Grape leather is a vegan material made using discarded grape skins and stems, taking a zero-waste approach toward fashion. It is becoming increasingly popular due to its sustainability, durability, and long-lasting properties. The process of making grape leather involves extracting the skins and stems from grapes and then combining them with a binding agent to create a leather-like material. The finished product is not only vegan but also eschews the petrochemicals used to make most standard synthetic leathers.

  Solar panels and harvested rainwater power this mirrored holiday home by first-time architect Prashant Ashoka, which was designed to be self-sufficient and in harmony with its surroundings. Casa Etérea is nestled into the slopes of an extinct volcano in the Los Picachos highlands, near the Mexican city of San Miguel de Allende, and surrounded by 10,000 hectares of rugged, unspoiled nature.   The structure of the 75-square-metre, off-grid cabin was made from local materials, in line with Ashoka's aim to design the retreat as if it was "birthed from the mountainside itself". Its foundations are formed from volcanic rocks collected on-site and its walls from bricks that were made locally and finished with micro-cement, before being clad in mirrors. Source: https://www.dezeen.com/2021/01/24/casa-eterea-prashant-ashoka-mirror-off-grid-cabin-mexico/, Written by Jennifer Hahn

Article written by: SOPHIE HIRSH There are so many fashion brands on the market making "vegan leather goods" , but most are derived from plastic. However, a new brand out of Mexico called Desserto is shaking things up by turning nopal cactus leaves into organic, all-natural, cruelty-free leather. Desserto is the first cactus-based leather on the market, and the material has the potential to make the vegan leather industry much more sustainable. Adrián López Velarde and Marte Cázarez debuted their innovative brand Desserto, created by their company Adriano Di Marti, at the International Leather Fair Lineapelle 2019 in Milan.Desserto showed at RawAssembly, a sustainable raw materials sourcing event in Australia. Vogue Australia reported that Desserto had the most buzz of all companies at the entire event — so the brand is certainly one to watch out for. As reported by Fashion United,...