 Stories About: advice AND Ask Umbra AND fashion AND green living
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Author |
Published |
Section |
Tongue Tied
On leather vs. pleather shoes |
Umbra Fisk |
23 Jan 2008 |
Ask Umbra |
| Hi Umbra, As a devoted vegetarian, I try to make it a point to avoid leather footwear. However, after too many hours of deep thought on the subject, I am now conflicted about the environmental ramifications of my choice to buy processed petroleum shoes, i.e., pleather. Leather is, after all, a natural material; pleather is plastic. So is it better for the environment to put aside my veggie ethics in favor of a natural material, ... |
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| Topics: advice, animal welfare, Ask Umbra, fashion, green living, shopping (all these topics) |
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Pest Control
On environmental busybodies |
Umbra Fisk |
15 Nov 2006 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, A friend recently said I should "walk the talk" by replacing my synthetic clothes (purchased before I saw the environmental light, as it were) with new things made entirely of organically grown fibers. I thought about this, and it seems wasteful to get rid of clothes that still fit and look nice, just to buy new clothes that I don't really need. What to do? Arvella Georgetown, Texas Dearest Arvella, Where d ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, green living (all these topics) |
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Clothes Encounters
On synthetic fabrics and kids |
Umbra Fisk |
11 Oct 2006 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, I have just recently learned about all these plastic-awareness issues and now wonder about polyester clothing, or any human-made fabric for that matter, on my children (three girls: 3, 5, and 7 years old). If plastics can leach out into their bodies, can clothing also affect them? Julie Roberts Nevada City, Calif. Dearest Julie, The clothing we wear can affect all of us, as well as our environment. But should ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, green living, parenting, toxics (all these topics) |
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Textile Messaging
On old clothes |
Umbra Fisk |
05 Jul 2006 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, I promise that I searched the archives before emailing you, so hopefully you haven't already answered this question. I'm wondering about the best way to dispose of old clothes and shoes -- the tired, well-loved, and much-worn items that thrift shops really don't want. I wear my clothes until the bitter end, and then I just don't know what to do with them. Old T-shirts make great rags, but then what? Carrie Doring Seattle, W ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, green living, recycling (all these topics) |
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The Fashion of the Grist
On eco-conscious fashion |
Umbra Fisk |
20 Jun 2005 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, I need some new clothes! But besides shopping consignment and used clothing shops and hunting through labels looking for "Made in USA" tags, are there online sources of organic- or sustainable-fabric clothes that are guaranteed sweatshop-free? I would not mind investing in some decent duds that look nice and last. Lorna Vogt Salt Lake City, Utah Dearest Lorna, Yes! I'm going to mention a few, and I ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, green living (all these topics) |
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String Theory
On clotheslines |
Umbra Fisk |
08 Jun 2005 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, We would like to install a clothesline this summer to take advantage of the few months of sun that we get here in Oregon. Any advice on the best kind, and how to keep air-dried clothes from feeling like cardboard? German Whitley Philomath, Ore. Dearest German, Excellent. If your power supplier is, as I suspect, Consumers Power Inc. in Philomath, you are paying about 7 cents per kilowatt-hour; their handy electricity calculator ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, energy, energy at home, energy efficiency, fashion, green living (all these topics) |
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Everybody Must Get Hemp
On hemp fabric |
Umbra Fisk |
04 Oct 2004 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, You didn't mention hemp as a fabric alternative. Jordan Marquette, Mich. Dearest Jordan, No, I didn't. Thank you for writing such a concise letter; it stood out among the 4 million other hemp letters and cut straight to the point. I apologize for the omission. Hemp is currently a narrowly available fabric with a prohibitively high cost and a limited fashion palette. That said, it holds a lot of promise as a high-yield ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, food and agriculture, green living (all these topics) |
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The Environmentalist's New Clothes
Advice on natural fabrics vs. polyester |
Umbra Fisk |
12 Jul 2004 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, I've never appreciated human-made fabrics -- polyester and its cousins invariably feel less comfortable to me than cotton or wool. Until recently, I thought this personal preference also had the happy side effect of making me a greener clothes shopper, since producing natural fibers doesn't involve long chains of polymers. A friend recently claimed otherwise, telling me that the growt ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, green living, toxics (all these topics) |
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Clothes Call
On clothing |
Umbra Fisk |
30 Jul 2002 |
Ask Umbra |
| Dear Umbra, My nephew says that new clothes and other apparel that come from foreign countries are treated with toxic chemicals to avoid various types of fungal or insect contamination, and upon arriving at the loading dock of your favorite wanker-mart, they are ripe to toxify the air, your skin, your eyes. He worked on such a dock and had to wear a respirator and other protective devices to avoid dangerous levels of exposure to the stuff. So I ... |
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| Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, green living, toxics (all these topics) |
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