Pass the sprouts and paint the pouts.

At Vancouver’s Eco Fashion Week -- subtitled Slow Food Slow Fashion -- green fashion upcycled its traditional granola-grinding image as 18 contemporary collections rolled chicly down the runway at Robson Square under the mantra of sustainable fashion.

“Eco Fashion Week is … about putting the focus back on clothes that people want to wear and showing sustainable fashions and accessories that are tres chic yet unique and developed in a socially responsible way,” said Eco Fashion Week founder and president, Myriam Laroche.

Laroche, who has 18 years of experience in the fashion industry including her work as a buyer for national fashion chains, says there’s a growing interest in moving away from mass market “fast fashion.”

According to Laroche, “fast fashion” garments seem like bargains but they’re usually poorly made offshore, with questionable labour and environmental ethics. Designed for a short lifespan, they add greatly to our bulging waste cycle.

“Statistics show that an average of 68 pounds of clothing and textile products are disposed of annually per person in North America,” said Anny LeClerc, a Washington-based spokesman for Value Village, which sponsored three fashion stylists, along with designer Kim Cathers of Project Runway fame, in back-to-back shows.

“We’re excited to partner in these shows and demonstrate that donated clothing can be styled into fashionable, original looks and can also be cut apart and reworked into completely new fashions, which was the premise behind a show called the 68 Pound Challenge with Kim Cathers,” added LeClerc.

Cathers met the challenge and created 30 designs from 68 pounds of used items she selected from Value Village. Her creations were shown on 10 models and showcased reworked, fashion-forward women’s designs created from such items as lace tablecloths, men’s trousers, pastel shirts, denim and more.

“I enjoyed the challenge of creating couture lace dresses as well as casual wear and did some hand dyeing to create some of the colours,” said Cathers, who designs K-Don by Kim Cathers.

Vancouver-based fashion stylists Tony Vu, Nicolette Lang-Andersen and Mimi Lauzon also each staged shows with outfits put together from Value Village. The shows were well received but reworked vintage and thrift shop items weren’t the only fashions on tap.

Fashion designer Nicole Bridger, known for seasonless, modern collections fashioned from natural materials and low impact dyes, presented a standout show that combined performance with fashion at the elegant old Vogue Theatre.

Eight models and eight dancers showcased Bridger’s latest styles in a lively show choreographed by Heather Laura Gray, which also served up some designer philosophy.

“I believe in embracing ourselves for who we are, no matter what body shape and size. The dancing was intended to show my clothing’s flexibility and portray the struggle and jubilation that accompanies letting go of things that hold us back,” said Bridger.

According to Bridger, printed floral patterns were a first in her new collection, as it was previously difficult to create them in an environmentally friendly, viable way.

“I recently returned from a major textile exposition in Europe and can’t wait to start working with more new, advanced materials, “said Bridger.

A contingent of Quebec-based clothing and accessory designers, including Atelier B and Ressac, also made a strong showing, as did Vancouver-based designers Standing Armed, Rise and Adhesif by Melissa Ferreira.

If you like the idea of Eco Fashion Week, keep your eyes peeled; organizers hope to create future shows in other cities.

heather.toskan@sunmedia.ca