I remember thinking I was so urban and edgy when I discovered US-based Threadless. Now they’re a recognised brand with co-promotions with Google and doing tie-ins with Basecamp I think the word is really out on that great site. My favourite aspect of Threadless is that they offer American Apparel, suppliers of fair trade products. Well guess what? There’s a french company that also has great prints on AA t-shirts - lafraise. And according to the very scientific “Googlefight” for every one mention of Lafraise there are two of Threadless. So here’s my tip - whilst Lafraise isn’t exactly underground, you may well be half as likely to catch someone in the same t-shirt as you if you shop from the Frenchies rather than the Americans in this instance.

Of course, finding a local designer who uses fair trade T’s for their prints is also a good option!

Thanks to my pal Pierre at Tangler.com for the Lafraise tip.

Wandering through Balmain Markets today, I came across some funky bags that were getting nods of approval from the shoppers in the vicinity.

I soon discovered that the bags don’t just look great, they’re made from recycled materials by a community in the Philippines.

I took a card and I’ve checked out their website: this is a group of positive people doing great work. They’ve committed to ensuring the products they sell are fair trade, which means they’re paying a decent price for the products they sell. (In this case the price is set by the community that makes the bags.)

I know I’m an advocate of spending time rather than money on Christmas gifts, but if you insist on giving presents, I don’t think you could go wrong doing your Christmas shopping with these guys. Check out: trashbags.com.au