Owners Evelyne Aikman and Elinor Diamond both graduated with art degrees from separate schools and wondered, “Why don’t people make things anymore?” They answered their own question by opening their innovative, yet old-fashioned take on a clothing store, where they create simple and elegant designs and tailor them around their customer’s needs and desires.

“Being able to produce instead of consume all of the time…lets people see that ‘yes, you can make something, we’re making it right here.’ [It’s] kind of a nice way of getting things done and having things that you don’t necessarily have to buy from a huge chain store,” emphasizes Diamond, a San Francisco Art Institute alum.

Aikman and Diamond met each other decorating cakes at a shop in the city and later teamed up to find something more fulfilling. Together, they combined their E-lettered names and opened Eel and Ermine, a place where you can have well-tailored clothes at an affordable price while nibbling on homemade cakes and refreshments (their carrot cake is decadent).

On the racks, you can find well-designed dresses priced at an average of $100, fun skirts at around $60 and recycled t-shirts at a mere $25. Prices include free tailoring.

Aikman sums up why you should come get dressed at the shop: “You can get exactly what you want and something that fits you perfectly. It’s something you don’t have to order months in advance if you want a custom dress.”

Find your right fit at Eel and Ermine, 514 Presidio (between California and Pine) or online in their Etsy shop.

More custom garment designers…

Famed L.A.-based secondhand go-to for coveted designer labels, Decadestwo is coming to town this week for three short days, and we’re already drooling. The shop, which you may have spotted when it was prominently featured on The Rachel Zoe Project last year, is known for carrying high-end designer finds plucked by co-owner Christos Garkinos from the closets of actresses, stylists and Hollywood glitterati. From there, pieces such as the ones shown here end up on the racks at the Melrose store for up to 80 percent off retail.

Part of a collaboration with with HauteLook, the Decadestwo pop-up shop means a chance to peruse great condition consignment apparel and accessories from labels such as Chanel, Prada, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga and others. And if we have a favorite way to obtain designer labels, it’s most definitely from a well-edited secondhand source. Of secondhand shopping’s charms, we’ll say this: it’s not only less expensive and more environmentally responsible than buying brand new merch, but it’s also a way to stock up on garments with a little bit of history.

The 72-hour sale begins Thursday night with an invite-only, VIP cocktail reception and preview co-hosted by Vanessa Getty and Splendora.com founder Gina Pell at the historic Firehouse in Fort Mason. On Friday and Saturday, the pop-up shop is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

**Want to be among the first to shop the Decadestwo pop-up shop? We’re giving away two pairs of passes to the private Thursday night event. Want ‘em? We’ll announce the RSVP email address in tomorrow’s SF Indie Fashion newsletter. Sign up now to receive it. If you’re one of the first two people to respond, the passes are yours.**

Photos courtesy Decadestwo (from top, more after the jump): Chanel handbag, Chanel pink blazer, Christian Louboutin shoes, Gucci leather studded jacket, Givenchy dress.

More upcoming San Francisco fashion events…

If long since forgotten, hopelessly out-of-style leather jackets have a hero, it’s certain to be Shannon South, the San Francisco-based designer behind ReMade USA, whose leather handbags made from cast-off jackets have given fans of eco-friendly fashion a solution to their incurable leather obsessions. Since launching in 2009, South’s line of one-of-a-kind handbags has been featured everywhere from Style.com to Fast Company and landed at Barneys New York stores around the country. This week, ReMade USA has the distinction of being one of 10 eco-friendly labels chosen for a coveted spot in the Designers & Agents Green Room during the New York marketplace’s spring show of over 1,000 companies.

We caught up with South, 37, recently to chat about her design process, her transition to eco-friendly fashion, thrift store style and her tips for greening our own shopping habits.

Tell us about your design process. How do you decide what kind of bag to make from each jacket?

Every bag has to be designed based on the details of the jacket. It’s not the most automated system…Certain jackets work better for certain styles. If I find a big 80’s style jacket with big pockets…then I say, okay this will work great for the Powell bag. It’s basically a rectangular bag that, when it’s hanging, forms a hobo shape and has big pockets.

How many hours does it take, on average, to create one bag?

It can take, from start to finish, from two hours up to like six hours. The more large pieces of leather I have to work with, it’s a lot less work. Most of the work is involved in piecing it together. I like the large men’s jackets because they’re very boxy. A small, fitted women’s jacket is a lot of work, because I completely disassemble it, and I lay it out flat and I stitch the pieces together. The more fitted the jacket is, the smaller the pieces are.

Where do you find the leather jackets you use?

When I first stared, I was going around to thrift stores around San Francisco, but it became way too much work. There’s so much stuff that’s donated to Salvation Army and Goodwill. Way more stuff is donated to them than they actually sell. Then they sell it to other companies that sort everything and sell it in bulk. It can be kind of hit or miss. Sometimes I’ll get a shipment and I’ll get great ones, and sometimes they’ll be really worn.

You’ve said before that the jackets have a history. How so?

A lot of my custom orders are people sending me jackets. It’s really amazing. People send me the history of the jacket, and they tell me why it’s important to them. I’ve had one woman who sent me her brother’s jacket from when he was in his 30’s when she was in her 60’s and he had passed away. She was so happy about being able to use this memory that she had. I think the history and the emotional value is what’s most exciting to me.

How did you land on the idea of making bags from leather jackets?

I’ve been making bags for a long time. When I first started, I was making bags from remnant vinyl material from the sixties. I would find these really cool, close-out vintage vinyls and make these funky bags. Those materials were in a really limited supply, and then I started working with a factory in China, and I streamlined my designs. I was mainly making these PVC laptop bags [under the label Supreme Love Story]. They were cute, but I didn’t really have any connection to them anymore. I like working on the actual product myself.

I started thinking about how everything is so throw-away, and I did some research and found out that PVC is one of the worst materials, just the amount of energy and chemicals that were going into making these bags. And I didn’t like being detached from the actual project. I couldn’t find any materials that I liked that were not damaging in some way environmentally. I’ve been a vegetarian for quite a while, so I didn’t really feel right about using new leather.

How do you dress day-to-day?

I’m pretty casual minimalist, a lot of black, which can be dressed up or down, with a mix of vintage. I throw some 80’s in when I’m going out. When I moved here two years ago, I vowed never to wear fleece in public unless I was out doing some kind of sport activity.

Do you have any tips for how we can all be more eco-friendly shoppers?

I think that the most eco-friendly you can get is shopping in thrift stores. Not everyone likes to do that. Try and get more creative with the things you have already. Even buying organic things is still consuming, and it still takes a lot of energy to produce organic and recycled things.

Buy high-quality, not fast fashion, things that are not super trendy and will last a long time. Avoid fast fashion. Almost everything I’ve ever bought at H&M looks terrible after a couple washings. I avoid buying things just because they are a good deal. I love thrift stores and curated consignment shops mixed with basics. I try to only buy things I love and that I know I will wear until it has holes in it. I try to buy American when I can, but that is really difficult, though I believe we need to support small U.S. manufacturers.

Find new uses for things. I recently accidentally shrunk my boyfriend’s sweater, and I’m planning on making a stuffed animal from it.

Do you have a favorite local thrift store?

One of my favorites, I like Community Thrift. They have 50 percent off days every other Monday, so that’s a good deal.

What prompted your move from New York to San Francisco?

I guess I just wanted to kind of slow down. One of my best friends lived here. I was not thinking about this business when I moved here. San Francisco has been a major influence on starting this line of bags. I think the fact that people here are so much more dedicated to trying to be more careful about the way that they treat the earth, it definitely was something I noticed and became more aware of myself.

Like what you see? Send South a leather jacket to turn into a new bag, and you’ll save $20 on your order. And this week, a sale on clutches in underway in the ReMade USA online shop.

Photography courtesy of ReMade USA

More San Francisco fashion interviews…

Whether or not you’re attending tonight’s Discarded to Divine event benefiting the St. Vincent de Paul Society of San Francisco and its social services programs, we’re betting you can appreciate the work that went into this cocktail dress of Fiji Water bottles by Project Runway contestant and San Francisco designer Jay Nicolas Sario, who told us last week that he, in fact, drank every bottle of water involved in this little number’s creation.

Photo courtesy of Shelly Prevost for Fiji Water

More San Francisco fashion news…

We love it when fashion and art converge. We found just that when we met up recently for a chat with local fine artist and fashion designer Rachel Znerold, who does everything from painting to reconstructing vintage wedding gowns for modern-day brides to creating one-of-a-kind apparel and accessories using upcycled and scrap materials.

Intrigued? You can spot Znerold’s latest art and clothing at eco-friendly Noe Valley boutique Loft 1513 during a fashion show (yes, they even have a raised runway) Thursday night.

Read on for more about Znerold’s designs, inspiration and current iPod obsessions.

How long have you been designing?

I taught myself how to sew when I was 24, and I am 29 now. In high school, I adjusted my clothes. My parents didn’t have much money, so I would go to thrift stores, sew and cut clothes to make them fun and fashionable.

How do your fashion designs connect with your art?

I work with fabrics the way I do paints. I will do clusters of appliqué, and I try to mirror the cluster of shapes that take place within the natural world.

What is your next project?

My next goal is to dye a few of my dresses. I am always learning.

How do you stay inspired?

I stay inspired by old movies, like, look at those puckered sleeves and making it my own.  Color is huge. I am a color maniac. I relate to flowers and organic colors and shapes. Traveling is a big influence for me. Last summer, I went to Peru. Peruvian textiles are made with such a wide array of color. I was really moved by it. I like meeting the women and figuring out where my textiles come from. I find recycled materials, travel and anything in the natural world inspirational.

Do you have a design philosophy that you follow?

All of my fashion shows are for not-for-profit organizations. I believe in giving back to the community.

I don’t want women to have to fit a certain shape to be sexy. Women of every size should feel fashionable….Everyone is beautiful and deserves to have a pretty party dress.

Who are your favorite designers?

Alexandar McQueen, he was the bad boy of fashion. He embraced organic materials, playful silhouettes and drama. Growing up, I related to Betsey Johnson. Jean Paul Gaultier, because he embraced corset forms, performance art of fashion and the feminine figure. He was self-taught, and he was the underdog coming up. I love that story. Classic forms like Chanel. I feel like I can learn a bit from each of them

So what’s an average day like for you?

Diving into these Tupperwares of vintage scraps, and, a lot of times, I spend it putting scraps next to each other, draping them on the models. A lot of working with people, fitting, pinning. Depending on the projects I have, I will spend a few days painting. I try to keep them separate. So the paint won’t end up on the fabric! I think a lot of it is putting in the hard work, face time in the studio, finding inspiration. Also returning emails, arranging models and makeup artists and dropping off new deliveries to boutiques. I do it all, from hand-sewing the clothes to distribution. It’s definitely about multi-tasking.

What is on your iPod right now?

I love Bat for Lashes, Elliot Smith, Sarah Vaughan and Fever Ray.

Where do you see your line in five years?

I see myself moving into more couture and artistic, dramatic pieces. I really enjoyed doing wedding gowns. I want to design costumes for music videos and photo shoots. I am working with a group working on eco-friendly staple pieces…I love making one-of-a-kind pieces.

Where can we find your work in San Francisco?

At Loft 1513. They sell local designer pieces. You can also shoot me an email to order something custom made.

– By SF Indie Fashion Contributor April Miller

All apparel and art pictured above by Rachel Znerold. Photography courtesy of Julie Michelle and the I Live Here project.

More interviews with San Francisco designers…