KEY POINTS:
When Daria Myers was growing up in New York, her mother always said to her, "Never move into an apartment building that has a grocery store because you're going to get the roaches and the smell." Now, says the global president of skincare and makeup brand Origins, the
store is desirable, so long as it's a whole food variety selling organics.
"With the whole food grocery stores the fastest-growing food store in America, they have them in some of the most expensive apartment buildings in America. One on the top of the TimeWarner building went for US$47 million [$60 million]."
Although awareness of organic products has been increasing for some time, it wasn't until 2005, when the US Department of Agriculture agreed to certify beauty products with its Certified Organic seal, that Origins felt it could create an organic skincare range, rather than try to deal with the previous system of different regulations in different states.
The result is Origins Organics, a range of nine products including a lip balm, moisturiser, body lotion and toner, on counter at Origins here now. Prices start at $35.
As well as being USDA certified and made to food grade certification, they also carry the British Soil Association and European EcoCert certification.
"We have the most robust organics line on the market - the cleanest and purest."
Finding organic substitutes for preservatives was a challenge. Origins used a patent-pending combination of essential oils such as patchouli, lavender and clove, and some of the range comes in airless pumps, "so you don't allow any contaminants in." The "after opening" shelf life is 18-24 months which is "pretty average" for most skincare products.
There's more to Origins than nine organic products. It has voluntarily removed paraben from the 300 core Origins products and, as a company, is concerned about its carbon footprint. It buys wind credits for all its manufacturing plants and also for third-party manufacturers. All 130 stores in the US have been converted to wind power and there's an internal rule that "we will not air-ship anything even if we're late for a launch," says Myers. Now that's dedication.
Face of lace
On at Objectspace at the moment is an exhibition, A Lace Life, that textile fans will be going nuts for. Since 1966 Alwynne Crowsen has dedicated herself to lace and lace-making - but not in the way you might think. The exhibition includes a wide variety of laces - Chantilly, Rococo, Limerick, Swedish, German, Venetian, to name but a few - as well as lace-making equipment and the most wonderful creations made out of lace, including an illustration of a weta made from the lace that Queen Victoria chose for her wedding gown in 1840. Phone Objectspace on (09) 376 6216 for more information.
Bags of art
Forget the impersonal it-bag, think instead of a statement bag, handmade by a well-known New Zealand artist. Over the next few months at Scotties boutiques around the country, fans of fashion-as-art will be able to admire bags made by South Island-based artist Vita Cochrane.
These fascinating accessories, beautifully made out of vintage gloves, are for sale too. Cochrane's bags - which would make the perfect accessory for Kate Sylvester's glove-shaped scarves and dresses - are on display at Scotties in Auckland this month, in Wellington in May and finally in Ponsonby, Auckland, in June. Ph (09) 366 1664 for more information.