Elise Cheval as Namaka in her mini opera "Voice for Mother Earth" makes debut at Green Citizen in San Rafael

Less than 1 week after Green Citizen, an environmentally and socially conscious business collecting e-waste for free opened their 19th center in the Bay area, Elise Cheval was contacted through her web site and asked to show her art and stage a grassroots performance in San Rafael.  With big dreams to reach people about the impact of plastics on the marine environment and human health, Elise puts her money where her mouth is and makes her costumes out of recycled materials.  For her mini opera, "Voice for Mother Earth", she knitted and crocheted recycled audiocassette tapes to depict the endangered sea dragons, creatures she saw for the first time at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in 2009.  For the performance at Green Citizen, Elise created a music concrete, using sound effects of whales, shorebirds, and African animals, which have a "conversation" with concert pianist Jeffrey Paul and Native American percussionist QiQe White Elk.  During the performance, models wore the project GREEN runway collection including a dress made out of recycled plastic Target bags.   Elise's recycled art is currently on display through November 22 at Green Citizen, 777 Grand Avenue and 2nd Street, San Rafael.  The performance was videotaped by professional videographer Evan Harrar and will be shown on You Tube. 

Namaka wearing knitted and crocheted audiocassette tape costume

Namaka and QiQe White Elk

R to L, Louise Maloof, CEO/Founder of Green Citizen
James Kao, Forest Ray Thundercloud, Buffy Stolarcyzk, Angela

R to L, QiQe White Elk, Elise Cheval, Evan Harrar, Jeffrey Paul



A nice group of folks saw the show!

project GREEN RUNWAY TRASHION SHOW, at the Marin Sanitary Service in San Rafael, on June 16, 4-6 pm

Click here, for more information, on how you can create your own TRASHION and join us on the Runway!

Project GREEN RUNWAY at the Earth Day Festival in San Francisco

Things just couldn't get any better than being invited by Sandra Hanns of iGreen Networks TV,  to join our friends, Envirolution, Eco Art Fashion Youth Leadership, from Truckee, on the steps of City Hall!  Here are a few highlights of Pia, Jelka, Nadja and Elise, catching all the attention of numerous photographers. 

Elise in WakeUp Call

As part of our Mission, project GREEN RUNWAY, creates dresses out of plastic, in order to raise awareness about the impact of plastics on our health and oceans.  Additionally, we build careers and support youth leadership.  Here, Nadja, Jelka and Pia (from right to left), look beautiful with the City Hall behind them.

Nadja, Jelka and Pia

Pia in "Bridging the Gap", made from New York Times recycled newspaper bags, 2012

On the steps at City Hall, with Envirolution

Envirolution and Project GREEN RUNWAY make a huge splash together!

Pia with the New York Times

"Clouds" made from torn SF Chronicle bags, inspired Pia to pose with Richard!

Jelka, Nadja and Pia (right to left)

Nick, from The Clean Oceans Project, was delighted to be with Project GREEN RUNWAY at the Earth Day Festival, 2012



What a blast at the Sonoma Trashion Show!

Lorena and I had so much fun at the Sonoma Trashion Show.  We arrived on time, with our gowns, "Some Like It Hot" and "Wake-up Call", and a handful of flyers for our upcoming TRASHION Show at the Marin Sanitary Service on June 16.  We were delighted to be 1st and 2nd on the Runway for the Adult Section of the Show.  Check out our video!



Lorena in the dressing room





Lorena and Elise all decked out!

While Lorena had her done by Marilyn and Gretchen, Elise passed out the flyers to the designers and models, and invited them to our Event.  Georg was the official videographer, and got some great footage of the show.  If you would like the videos or photos, please let me know. 

Here are some highlights of the AMAZING CREATIONS at the show.



"Let Me Bake Cake" by Charlotte Kruk



 

"Let Me Bake Cake" by Charlotte Kruk



"A Scrimp Season" by Bonnie Brown

3rd place winner, "Dress of Cards" by Jan Lippold

"Dress of Cards"

1st place winner, "Black Pearl" by Mikaela Holmes

another design by Mikaela!

"Phoenix Rising From the Trash" by Alexa Wood and Joni Derikson

"Hold the Presses", SF Chronicle Recycled newspaper bags, by Toni Denmark

Gretchen, Marilyn and Lorena



Mikaela in the dressing room



project GREEN RUNWAY was a sensation at the Kick-Off Party at Red Vic

Last night, we were a sensation at the Red Vic Kick-Off party, for next Sunday's upcoming

FREE Earth Day Festival, April 22, 10 am to 5 pm, in San Francisco! 

The Creator of the Youth Events at the Earth Day Festival, Sandra Acevedo, who invited us to the Event, asked us to stand outside and usher in the people! Passers-by commented on how much they enjoyed seeing Jelka in a dress made out of Target bags; Katharina all decked out in Hefty trash bags; Nadja doing her "OLE!" in flaming hot red bubblewrap and Elise walking in her classic Whole Foods Market vinyl banner suit on 6" stilettos! 



project GREEN RUNWAY in front of Decades of Fashion in the Haight in San Francisco, 2012

 

 The neighboring shop owner, of Decades of Fashion, where you can pick up anything to do with fashion from 1880 to 1980, took some lovely pix of us, standing on the steps, which will be posted on their website!

After our "photo shoot" (thanks to Georg), outside the Red Vic, we were invited in with passers-by in tow to kick off the party with a little trashion fashion "show and tell" of our collection! 

During the Meet and Greet, we enjoyed talking to people about what we are up to with Youth Leadership through Creative Self Expression, and learned some cool things about Red Vic.  Laurie Taylor, who manages things in the 18 room B&B, invited us to participate in her Earth mural project right here in Marin and have our pictures taken wearing our collection in front of the finished project!

All of these opportunities has Elise hoppin' to arrange more trashion photo shoots in San Francisco, as well as in Marin!

Next weekend, we will be busier than ever.  On April 21, 5 pm to 9 pm, Lorena and Elise will be on the runway at the Sonoma Trashion Fashion, in Andrews Hall at the Sonoma County Community Center (flyer forthcoming).  Please come and support us, at the Reception and Party, wearing our project GREEN RUNWAY collection!  Please call Elise and Christin, if you would like to wear something from the project GREEN RUNWAY collection in the upcoming Event.

Save the date!  We have secured our venue for our upcoming Trashion Show in Marin!  We will be at the Marin Sanitary Service, June 16, 4 to 6 pm, wearing our project GREEN RUNWAY collection, along with your creations.

We will have on-going classes at Rainbow Fabrics, where you can create your own

Trashion Fashion for our upcoming show.

Wakeup Call and Some Like It Hot in upcoming Sonoma Trashion Show, April 21

It's official.  My plastic dresses have gone from the sidewalk to the catwalk.  Lorena looks hot in "Some Like It Hot", and I'm the only one brave enough to walk around on 6" stilettos in Wakeup Call, made out of vinyl banners, the entire day at the Sonoma Community Center on April 21.  There will be plenty of live music and refreshments to go around.  OLE!

From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk!

Friday evening, we were in San Francisco checking out how the PROS do it at the DeYoung Museum, during Friday Nights at the De Young, featuring        "The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gautier:From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk"  exhibit running from March 24 to August 29. 

For more information, go to

 http://deyoung.famsf.org/deyoung/exhibitions/fashion-world-jean-paul-gautier-sidewalk-catwalk 

We had the opportunity to click, click, click our way (no flash)

 through 4 rooms jam-packed with Jean Paul's creations. 

Karin and Elise arrived by 5:30 pm, and Elise got FREE lessons on the  red carpet, and had her hair and makeup done by Atelier Emmanuel for FREE! 



Elise Cheval with Model at the DeYoung

By showtime, there were 100's of people present to catch

an eyefull of the most spectacular fashions created by San Francisco designers.  

This event was good practice for Elise, who will be on the runway, modeling her classic vinyl suit,  "WAKEUP CALL", with Lorena, one of the models from PGR photo-shoot at Rainbow Fabrics, who will be wearing "SOME LIKE IT HOT", during the Sonoma Trashion Show on April 21. 

Catch us on April 22,  at the CIVIC CENTER in San Francisco, where we will be wearing our newest creations and looking forward to TV interviews, where we will be promoting PROJECT GREEN RUNWAY!