summer

Making your own scrub from natural ingredients is a great way to green your beauty routine and uncover that fresh glowing skin underneath naturally.

There are basically two ways you can scrub away dead cells and impurities from your skin, there is the physical defoliator which has the grainy texture and there is the chemical defoliator which naturally comes from fruit acids. What these fruit acids do is dissolve the bonds that hold skin cells together, allowing them to slough off more easily.

So go ahead, buff, scrub, and peel your way to a smoother summer with the season's best remedies that  are handmade and good for the environment. These can also make really great gifts because some you can keep for up to six months,  so find a nice little jar and make these for your friends!

For The Face:

 DIY Oatmeal-Lavender Face Scrub
1 cup ground oatmeal
1/2 cup dry lavender flowers, stripped of stalks
1/2 cup powdered milk (either whole or nonfat)
2 tsp. cornmeal

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl, massage into damp skin, and rinse with warm water. (Scrub will keep for six months.)

Recipe from "Do It Gorgeously" (June, 2010), by Sophie Uliano.

Pineapple Face Scrub
2/3 cup fresh pineapple chunks (room temperature)
1/4 cup cold-pressed olive oil
1/4 cup fresh, clean parsley, chopped

Pulse pineapple in a blender, then add oil until almost smooth. Add parsley, and blend carefully so mask doesn't liquefy. Apply to skin and leave on for 15 minutes, instructs Brenda Brock, recipe creator and founder and CEO of Farmaesthetics.

For the Body:

DIY Spicy Sugar Scrub
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. ground cloves
1 Tbsp. dried rose petals
2 tsp. grated orange zest
1 1/2 cups sesame oil

Combine ingredients in a large bowl, making sure that everything is well mixed. Use on damp skin twice a week, Uliano says, scrubbing with your hands or a washcloth in small, circular motions. The mix will last up to six months when stored in a cool, dark cupboard.

DIY Coffee Zest Body Scrub
1/2 cup used coffee grounds
1/2 cup honey
1 Tbsp. fresh orange zest

Mix ingredients together in a container and rub mixture into skin with your hands or a washcloth, using upward strokes, for one to three minutes. Apply up to three times a week.

Tip: Limit exfoliation to once a week until you know how your skin reacts. Then, you can scrub up to three times if your skin isn't showing signs of irritation....and always apply moisturizer after exfoliation for smoother skin.

 

Also..checkout another great Natural DIY treatment by The Eco Glamourista

What's your favorite  DIY Exfoliating Scrub recipe? share with us!

Recipes and Photo credit: Whole Living Magazine