When Chere Di Boscio, founder and editor-in-chief of Eluxe Magazine, the world’s first-ever publication dedicated to sustainable luxury, launched her magazine in 2013, she was ahead of the curve. The magazine, which runs a quarterly print issue and provides daily online content, came years before the word “sustainable” was on the mainstream radar. But today, the London-based publication has found a growing audience in the modern conscious consumer, one who is committed to embracing eco-friendly lifestyle values.
In an email to LIVEKINDLY, Di Boscio, whose background includes editing for various glossy magazines in Paris and Dubai, revealed that she felt her work was not in line with her values. “I started to feel hypocritical and even a bit depressed because I was promoting things I am fundamentally, strongly against,” she said. “For example, killing animals to make fur handbags, leather iPhone holders and even stupid things like key fobs; destroying the Earth by mining gemstones and diamonds so we can have sparkly jewelry and so on.”
She expressed her concerns to her husband; though her work brought her to events with influential high fashion figures such as Chanel creative director Karl Lagerfeld and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, she felt dissatisfied with the “shallowness of the fashion world.” Her husband suggested quitting to work for an eco-fashion magazine.
“I lived in Paris at the time and there were none whatsoever. So I created one,” she said.
A glimpse at Eluxe Magazine’s front page reveals that the publication not only embraces sustainable fashion, but all aspects of a green lifestyle. The recipes are vegan. The beauty section is cruelty-free and emphasizes natural products and remedies, free from harmful chemical ingredients. The “Living” page discusses sustainable home decoration, from products that can be purchased to DIY projects. Articles ask readers to consider a variety of social issues, ranging from the ethical dilemma of using animals in film, to greenwashing and why caring about fair trade in the fashion industry is a feminist issue.
In fact, how a brand treats its workers is one of the key factors Di Boscio considers when determining a brand’s sustainability. “Apart from the obviously horrendous ethics behind using slave labour (which I assume need no explanation), it’s really not sustainable to have enormous disparities in wealth,” she said.
Living a sustainable lifestyle, Di Boscio said, starts with what one chooses to eat. “First, stop eating meat. It’s that simple. At the very least, reduce the amount of animal products in your diet drastically,” she said.
She also advises her audience to be more conscious of mainstream fashion and beauty marketing tactics to avoid superfluous purchases. “Secondly, unplug from mainstream media that tells you you’re lacking in everything unless you buy more, more more. You don’t need XX product to be more beautiful. You don’t need XX clothing to look cool and trendy. You are wonderful just the way you are!” she said.
Now residing in Peru, Di Boscio further reduces her carbon footprint by maintaining an organic garden and by avoiding travel. Since launching Eluxe Magazine, she’s noticed that it’s primarily Western society that has played a role in climate change.
“That the vast, vast majority of the world’s population already DOES live sustainably. We in the West (and the wealthier people in India and China) are the real problem; we are the ones who are truly behind the earth’s destruction,” Di Boscio told LIVEKINDLY.
However, she is excited about the growing interest in eco-friendly lifestyles – which is why she believes it so important to be conscious of the environmental impact behind the brands she features because every action has an impact.
“[W]ith the rise of interest in sustainable brands, we need to be very careful with greenwashing,” Di Boscio explained, stressing that it is essential to research brands before making a purchase.
“This planet is tiny, and if we destroy one corner of it, eventually we destroy all of it,” she said.
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