fashion loves people

In the world of social entrepreneurism, case studies are our best teacher. Kate Robertson, founder of Mayu, a fair-trade certified line of hand-knit accessories, gave us a special look into how her company of 12 Peruvian artisans operates, and how she earned fair-trade certification.

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Kate Robertson lived in Peru with the Peace Corps from 2003-2005, and during that time got to know a set of artisans who now handcraft each Mayu product. Kate herself struggled to even learn how to knit, which only enhanced her appreciation for the women’s skills. “Their repertoire includes dozens of stitches and dozens of designs,” she says. “The most fascinating aspect, however, is that they are excellent at multi-tasking! They take their knitting projects with them on the road and do almost everything while knitting” — carry their kids, attend meetings, cook. “They can practically knit with their eyes closed!”

Kate said that compared to other artisans she met in Peru, these women had a motivation to learn about business, in order to turn their hobbies into a source of profit. Which is where Kate came in.

“I returned from Peru with about 100 products. I sold them to friends, and little by little, word of mouth helped me spread the word. Seeing there was a market for hand-knit alpaca items, I decided to go full-force and start Mayu,” she says. “At that point I started to pay for all of the items up front. The artisans take care of ordering the raw materials, and they send me the finished products directly from the nearest city.”

Equipping Peruvian entrepreneurs

Mayu’s 12 artisans each play a role in the business end: President, quality control, treasurer, etc. They work directly with Kate — via email, Skype and cell phones that they have been able to purchase with the money they earn through Mayu — with no middlemen involved in the process.

“The artisans tell me what they think are fair labor prices based upon the time and difficulty level of each item. I base my retail prices on the labor costs that the women deem fair,” Kate says. Some of the women dedicate all of their time to Mayu, and some have other jobs. “However, the money these women make from knitting is greater than their monthly salaries from the other jobs,” Kate says. “The women divide up the work based upon their schedules and individual financial needs.

Kate originally decided herself what product styles Mayu would offer, but she has recently teamed up with a designer who specializes in hand-knit goods. The artisans copy the models Kate sends over, and they have been working on new designs for the fall 2010 collection for several months.

Fair trade certification

“Becoming a member of (the Fair Trade Federation) was actually quite an involved and long process. They definitely do their due diligence!” Kate says about becoming fair-trade certified.

“The application was long and very detailed. I had to discuss the history of the business, my relationship with the artisans and my business model. Also, FTF checked a number of references who were familiar with Mayu. The entire application process lasted about six months,” Kate says.

I asked why she chose FTF over any alternatives — “FTF is the most common organization and the most well-known in the States,” she says. “FTF is unique because it works with businesses that sell not only coffee and chocolate, the most common fair-trade products, but also businesses that are focused on textiles and artisan goods.”

She said that she didn’t have to change any of her already-great practices to comply to the Fair Trade Federation’s guidelines. “I had all the fair trade practices and principles put into place before I started (the process), so I really didn’t have to make any changes. Now that I am a member, I try and educate my customers on fair trade.”

Mayu is currently supporting the opportunity for its hometown of Chicago to become a “fair trade city,” and the brand’s accolades have included being voted a DailyCandy Sweetest Things 2008 of Chicago.

Right now, the Long Rayas Alpaca Hoodie (pictured below) is on sale for $99, regularly $179, while inventory lasts.

And just for reading this article, you can get 15% off any Mayu order with coupon code FLP15.

Would you believe that each of these pairs of glasses are only $95?

Yes, with prescription lenses included! Warby Parker is seriously shaking up the world of awesome eyewear with a business model that benefits pretty much everyone. They sell directly to consumers, avoiding the markups and middlemen of a wholesale model, which allows them to offer the most affordable glasses I can even imagine. I’m a contacts wearer and have been wanting a pair of “accessory” glasses to wear when the mood strikes, but I haven’t been able to justify the multi-hundred-dollar purchase that I knew it would be. Now, I’m deciding between these three pairs. The brand lets you borrow several pairs to try at home!

To me, these are a great purchase on account of their durability (made out of a custom cellulose acetate that is stronger than plastic), price point, donation benefit (for each pair bought, a pair is donated through a partner nonprofit) and support of a small and fantastic company that deserves to succeed. Men’s styles also available. Read more here.

Via DailyCandy.

So much print-on-print! It’s perfect. Suno, which launched two years ago with the impetus of bolstering Kenya’s manufacturing industry (and which I first wrote about here), seems to have made an especially big splash at NYFW with its newest collection. Style.com wrote, “Of course, along with a major buzz comes major pressure—but Suno’s confident and spirited collection made it pretty clear the two-year-old label is going places.”

I just hope everyone recognizes what strides this brand makes in the world of social responsibility! The brand employs Kenyan talent, treats workers fairly and showcases Kenyan artistry with the goal of lasting social and economic change. About this new collection in particular, the brand says:

We are showing off the rapidly growing skills of the tailors we work with in Kenya as well as experimenting with some truly exquisite beading and embroidery.

And their inspiration? So broad, I love it:

SUNO’s Autumn/Winter 2010 collection was inspired by late 1960s American interiors, traditional East African textiles, Klimt, travels to Turkey, Paris, and India, as well as our friends in NYC.

Apparently the line is no longer featuring exclusively traditional Kenyan fabrics and instead designing most on their own.

The brand continues to be offered exclusively at Opening Ceremony, where pieces start at $265.

Via Wikstenmade. Images via Style.com.

Hold the presses! Bamboo rayons aren’t a green fabric?

Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission officially started its campaign to stop well-meaning retailers from misleading consumers about bamboo’s perceived eco-friendly qualities. From the FTC consumer alert:

Bamboo stands out for its ability to grow quickly with little or no need for pesticides, and it is used in a variety of products, from flooring to furniture. But when it comes to soft bamboo textiles, like shirts or sheets, there’s a catch: they’re actually rayon.

… They are made using toxic chemicals in a process that releases pollutants into the air. Extracting bamboo fibers is expensive and time-consuming, and textiles made just from bamboo fiber don’t feel silky smooth.

… Even when bamboo is the “plant source” used to create rayon, no traits of the original plant are left in the finished product.

The FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection director told Eco Textile News, “Rayon is rayon, even if bamboo has been used [as a source of raw material] somewhere along the line in the manufacturing process.”

According to that article, the FTC says that the soft fibers we’ve come to know as bamboo-derived, like modal and lyocell, “can really just be considered man-made products, on par with traditional rayon.” Bamboo can be made into fabric in a more direct way, but when it is, it is more like a rough linen.

The FTC sent out letters to 78 retailers warning them to stop labeling various rayons as bamboo, and that they would be breaking the law and subject to $16,000 fines if they didn’t comply.

It was last summer that I first heard someone question the eco factor of bamboo — my friend Kelly LaPlante of Organic Interior Design called it one of the biggest green misconceptions out there, citing the clear-cutting of bamboo forests and thus the ecosystems within them. This Treehugger article from 2005 reported that existing trees and vegetation were being cleared for the growing of bamboo, and that it was becoming a monoculture (meaning a lack of crop rotation, which depletes soil).

Mary Hanlon at Social Alterations has put together piles of fabulous information on sustainable textiles in the site’s Fibre Analysis, published last fall, which includes this break-down on bamboo:

Via Social Alterations.

Image from Flickr user kimicon

Shop!

Feel free to spread the word! To celebrate the launch of our new tee design (and the success of our trunk show Saturday), all tees in the Fashion Loves People store will be marked to $20 on this Friday only. They are regularly $28-$32.

This price is crazy low for an organic tee, or even a fashion tee in general, but we are really loving the new designs and have been humbled by everyone’s support so far. So we’re feeling generous. We’ll need to sell at least 20 shirt on Friday to make this sale financially viable for us, so like I said — feel free to spread the word!

For any of you who haven’t been able to snag a tee yet, I hope this can be your chance! The rose-colored tees will be available on a pre-sale basis, as we sold out of them Saturday. The sale will last from midnight Thursday night to midnight Friday night CST, February 12 only. For more detail on the shirts, read here.

I just (finally) watched Food, Inc. for the first time. Besides providing a continued education on where our food comes from, it reminded me of what a moral obligation I believe we all have to be good and thoughtful stewards of the things we consume.

If you haven’t seen this film yet, do! I watched it for free on Netflix Instant, and I know it’s widely available for rent. It is not preachy; it is educational and empowering. And I strongly believe that its ideas apply not only to the food we eat, but to everything we buy.

“The irony is that the average consumer does not feel very powerful.
They think that they are the recipients of whatever Industry
has put out there for them to consume. Trust me, it’s the exact opposite.

“When we run an item past the supermarket scanner, we’re voting –
for local or not, organic or not…”

– Stonyfield Farm CEO Gary Hirshberg, interviewd in Food, Inc.

To keep my dark jeans looking new, I wait as long as possible between washes, as machine washing seems to inevitably bring out new signs of wear. But Brazilian denim brand TriStar is starting an alternative denim washing movement — just throw your jeans in the freezer!

“After use, just put them inside a plastic or cloth bag and leave them in the freezer for 24 hours to kill the bacteria,” TriStar CEO Jandira Barone tells Jornal A Tribuna. Not only with this decrease machine-washing wear-and-tear, it will save water.

But if you’re planning to try this on your own, be warned: The article notes that the cooling of the denim actually sets any stains in. The brand considers this a benefit — “Don’t consumers buy pants frayed, ripped, and stained? The concept is the same, only it will be a detail produced by the user” — but if you’re not going for that worn-in look, you might steer clear.

Read more info about TriStar’s holistic thinking about sustainable denim at Ecouterre or Treehugger.

Image from TriStar

Our new shirts are available now!

This second illustration in the line was my first favorite out of Kirk’s portfolio. He drew it in 1971, inspired by the Halston runways that have continued to define fashion as we know it.

The complementary graphic on this shirt was inspired by, you guessed it, my recent interest in cross-cultural weaving patterns. When we started our design process back in December, Heather suggested “something like the geometry you’ve been obsessed with.” Perfect. The inverted triangles mimic the lines of the popped collar in the drawing, and this general shape is one of the most common and distinctive I’ve seen, found in antique weavings from Afghani to Native American cultures.

We printed the shirts in two colorways: rose/tangerine (which is in limited run) and blue-gray/turquoise (the latter of which happens to be Pantone’s Color of 2010).

Once again, the 100% organic cotton tee is manufactured by Alternative Apparel, ethically made in Peru. The feminine fit has a soft scoop neck. They are screen printed with water-based eco-friendly inks in the U.S., and tags are custom printed with a “Fashion Loves People ♥s Kirk” insignia.

One dollar from the sale of each tee is donated to Not For Sale, an organization fighting human trafficking in the U.S. and abroad.

Signed/editioned prints of the illustration are also available.

Thanks, everyone, for your support on this venture so far. I hope you love this tee as much as I do!

At Haught Style in the Prairie Village Shops, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., be sure to come visit me, Kirk, Heather and Kylie!

Note that this is all day — hopefully those of you in the city can make it at some point. We will release the newest FLP tee to the public at 10 a.m., in store and online. At the event, all of my tees will be available for the special discounted price of $20. Pictures of the new tee coming tomorrow morning!

Kylie has created some adorable necklace styles for the Valentine’s season. Sometimes hearts are just the best. She’ll have the rest of her usual styles as well.

We’ll be serving wine tastings from Inland Sea Wines. Not only are these wines made locally, the company also gives 1 percent of profits to The Nature Conservancy and The Batten Disease Support and Research Association, both of which the owners have special ties to. Inland Sea Wines are available at these local retailers.

We’ll also be serving my favorite locally made cheese, Musser’s Reserve (I’m assuming the reason they don’t have a website is because they’re Amish), and home-baked crackers made with locally grown fresh herbs that I’ll be whipping out tonight.

And don’t let the snow keep you from getting out! Here are four other destinations you’ll definitely want to shop tomorrow:

• Donna’s Dress Shop on 39th is having a girl’s night from 5-9 p.m. Live burlesque included!
• Bottoms Up, KC’s “newest monthly antique and vintage market,” opens for the first time in the West Bottoms.
• Urban Mining’s monthly vintage market will be open, at 39th and Walnut.
• Good Juju’s monthly vintage market will be open, in the West Bottoms.

Enjoy! Hope to see you!

Refinery 29 recently spotlighted NYC artist Francesca DiMattio, whose thrifted and artsy wardrobe (not to mention decor) is so inspiring.

“My mom raised me exclusively on thrift stores as a little girl and taught me to look for new shapes and feel for quality fabrics. It’s exciting for the eye to see something different, so I look for shapes that are not common. As a result I often find myself holding maternity wear, and clothes in my closet range from size 0-16. An outfit looks great when it’s a little unfamiliar.”

“Everything I buy is under $20 (except for shoes), but recently I found two silk Anne Klein II tunics, which are like large tank tops that I am excited about.”

“I like things to have lived a little before me. My couch is from the old cafeteria at Cooper Union; we found the stools on the street, the table is from Craigslist, the chairs are from a friend’s antique store in Hudson, and my husband made the kitchen bench from found wood on the street that he then treated and stained. Also, I love fake flowers and always keep bouquets around the house. Initially, I made them for the centerpieces at my wedding, but I made a couple more for our home.”

Read the full article, and enjoy more images, at Refinery 29.

I think I’ve answered my own question

as to why so many cultures around the world

have their own different-yet-similar geometric patterns.

Looms!

The similarity among patterns would come from all cultures having the same design challenge: There’s only so much you can do with line patterns, as in weaving or with a knitting pattern. Right? Have I broken my own case? ;)

I can’t get enough of the updated versions of these patterns, either…

Mociun Day Coat, Pendleton Meets Opening Ceremony Wool Zip Vest and Twelfth St. by Cynthia Vincent Oversized Navajo Sweater. And it’s here for spring, too — I just spotted these brand new flats at Habitat, also by Cynthia Vincent! Good stuff.

Turkish kilim pillow cover via eBay, Bauhaus rugs via Wikstenmade and Native American weaving via Rockwell Museum of Western Art. Loom image via Hayden Loom.

Over at Storenvy, we’ve spent the last 10 days or so working on a t-shirt design collaboration to benefit earthquake relief in Haiti. Designers from the community donated designs, and the community voted on their favorites. Based on all the support we got in the voting, we decided to print nine tee designs that are available for sale now. Of your $14 purchase, $8 goes to the Red Cross. You can shop now at the Hope for Haiti store. Enjoy!

Stewart+Brown just released their Spring 2010 line, along with a fun behind-the-scenes video at their latest photo shoot,

and as a bonus, the brand’s biannual closeout sale will start Thursday at noon PST. For access, sign up here. Happy shopping from one of the most enduring and pioneering ethical brands out there.

Via Ecouterre and GreenGrechen

Sara, Jenny and @witchinglights! Just send me your addresses and I’ll send them to you myself. Thanks to everyone who entered! You’re all winners in my book. :)

“With this collection, we wanted to show everyone that you don’t have to sacrifice style to make environmentally-conscious choices. You can use earth-friendly materials and still look fantastic!” said Alicia Silverstone, who is known for her animal rights and eco activism. The EcoTools by Alicia Silverstone cosmetics bags are available at Walgreens, Target and Amazon.com.