Like to surprise your mother upcoming Sunday @Mother’s day? Some tips to make her day unforgettable plus extremely koolconsious!

Shopping Tips: Mum is real woman!

Avocado & Jojoba Skin Cream via Shizo; Beyond Skin Shoes via Charliemary;  Bag: Rume Fall Hamptons via Ecochicshop; Eco Boudoir Lingerie via Ecochicshop

For Mums who like to travel!

I live in a suitcase Travel Kit via Shizo

…………………..Mums LOVE Chocolate too!

Ecofabulous cooking for all seasons written by Lisette Kreischer; Fiori D’Arancio – Eau de Parfum via Shizo; Lovechock via Mastercareshop

Do It Yourself

If you prefer to create something yourself, -like you might have did when you were an arty kid-, than check out threadbanger and Etsy for some inspiration. Making your own soap and get dirty in the kitchen, build a homesweethome birdhouse for the cosy tweeters in her garden or get nostalgic by designing some real ’70 string art.

Via Etsy: Yellow Mum print 6×8

Tell your mom to stay in bed and bring her a fresh delicious breakfast. Check out these fancy cupcakes by rosieandthecupcakefactory for some inspiration. For tastefull vegan cooking tips you can buy the book Ecofabulous cooking for all seasons, written by Lisette Kreischer.

Things To Do:

For the perfect activity you need ingredients like nature, pleasure and good food! So what about a bike tour and a picnic? If you are based in the Netherlands than you can’t miss the Giro d’ Italia. This world-famous long distance road bicycle race for professional cyclists will paint the Netherlands PINK on 8/9 May by hosting the kick off of the alluring event. At Mother’s day the province of Zeeland (down at the west coast) presents Girodimamma, and bike event with different art/flower/farm routes through the green agriculture fields.

Mum is more into extremes? Than join her in a bungy jump or anti-skid course.

///FASHION EVENTS

Sometimes I wish I were born with wings. If so I would be flying around the globe to be part of the fun-filled honest party’s and events.  Gladly we have the web to browse around blogs and sites (Ecofashionworld.com) for updates and reports.  Just a quick scan on upcoming Fashion Weeks, results in a nice list of Hiphonest things to do.

Pictures by Nixxi

A little gloss on this: Besides the fact that I encourage these green, eco and conscious fashion events, my strive/dream is that sustainability will be integrated in the fashion business as a natural thing. …Shamefully we still need to create more awareness amongst consumers, media, retailers and other bigger players in the fashion industry.

The website Rank a Brand researched the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies demonstrated on the websites of 200 fashion brands. And many corporate fashion brands and houses still have A LOT of work to do.

The events mentioned below are examples of worldwide platforms presenting relatively small and niche fashion labels with an eco conscious angle. Events and shows like these have the function of the pioneer. Hopefully more and more stores (both big departments and the smaller boutiques) will purchase these winning alluring collections and other not ‘responsible’ labels will get inspired and ACTIVATED.

Picures by noir

So let’s start this event-journey in my home village Amsterdam. During Amsterdam Fashion Week (27-31 January), the Amsterdam Sustainability Institute for Fashion and Fabrics (ASIFF), will organize an event with an interesting speakers program and workshops. This event is called MIND.  At 28^th of January professionals in the fashion will fresh up their MINDS.

At this moment in Berlin, THEKEY (20-23 January) is taking place. Follow the tweets on this at their colorful blocky blog. In Swiss, the ECOCHIC Geneva (20-21 January) already ‘took a flight’ at the 20 and 21 of January. Check a radiant report by Abigail Doan on Eccoeco.

Pictures by Nixxi

In Paris GREENshowroom (23-26 January) visits Prêt-à-Porter at in the department Atmosphère. Concept of this showroom is to present at locations noted for ambiance, like Hotels. Honestly, in my unpretentious opinion this step to a bigger trade fair, like Prêt-à-Porter, is a good one. More chance for visiting retailers here, than in an upper-class hotel.

During Londen Fashion Week, end of February, you can visit the show estethica, which is the BFC’s (British Fashion Council) eco sustainable initiative sponsored by Monsoon. Now in its seventh season, it has evolved to become the epicentre for London’s ethical fashion industry. The designers selected include Ada Zanditon, Christopher Raeburn, Goodone, Minna, Nina Dolcetti and The North Circular.

picture by Laura Pannack, Esthetica 2009

With New York Fashion Week only in a few weeks (11-18 February) Greenshows (14-17 February) presents runway shows featuring amongst others Gary Harvey and EKOVARUHUSET.  After Fashion Week we have NOW Showcase (February 20-22) an emerging show with honest labels including SDN, Naturevsfuture, Jai Active Wear, Turk + Taylor and Sust. NOW Showcase teams up with mediapartner Ecouterre, the stylisch online (eco)magazine.

Picture Feral Childe Spring/Summer 2010 Collection

With all eyes on Vancouver during the Olympics, Eco Fashion Forward Fundraising Night (February 19)  is the perfect way to showcase Vancouver’s long established commitment to sustainable style. An evening filled with eco fashion, music and art! Check these participarting labels Ashley Watson and Nixxi.

Talking about this shift I think the main point in this is that the shift takes place in the being and harts of young creative’s around our world. We as human beings are in an transition.

///BREAKING NEWS

Personally, the good news is, that Hiphonest.com is mentioned on 3 different long-lists for the subcategories TrendWatcher of The Year 2010. I feel already very honored.. Since this writing is my dedicated passion! These different categories: UPCOMING TALENT / FASHION & DESIGN /DUURZAAMHEID (=SUSTAINABILITY)

So if you feel like promoting me or Hiphonest please send an email before 2 February to: ikstemop@secondsight.nl

THANKS Annouk

///INSPIRATION

Already joined a PechaKucha Night? Pecha what?? Well PechaKucha, drawing its name from the Japanese term for the sound of ‘chit chat’ started in Tokyo in February 2003 as an event for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public. Yesterday I had my first PechaKucha experience..and let it ‘rain’ on me.

PechaKucha has turned into a massive celebration, with events happening in hundreds of cities around the world, inspiring creatives worldwide.  Concept is to present your story in 20 alluring images x 20 seconds. The understandability and flow in this presentation format provides you as a visitor the perfect dose on inspiration.

One of the marvelous concepts was the RAINCAMPAIGN developed and designed by agency MisterWilson. Entrepreneur Bas Manders presented the RAINCAMPAIGN as an innovating, surprising environmental friendly outdoor advertising campaign. Using only rainwater.

One thing of for sure! Living in a city is a fertile source for ideas. This ‘shitty’ rainy climate in the Netherlands brings magic! And in Paris, the ‘city of love’, you can find these flirty ’streetharts’. The good news is that this RAINCAMPAIN supports the recovery of the rainforests. With every campaign they make for a client, like for example tire importer company Continental, a percentage will go to an international rainforest project which protects the rainforest.

Stylish singing in the rain? Check Treehuggers article on ecobrella’s.

///INSPIRATION

Another similar story to the previous post –from a blog to a fresh company- is the young Dutch (hero) blogger Nalden. With his unique and internationally recognized blog Nalden keeps reinventing himself and other businesses.

On his website you can about music, gadgets, technology, fashion, brands, art and everything that inspires this ’social entrepreneur’. Nalden created a very clever Wallpaper Advertising business model on which big labels like Nike, Vodaphone and Philips already took part.  Nalden: ‘The Good Things of Corporate Sponsorship. The Corporate Sponsorship of Good Things. This is my philosophy.’

That big brands like Vodaphone are really interested in these young creative entrepreneurs can be seen on the website of Vodaphone heroes. In this (click here) nicely shot video report you can crib in the office of Nalden: Naldisney. Nalden likes to bring the offline and online world together by organizing an exhibition called ‘One night Stand’, in only one single day….’Well, good luck’, we thought, but he managed to do this! Thanks to his big online network he had great art plus a lot of visitors.