Green Daily

Leave it to the left coast to bring us seriously sweet threads with more green bragging rights than most.

The Rio Rain clothing line, produced by the designer and manufacturer Ecoapparel of West Vancouver, goes beyond the claims of many green-friendly designers and does so without sacrificing style. Like an increasing number of eco-conscious fashion being released, these clothes have a list of enviro-features but don't need to look like they do. They're body hugging, beautifully designed and should be worn by those who rightfully care about what they wear.

Once you look good, you can feel good by knowing that they use organically grown or recycled cotton, bamboo, and ignore the damaging petroleum, dyes and chemicals that are still common in the garment industry. From the material to the manufacturing process (they have certified facilities in Vancouver and Asia) all the way to the eco-friendly physical West Vancouver store made with reclaimed wood, Rio Rain tries to go beyond just making sure they have energy efficient light bulbs (and, yeah, they have those too).

They are also a bluesign member (bluesign tag line: The independent industry textile standard) which makes sure that environmental and health and safety standards are being met. The owner, Mark Trotzuk, describes this green zeal by saying "It is time for businesses to take responsibility for the impact they have when they manufacture goods and services in large quantities for mass consumption".

It's nice to hear real, provable green sensitivity coming from business, especially when a lot of green claims are less than authentic. These guys even take one percent of sales to donate to local parks and environmental defense funds through 1% For the Planet.