This is the time many of us look to spring clean our wardrobe and perhaps add a few items ahead of the summer season. But how can you do it on the cheap? Let's introduce you to swishing.

The term 'swishing' was first coined by a sustainable PR agency based on the noise of rustling clothes from your friends make as you swap old clothes for new. And how we like to swish!

Clothes swapping parties have increasingly grown in popularity worldwide over the past couple of years, and there are now several websites dedicated to the activity that will give you advice on how to host your own swishing party, where you can find out about forthcoming events and even swap your unwanted clothes and accessories online.

How to host swishing party

With Facebook it has never been easier to organise a swishing party for you and your friends. Just pick the day, create an event, invite those you think would be interested in coming and start going through your wardrobe.

As your friends come around with items they'd like to pass on, serve some refreshments and get browsing. The swishing etiquette is to bring items that are in good condition and to take away the same number of items as you bring to the party.

Sometimes you could get lucky - I got a wonderful Jaeger dress once. It all depends on where your friends like to shop...

Reasons to start swishing?

Every year in the UK we buy around 2 million tonnes of clothes and throw away approximately 1 million tonnes. Just think about all the energy, water and toxins that have been used to produce and get rid of these items.

Chances are also that you have several pieces of clothing in your wardrobe that have never been worn, bought with the intention to fit into them once those last stubborn lbs had vanished or it was such a great deal in the sales that you simply couldn't not buy it...

Swishing is like a car boot sale with better things, more fun and none of the bartering.

Going to swishing events can be a lot of fun - I once had the beautiful Kelly Brook bag my finds - and it is the greenest, most sustainable way to update your wardrobe out there.

Find out more about swishing here:

www.swishing.co.uk

www.swishing.com

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We love the environment and we think nothing is better than to come across fashion brands that do the same. No doubt we live in a throwaway society of which many fashion labels are guilty of fuelling hungry consumerism in people where we end up looking for the next trend or piece of clothing as soon as we've got one. But then there are brands like Lost Property of London.

The brainchild of Katy Bell, Lost Property of London takes abandoned fabrics and lovingly transforms them into fashionable yet very practical upcycled bags. No surprise that green fashion queen Livia Firth is a fan!

The bags are created using as many eco design principles as possible, making each item from recycled materials and by hand. We're definitely sold and will be putting this on our birthday wish list! Check out the gallery below to see more of these exquisite bags.

Prices start from £120 and are available online from www.lostpropertyoflondon.com.

With this year's Mother's Day just ten days away, we've put together a little gift list for the style concious mum.

So why not show your mum (or wife) that she's truly valued by helping her update her spring wardrobe with these fantastic eco-friendly finds - and the best thing you can buy them all online!

Bob Carlos Clarke

Terry O'Neill

If you like photography and eco fashion then the collaborations between ethical t-shirt company Collective and iconic photographers, the late Bob Carlos Clarke and Terry O'Neill will be just your thing.

The limited edition 100% organic cotton t-shirts feature iconic prints by the two photographers that will look great during the summer months.

Available from www.wearecollective.com for £60.

Adopting the Reclaim To Wear's method of producing clothes using the fashion industry's surplus stock and off-cuts, some Cental Saint Martin's students recently vied for a place at next year's Estethica, the British Fashion Council hub of London's ethical fashion industry during London Fashion Week in February 2012.

The showcase of upcycled clothes included a collection inspired by Virginia Woolf's Orlando as well as a film which translated another collection's esthetic into visual material.

You can see some of the designs below.

With the arrival of giant pandas Tian Tian (Sweetie) and Yang Guang (Sunshine), eco fashion brand Rapanui has teamed up with Edinburgh Zoo to make eco-friendly, organic bamboo t-shirts for the two newcomers.

The zoo is conscious to raise awareness about conservation and have recruited Rapanui - winners of the RSPCA Good Business Awards - to make bamboo t-shirts that are going to be sold alongside the visitor's attraction to raise money and contribute to their upkeep.

Considering pandas are quite costly to keep, it is understandable that the Zoo wants to find other ways to raise money for the tubby two.

Bamboo is hailed as a fabric of the future with Mart Drake-Knight, co-founder of Rapanui and designer explaining: "Bamboo is an amazing fabric, it is as soft as silk but half the price, it grows fast without water, pesticides or fertilisers. Bamboo has a lot of potential as a sustainable textile, not to mention the softness and kind-to-skin properties that make them feel great."

Love the eco-cool panda shirts!

Available now from Rapanui for both women and men for £24.95.

Getting Christmas presents for girls can be easy, just head to the nearest beauty section and you'll be safe. But if you're looking to get something a bit more unique - and not to mention - eco-friendly, then you've come to the right place. I've waded through the froth to find some of the more desirable and sustainable presents for her out there. If organic knitwear, limited handmade pieces and fairtrade scarves are her things, look no further!

There are plenty of eco-friendly presents available for the men in your life. But if bamboo socks aren't just what you're after - although they're probably very comfy - check out our five top choices for ethical presents to put under the tree this Christmas.

I love the playfulness and British eccentricity of Lu Flux's designs. A myriad of colours and a couple of pineapples, the A Lu Ha Spring Summer 2012 collection has definitely been inspired by the island of Hawaii (the name gives it away really...)

Lu Flux debuted at London Fashion Week as part of Vauxhall Fashion Scout's 'Ones to Watch' show in 2009, and has after exhibiting under the Estethica initiative at Somerset House for two seasons been awarded the Innovation Award which celebrates her inventive and exciting designs in the world of sustainable fashion.

Check out the Lu Flux website for stockists details.

I love discovering new places to get my eco fashion fix. And to help you discover them too, Hippyshopper has teamed up with online ethical fashion store Ms Wanda's Wardrobe to give you an exclusive discount of 25% off your first purchase.

Ms Wanda's Wardrobe is an ethical fashion brand that specialises in upcycled, vintage and pre-loved clothing. Since its launch in April this year, Ms Wanda (aka Esther Freeman) and her team of eco-fashionistas have already saved over 8kg of textile waste ending up in a landfill, as well as helped reduce pressure on natural resources and CO2 emissions created by producing 'new' clothes. The clothes embrace all eras, from the femme fatale of the 1940s to the Mad Men-esque 60s, making it a treasure chest for the eco-chic. No better time than now to channel your inner Joan Holloway!

To take advantage of this discount simply head on over to Ms Wanda's Wardrobe online store and enter the code HIPPYSHOPPER when you check-out. But hurry, the offer ends on Tuesday 8th November 2011.

British designer and environmentalist Stella McCartney - the daughter of Beatles star Sir Paul McCartney who recently got married - is a vegetarian and refuses to use leather or fur in her creations, so it comes as no surprise that she's expanding her growing fashion empire into eco sunglasses.

The range will not hit the shops until next year, but Stella has revealed that the new collection will be made of more than 50% natural and renewable materials.

Stella told WWD: "The greatest challenge was the amount of time that was spent on research and testing to get the best quality product possible with the highest performance in terms of resistance, while still maintaining the style and finish we always try to achieve."

We hear you Stella, deciding to live in a way that is eco-friendly does take time and effort but the knowledge that you are doing your bit to help the environment makes it worth it! I love sunglasses and I'm really excited to see what the sunglasses range will look like.

The say a girl can never have too many shoes... or reusable bags!

Founder and chief creative officer of Jimmy Choo Tamara Mellon OBE has designed an exclusive reusable bag to support The Body Shop and ECPAT's global Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People (SST) campaign.

The bag will be available in a limited edition from 6th October at The Body Shop nationwide.

The STOP bag is decorated with personalised handprints from Oscar winning actress Nicole Kidman, Ab Fab actress, TV personality and animal rights campaigner Joanna Lumley (who is Absolutely lovely by the way!), formerly 'naked' chef Jamie Oliver, musician and producer extraordinaire Mark Ronson, Oscar winner and UN Goodwill Ambassador Mira Sorvino as well as CNN Piers Morgan who have all pledged their support for the campaign.

Tamara Mellon OBE says: "I am thrilled to have worked with The Body Shop to design The STOP bag and raise awareness of the SST campaign. I feel very strongly about prohibiting sex trafficking and knowing that the profits will help to end this modern day slavery and safeguard children makes the project even more worthwhile."

Retailing at £4.00, profits from the sale of The STOP bag will be used to combat and raise awareness of sex trafficking of children and young people.

The bag is made from raw 100% community fair trade cotton and feature a fuschia trim and shoulder strap which is certain to brighten up those shopping trips in the winter months!

I've recently become obsessed with lace; especially black lace. And with autumn bringing with her promises of cold evenings and glamorous events (one can but hope!), I am on the hunt for beautiful and durable, yet sustainable pieces that I can fill my wardrobe with.

The dark romantic feel of the Minna autumn/winter 2011 collection is perfect for the long wintery months ahead. Consisting of a series of pieces in hard wearing fabrics such as wool jersey mixed with reindeer leather and silk that have been hand dyed to create a vintage feel.

This is true Eco Luxe with each piece hand embellished and made from sustainable, organic, recycled and locally produced textiles.

My favourites are Marileen (£322), Pauline (£342) and Tilly (£311).

Browse the collection below or go to minna.co.uk.

Pay no heed to the deceptive weather state outside your window, we are slowly but surely making for Winter. And you know what that means don't you? Coats! I love coats. Sometimes I wish Winter was all-year round (and here in England, that's not too much to ask) just so I could traipse about everyday in coats and coloured tights.

The right ethical jacket or coat can see you through a good few winters. So if you agree it's worth dishing out for a fabulous, sustainable coat (or two), this season's not a bad time to start investing. The Edun Lambskin number seems to be calling my name but, well....oh who am I kidding! I'd like to keep my arm and leg, thanks.

It's Bono and activist wife Ali Hewson's brand, Edun, founded to raise awareness of trading opportunities in Africa. If you recall we showed you their AW/11 collection not long ago. Its small selection of coats this years include trenches and belted leather. This beauty here is made from 100% lambskin leather.
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Dubbed the 'Chelsea' after the location of the designers first studio (in Manhattan not London!), this snow-resistant cobalt jacket is insulated with Primaloft ECO. It's also available in 3 more colours. Designer Leanne justifies her high pricing by the pledge that she makes no compromises when it comes to ethics, quality and performance. Vaute Couture is US-based and ships internationally.
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Also available in a sublime mustard is this trench coat by Orla Kiely for People Tree. Made with 100% organic Fairtrade cotton, both the style and length says smart and sophisticated. People Tree aims to design clothes that primarily can be produced by the dexterous hand. Besides, Emma Watson designs for the brand, and who doesn't love Emma Watson?!
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Another cobalt number that I feel is a winner because it's easily likeable for its simplicity. This here is from sustainable brand Braintree Hemp and available from Natural Collection (who, by the way, ships free). BH uses natural fibre hemp and they've even expanded their use of fabrics recently to bamboo and soybean.
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Ah yes, Camilla Norrback - whose AW/11 collection was more than pleasing, I thought. The Swedish designer unites 'elegance and environmental sustainability' and again it's just about that state of sheer simplicity that aptly reflects what ethical integrity demands. She showcased her AW range at the Mercedes-Benz fashion show in Stockholm this year - timeless designs were sent down the catwalk. This houndstooth coat entitiled Bianca is one that stood out.
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With this year's Ethical Fashion Forum contest wrapped up, it's time for a heads-up of sustainable fashion designers to keep an eye out for - this time from the USA. The Innovation Awards touched down in the States for the first time ever and here's the winning trio...

Soham Dave of New York City has built up a sustainable brand inspired by 'the principles of meditation, spirituality and creative energy.' His eco logic is concerned with promoting the ethical craftsmanship of local artisans. The apparel is sourced from India primarily, and women are at the crux of the Soham Dave produce - SD brings out the best in these artisans and that's a pretty awesome outlook. Biodegradable and recycled materials make the bulk of the cut for this brand.

Afia - arguably one of the most in-vogue fashion brands given to sustainable development was also recognised for its innovativeness. It blends 'vibrant West African aesthetics with urban American trends', The result? Splendid prints and breathtaking designs! Each garment is sewn from the deft hand of a fairly-paid Ghanian seamstress.

Aside from having a fun name, LA-born Carrie Parry graduated from our very own Central Saint Martins in London and now plies her trade in New York. The launch of her eponymous fashion label this year saw a bracing devotion for timelessness using ethical practice at every stage. Carrie Parry sources material responsibly and prides itself on taking 'Social Responsibility' - proof that haute covetable fashion doesn't have to come at the price of evading green principles and eco-friendly ethics. Carrie Parry's Fall 2011 Collection Preview is well worth a butchers!

The winners will exhibit their S/S 2012 collections at New York's Nolcha Fashion Week on the coming Monday. Ethos, recognised as 'One to Watch' won the opportunity to develop its collections with EFF's promotional and support package.

Congrats to the winners!