By Starre Vartan / Source: EcoChick

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The Nolcha Shows at New York Fashion Week have come to be synonymous with independent designers—and that includes plenty of talent that is working ethically and sustainably too.

We’ve been covering Nolcha’s shows for years, and this season, we’re proud to be a media partner with the shows too!

We’ll be back late next week with more from the latest collections from each of the designers below, but until then, here’s a sneak peak of what’s to come!

N O L C H A S H O W S R U N W A Y

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Minan Wong‘s eco-friendly, made in NYC, sustainable and fairtrade clothes come from a designer who has worked with Eileen Fisher and Donna Karan. Wong writes:

Great design starts with sustainable materials. Whenever possible, items are made using eco-friendly elements like organic cotton, Tencel, recycled wool and recycled PET. All pieces are made in the US for fair wages and support the local economy, because empowerment is not just for the people who can afford to buy our clothes!

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Acid NYC is made in the great city of New York, and the label’s designers hail from Brooklyn and the Bronx, so they are keeping it close to home, giving back to the community that they grew up in. Designers Evelyn Luna (formerly of DVF) and Scott Chester are all about museum-quality prints on their eye-catching designs.

Asked about their design philosophy this season the team wrote:

This season we stay shallow not diving too deep so as to not make waves. This season we languish on the sand in silk and blow in the breeze of salt air. We breach the surface of texture, our designs being filled with light and yet we are firmly anchored in our colorful community.

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Samantha Leibowitz New York is also proudly made in NYC and the designer is inspired by the arts, architecture and gardens. This designer is new to us and we can’t wait to see what her runway show features!

N O L C H A S H O W S F A S H I O N M E D I A L O U N G E

On September 14th from noon-4pm the Nolcha Shows Media Lounge will be featuring the following designers at the Bryant Park Hotel in their fashion media lounge:

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DELA ÉVA: Made in the UK, DELA ÉVA is a London based handbag brand influenced by a combination of something old inspired by the classic masterpieces from the past and something new inspired by the modern world of today. All materials used are carefully sourced from quality suppliers in Italy, France, UK, Germany and Austria. Due to the exclusivity of materials used the quantity of handbags produced in one particular style is strictly limited, making every DELA ÉVA handbag a rare treasure.

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Marshelly’s Jewelry: Made in Manhattan and inspired by music, art and life Marhselly’s Jewelery has a vision to create accessible jewelry that may be worn throughout the year for every occasion.

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Michelle Pajak-Reynolds: Michelle Pajak-Reynolds creates bold, one of a kind, couture jewelery inspired by avant-garde fashion, nature, and the designers travels around the world. Made in the USA from recyclable materials. We loved Michelle’s story of how she came to design jewelry:

As a little girl, I spent hours playing with pop-beads and jelly bracelets while watching Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman’s jewelry gave her super powers, confidence and enabled her to change the world. My passion for making jewelry is to help my clients feel like the most beautiful and confident women in the world and as though they can conquer anything. My love of jewelry and design runs deep into my DNA. My parents fell in love over a K-Mart jewelry counter; my dad was a Cleveland Clinic police officer and my mom was a jewelry department manager.

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Taylord Blu: Mens accessory brand Taylord Blu is influenced by 1920-1950’s fashion and the iridescent colors that nature provides. Made in the USA. Asked about his influences, designer Marlin Jones said:

Some of my influences are fashion’s from the 1920-50’s, but also from nature itself. The vibrant to almost iridescent colors that nature provides are true treasures of life and color transcends the eyes and mind in ways that stimulate our senses.

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I AM I is minimal, geometric jewelry with materials sourced directly from Kenya, where designer Ami Doshi Shah was born. Ami contrasts texture, color and unexpected detailing: The label’s vision is to create sculptural adornment that blurs the lines between art and jewelry.

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Mafi is an African brand for global women that has an ethical soul and provides sustainable solutions for local artisans. Designer Mahlet Afework is based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She started her career at 16 as a model and musician, while simultaneously studying nursing. She left school and quit modeling to follow her passion and become a professional fashion designer. Mafi has since gained critical acclaim for her cutting-edge designs; winning the 2012 Origin Africa’s design award, showcasing her work at African Fashion Week New York 2012, and winning the 2010 Designer of the Year award from Alliance Ethio-Française at European Fashion Day in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

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Sammy Handmade: The brand creates hand woven feather weight scarves, tunics and hand tie-dyed Ethiopian highland sheep nappa leather accessories that are influenced by culture, traditions and craft techniques from various Ethiopian regions. The brand’s designer, Belen Abdella looks to preserve Ethiopia’s long history of handcraft skills and create items that appeal to the global market as well as to work with artisans, create employment and use natural and eco-friendly materials to make beautiful, luxury products.

Read more @ EcoChick