Spotlight on SurfMonk (and Tiger Lily)

Today, as summer is slowly extending the daylight (if not the warmth!) of the days, I'd like to highlight SurfMonk, a beach apparel line started by a pair of locals. I initially heard about SurfMonk from my mother, who is friends with the owner, Claudia Taylor. It wasn't until I came across the SurfMonk twitter account that I realized it was all eco-friendly and locally manufactured! That certainly got my attention.

Here's the SurfMonk philosophy:

SurfMonk is 100% committed to sustainable and local manufacturing. Made in Los Angeles, all goods are sweatshop-free, organically dyed and made of raw materials developed without the use of chemicals. We believe in the use of natural resources without destroying the ecological balance of our world.

So, not only can I feel good about buying these products, but they are super cute!! Some of my favorites are below, all of which you can order online here.

SurfMonk also features cool accessories from other brands - my favorite of which is Tiger Lily. My neighbor, Heather Gardner, designs all of Tiger Lily's exquisite, nature-inspired pieces, and I love her stuff. Her feather earrings are featured on the SurfMonk website, but you can also see her whole collection here. Heather was on of the boutique vendors at the Tribute to the Human Spirit Awards gala that I produced last week, and she lent me a beautiful gold/blue Swarovski crystal set of necklaces and earrings for the evening!

Bamboo-Ya!

So, bamboo is the newest fiber of choice for those with aspirations toward green living. Apparently there are a lot of good things about it, none of which I knew until now:

1. it's renewable and sustainable
2. it's naturally resistant to bacteria, which means no pesticides --heck yes, organic!
3. it's breathable and cool as a fiber
4. it's anti-bacterial which means it doesn't need to be treated during manufactuing --> no harmful irritants
5. it's versatile as a material and can be used as food, shelter, fuel and, evidently, clothing

I'm not sure how many companies are utilizing the material, but one called Panda Snack (get it? Panda's eat bamboo...) has started an environmentally conscious line of clothing that seems fairly fashionable. The image above is from their website. http://pandasnack.com/ Pieces from the summer collection are sold at many locations throughout Los Angeles.
Hopefully more companies with incorporate this fiber into their repertoire.