Boston Common - Niche Media - A side of Boston that's anything but common.
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY EMILIJA GUOBYTE-KRZEMINSKI HEART AND SOUL DESIGNER EILEEN FISHER CREATES FEEL-GOOD FASHION IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE FOR ECO-CONSCIOUS BOSTONIANS. BY BRYN KENNY A top ($148) and skirt ($228) (LEFT) and a shirt ($198) and sweater ($258) from Eileen Fisher's new Icons Collection. Ishq Mammoth stud with black diamond and Cortez gray pearl (price on request). When Eileen Fisher founded her eponymous label in 1984, she set out to provide chic, simple solutions to the problem of what to wear each morning. "Women long to experience the magic that happens when you put on a garment that's been pared to its essence: It come s alive on your body, and you discover a certain freedom and confidence," she explains. "I wanted to create a system of dressing that allowed women to relax into themselves." Now her customers can also rest assured knowing that their clothing has a positive impact on the planet, thanks to the brand's sustainably sourced materials and philanthropic programs. As clear today as it was three decades ago, Fisher's vision is evident in her reliable offer- ings: simple ballet-neck tops, tailored shirts, and lightweight skirts in soft, natural fabrics and colors. This aesthetic has been well received by the women of Boston: The brand cur- rently has five stores in the area, including locations in Chestnut Hill, Wellesley, Hingham, and Copley Place, whose larger, redesigned space debuted this spring. "The Boston shop- per enjoys a timeless look with quality fabrics," says Fisher, "things that we do best." Fisher's spring 2015 Icons Collection—her most eco-conscious to date—features several reimagined early designs, such as the Box-Top, an easy, tunic-style sweater from her origi- nal four-piece collection; the Coat, a f luid, f lattering design from 1989; and the Maxi, a long-line cardigan introduced in 1997. Each piece is created from sustainably sourced fibers, such as organic cotton and linen, using 45 percent fewer chemicals and 25 percent less water in the dyeing process. Fisher's long-term target is 100 percent sustainability. "Our goal is simple: design without negative impacts right from the start," she says. "We want to make sustainability our way of life." In addition to eco-friendly manufacturing, Fisher is focused on giving back. In 2009 she founded Green Eileen, an initiative that keeps discarded clothing out of landfills by taking back, mending, and reselling used Eileen Fisher garments. All sales proceeds—totaling more than $2.5 million so far—go to nonprofits that work to empower women and girls, a cause that's very close to Fisher's heart. In 2004 she created the Women's Business Grant Program, which annually bestows five grants of $12,500 each to support women in business. "I wanted to encourage women entrepreneurs, especially those who believe that busi- ness ca n be used to create socia l cha nge," Fisher says. "I have a lways t hought of t he company as being about more than the clothes. Creating meaningful impact in the world is at the heart of it." Copley Place, 617-536-6800; eileenfisher.com BC A Rare Gem CHESTNUT HILL JEWELER ANA- ATARINA DERVISEVIC HAS A FLAIR FOR PHILANTHROPY. BY JESSICA BOWNE Jeweler Ana-Katarina Dervisevic has always had an idealistic streak. Before she enrolled in Boston's School of the Museum of Fine Arts to study jewelry design, she worked as a war correspondent in the Balkans. N ow she creates one-of-a-kind jewelry with an ethical bent, using recy- cled gold, fair-trade gems, and conf lict-free diamonds. In her new collection, called Ishq Series #3, Dervisevic combines an urban edge and the calm- ing inf luence of the sea, a surprisingly harmoni- ous fusion resulting in pieces such as studs made of mammoth bone, diamonds, and rare salt- water-cultured Cortez pearls, and drop earrings with pink sapphires, black diamonds, and opals. For her Eye of the Beholder series, she commissioned a fourth-generation artisan to carve custom eye cam- eos onto ethically sourced Brazilian agate. But Dervisevic's ideal- ism goes beyond sourcing. Since 2008, she has sup- ported Women to Women International, an organiza- tion that helps to provide women in war zones with the tools they need to rebuild their lives and their communities—a cause that resonates with this former war reporter. "It all starts with mature women taking the lead," says Dervisevic, who donates a percentage of her profits to the group each year. She has also created two pieces, the women's Clean Bow and the men's Clean Dot brace- lets ($155 each), whose full sales proceeds benefit The Clean Ribbon, an organization devoted to disseminating information about the environmental causes of cancer. "I prefer to create a specific design for a nongovernmental orga- nization to sell, which will continually bring in revenue," says Dervisevic, who likens this approach to "the fishing skill over the fish. But when there is no opportunity to be the fishing pole, we give instead." anakatarina.com 42 BOSTONCOMMON-MAGAZINE.COM STYLE Style of Generosity