Suzy Amis Cameron “greens” the red carpet

Sat, 23 Feb 2013 15:39:00 +0000

Most celebrities want to make a statement on the red carpet, but Suzy Amis Cameron wants to make a statement statement. About green design and long-term sustainability, specifically. But the Academy Awards, a night of $20,000 gowns and mega-bling, don't exactly scream eco-fashion. That could change, says Cameron.

Enter: Red Carpet, Green Dress.

As the wife of director James Cameron, Suzy had attended her fair share of Hollywood events, and wanted to see her values as an environmentalist reflected in what she wore on the red carpet. But while organic cotton T-shirts might be on the racks at H&M (unethically produced as they may be), natural dyes and sustainable fibers aren't exactly de rigueur in high fashion.

Which is precisely the problem that Cameron ran up against with the "Red Carpet, Green Dress" design contest she started to raise money for MUSE school, which she founded with sister Rebecca Amis in 2006. "Deborah Lynn Scott was our mentor designer that year, and she came to me and told me she couldn't find [eco-friendly] fabric. Now, for me, I just assumed it was going to be an easy thing: They would make a dress and I would wear it. But it opened up a whole other world of what really happens in the fashion industry," Cameron said.

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Suzy Amis Cameron “greens” the red carpet