My friend Sergio has a growing company called Ohh Shirt.  He’s a thrift store wizard and finds the most amazing tees, records and sneaks. He doesn’t have a bricks and mortar location but he pops up at random fashion/shopping events around the city.  Last month this hip-hop party called (((SHAKE))) set up the Shakeland Mall (a play on the famous Dadeland Mall in Miami) and had vendors all over.  I scored an awesome retro Epcot Futureworld tee from Sergio and I love it.

Food-wise I’m a vegetarian but shopping-wise I’m proud to be a strict vegan: no leather, no angora, and certainly no fur (I still can’t believe people wear fur, it’s the worst).  My favorite wallets and bags come from a great company based in Montreal called Matt & Nat.  They’re chic, 100% animal-free and some proceeds are given back to good causes.  The purses are in the $150-300 range but can be had for much cheaper if you’re savvy and good with the internet… Plus, a lot of the bags are named after awesome bands (Portishead, MGMT, BRMC, Bauhaus, etc.)

I’ve been running and going to the gym a lot and I LOVE the Adidas by Stella McCartney collections.  Like her mum, Stella is an advocate for animals so her lines are leather-free as well.  I’ve got two pairs of her light, ergonomically-designed (the laces are angled inwards instead of straight down) running shoes and they feel great and double as cute casual shoes.

For other vegan kicks I go to mooshoes.com, veganchic.com or search for “man made” or “synthetic” at Zappos or Endless.  eBay is great for finding non-leather shoes too.  It’s a bit more work but it keeps my conscience clear – I can’t justify wearing animals if I can’t justify eating them.