Lead by courageously inspired visionista Elizabeth,olsen Haus is taking refuge in the refuse offering socially conscience brilliantly (un)executed valiantly vegan haute couture foot candy using old TV sets. The eco-friendly, animal-free, cruelty-free environmentally safe - 100% post-consumer waste micro-fibrous materials made from the old tubes are the new wave of vegan fashion ...stomping out the past petroleum based faux plastic trends of years past. The line in the 2010 Fall/Winter Lookbook stands alone as art in motion. Functional and stunning, heels and flats, boots and booties..rainbows of textures, colors and fabulous architecture.  More photos after the jump!

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I have recently become really interested in the comparison of Consumerism and Materialism. First I would like to set a definition for these two words. Consumerism: the preoccupation of society with the acquisition of consumer goods. Materialism: the preoccupation of society to material possessions and their physical composition. These definitions are my own, and extracted from the many definitions of consumerism and of materialism available online. If you don’t agree with the definitions please share your own in the comments below. I want to make a clear distinction in the definitions of each word, because I think that each word has a completely different implication but too often their use and understanding are confused.

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[non tweetable version] I feel most alive when I am outdoors, breathing fresh air. I continue to be inspired by my surrounding environment and the people in it. I am a go-getter; I am almost always trying to figure out what I want to do with my life, and I am passionate about promoting the good works of others. In preparation for a behind the scenes media tour I took at NBC Studios this morning, I read "What Your TV Is Telling You to Do"on the Wall Street Journal--thanks to my friend Olivia Zaleski for sharing.  It discusses eco-friendly "behavior placement" (as opposed to product placement) across NBC Universal's programming.

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This past Monday was World Water Day so here at the Holstee HQ we've dedicated this week take a deeper look at some water related issues. In our search we came across this amazing video about bottled water that we think is worth sharing!

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Ever wonder why we pay for water?! If tap water really is as bad as everyone says?! Or what actually happens to the plastic bottles when “recycled"? This short video sums up these questions and more! Check it out!

Check out The Story of Stuff Project and share it with others! :)

Holstee has allowed us to meet amazing people from around the world. Today we would like to share one of those amazing individuals. Meet Kostas, the Baker of Zitza-Ioannina a small village in the mountains of Greece. After seeing our latest Korakor video, Kostas ordered a Rubiks Shirt and in that process we got chatting and we had the chance to learn about him and watch his great video! Kostas makes some of the most beautiful bread, and one day we hope to make a trip to visit him and taste it! And yes, it's true Kostas is allergic to flour!

Keveen (creator of Korakor) came and visited us in NYC a few weeks back, and while here he captured a ton of fun footage and produced this amazing video. You have most likely heard us mention Keveen and Korakor before...he has been a true inspiration and supporter of Holstee from it's start. Keveen is a traveling, love-spreading, music making, video producing, creative genius. Check out his site and subscribe to his YouTube for periodic doses of positive energy and good karma! Keveen, we love you and are so happy to be a part of the KORAKOR adventure!

Really pumped on these! We were getting bored with the backgrounds on our phone and thought they could use a small refresh. Whatcha think? You can download the colorful and inspirational backgrounds below, just click on the background below that you want and email the link to your iPhone, open the email, save the image, then set it to your background!

If you need some tech support getting it set up, just leave a note in the comment :-) Click image to download:

We  recently had the pleasure to have fellow entrepreneur, designer, store owner... Kate Goldwater join us at Holstee HQ for some tea. She founded and runs AuH2O -a sweet boutique located in the heart of NYC's East Village.  She makes much of AuH2O's clothing from recycled materials, sewn right on site. Her store also carries other eco-friendly designers, vintage and consignment clothing, jewelry and handbags. She even opens her store to talented FIT and Parsons students to experience real world fashion by offering them a venue  to display their work and as a bonus, they get a great mentor.  To sum it up - Kate is dedicated. Highly recommend all to swing by her shop and check out some of her latest creations.

Today, the Holstee team is spending time together enjoying the beautiful weather here in the East Village, NYC.  As a cultural melting pot, the East Village is a perfect location to reflect on the impact Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has made in our lives today. This quote moves me every time I read it. Its amazing how such a powerful concept can be summarized so perfectly in three sentences.

"Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality" Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Try and take a moment to reflect on how your actions may be indirectly affecting other and enjoy our day!

The 1st time is an observation, the 2nd a coincidence and the 3rd time means listen up... in 2010 we are hopefully ready to embrace going SLOW. #1. Slow Food It seems like the benefits of this movement are finally receiving the very welcomed attention it deserves... 2009 even led to iphone apps dedicated to finding seasonal local produce. If you haven't already check out Michael Pollan's eye opening book, Omnivore's Dilemma, put it to the top of your list. My biggest take away (as far as nutrition is concerned): the only thing more important than what we eat is, in fact, what we eat eats. #2. Slow Fashion We recently had a chance to check out the Pratt Gallery's (free) exhibit on Ethics + Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion. It displayed some of the pioneers in eco / slow fashion, including Bodkin, Loomstate, Uluru and of course, the innovative concepts of Sans. As Lika Volkova, founder of Sans contends - fashion technically cannot 'be eco' since it is continuously producing, but it is undeniable that this industry has tremendous opportunities for improvement. As an apparel line we are committed to the latter; from production, to materials, to packaging we make a point to consider all stake holders in each decision we make. #3. GOOD Going Slow When our quarterly issue of GOOD magazine arrived it was titled 'The Slow Issue'. In it were interviews with a myriad of forward thinking folks, each contributing to the issue's namesake in a unique way. Recent posts to the issue online include giving people incentive to opt for stairs over elevators, and an interview with the President of Slow Food USA, Joshua Viertel, among many others. Going slow can have implications for everything. To us, it means considering the big picture; thinking about the impact of our decisions, whether it is the food we eat, the products we buy, or the things we say. Here's to a happy, healthy... and slower 2010 for us all.