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Freebird 

(testing, testing, new blog/website coming soon...)

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Ceremonial Endeavour

This excerpt from a book that I adore speaks volumes about the ways that fashion and textiles were and can be (socially) sustainable.
There was a time when the making of cloth and clothing were personal endeavours, or regarded highly as cherished skills. This endeavour and understanding created a sense of spirit and status for the wearer [and the maker] while also acting as medicine for wellbeing; especially whilst engaging in the making process - this I believe, connects the fundamental purpose of clothing closer to the wearer.
The excerpt is taken from, Chapter 3 ~ Nosing out the Facts, Women who run with the Wolves, by Clarissa Pinkola Estes. 

In archetypal symbolism, clothing represents persona, the first view the public gains of us. Persona is a kind of camouflage which let's others know only what we wish them to know about us, and nothing more. But there is an older meaning to persona, one found in all the MezoAmerican rites, one well known to cantadoras y cuentistas y curanderas, healers. The persona is not simply a mask to hide behind, but rather a presence which eclipses the mundane personality. In this sense, persona or mask is a signal of rank, virtue, character and authority. It is the outward significator, the outward display of mastery. 

Notes on Chapter 3
Throughout Mezo-America, la máscara, the mask, connotes that a person has mastered union with spirit portrayed by both the mask and the spirit-clothing one wears. This identification with spirit through clothing and face adornment has almost faded away completely in Western culture. However, spinning of thread and weaving of cloth are ways to invite or be informed by spirit all in itself. There is evidence that the making of thread and cloth were once religious practices used to teach the cycles of life and death and beyond.

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Shimacho Stripe Book

Shimacho 縞帖 literally translates to ‘stripe book’. These Japanese books are a great archive and resource of the fabric that was being woven and worn in the 19^th Century, when most of these books were made.

The dark tones and subtle, small stripes, found throughout most of these books is due to sumptuary laws made during the Edo period (1603 – 1867), when the government dictated what a person could wear, and also when stripe patterns became increasingly popular as kimono patterns.

During this time, most common people had to dress in cotton or bast fibre clothing with dark colours and small repeats. Bright colours and expensive silks, and textiles that showed large repeats were worn by the upper or ruling classes.

These books were created for numerous reasons – according to some sources, some are sample and swatch books that were used for commercial use by businesses, and some were created by weavers to keep a record; as a scrapbook or a portfolio of sorts, of the different designs they’d created.

Some Shimacho were composed by families; by generations of weavers as a keepsake for their home and to inspire their work.

Legend has it that when a young girl left home upon marriage she would take a shimacho to her fiancé’s family home, so they could recreate or be inspired by her family’s woven cloth.

Although there is speculation that the albums don’t hold as much sentimental value as some of the legends suggest.

“In a culture and time where weaving was done in every home, my hunch is that there was a lot of swapping of fragments between families and neighbors, as there must have been a lot of mutual admiration and intrigue between household weavers, and these weavers wanted to compile as much inspiration as possible.” ~ Sri Threads

Images and text below from Sri Threads
This shimacho is typical of most: slivers of cloth were pasted into an already-existing book, the leaves of which were filled as swatches were gathered.It measures 9″ x 6″ or 23 cm x 15.25 cm and contains 15 leaves–and many worm holes, a common feature of almost any shimacho.

from Wafu Works Blogspot

from Wafu Works Blogspot

from Wafu Works Blogspot

Malaysian and Indonesian Textiles

Here are some images from my recent trip to Malaysia and Bali. I visited a Batik and Songket business called Noor Arfa in Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia.
And Sari Amerta Batik in Sukawati, Bali Indonesia.

We were greeted at the entrance for our  tour

DIY

Batik making equiptment

Iron batik stencils for 'block print' batik

Weavers weaving with banana and pineapple fibres

Wau Bulan (traditional Malaysian moon kite)

The above print is a hand drawn batik

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Below are images from Sari Amerta Batik in Sukawati, Bali Indonesia. Most of the images show the artists hand painting their batik creations onto silk.

The fixer's manifesto

https://sugru.com/manifesto

Images from the denim repair workshop with traid

Making, doing and mending with Traid in their Wood Green store. Above are a few of our samples. I learnt some handy hand sewing and repairing techniques. 

admiration - craft & reuse

Nike Colordry

Nike have launched yet another sustainable initiative, as they unveil the first clothing line made with ColorDry; a revolutionary water-free dying process. Water-free dyeing is a big feat as conventional dyeing uses roughly 30 litres of water to dye just one T-shirt.

Nike was one of the first to join Greenpeace in their 'Detox Challenge', which was set out two years ago to challenge fashion businesses to eliminate the discharge of hazardous chemicals from supply chains by 2020. And they're proving themselves to be one of the game-changers with Colordry.

ColorDry uses a highly pressurized form of carbon dioxide to saturate textile fibres with colour, not only saving on water but also saving energy and eliminating the need for extra chemical agents. Nike says it’s the most saturated, intense and consistent colour they’ve seen yet. 

Dreamscape

Reminiscing those University days and my final collection... and the launch party of 'Dream Issue' with the independent magazine Cock no.7, when I showcased a part of my collection.

My designs sitting alongside Sally singing us a song...

Cock No. 7’s The Dream Issue #5 Zine pack including the otherworldy album from Rawkiss Records - Luna

Shoddy Aid

I became interested in the state of India's textile industry while working at Everything Must Go.
For a week in January 2012 I volunteered to install and invigilate at the compelling Everything Must Go exhibition at the Bargehouse, Oxo Tower Wharf. Find out more on this exhibition via Waste of the World.

I became curious of the bad quality of the emergency aid blankets that are produced in Panipat, India and want to find out why they are produced in this way.
The blankets feel greasy, rough and dirty - these aren't what you'd wish for with emergency aid and blankets.

Emergency Aid blankets

'The most lucrative export market comprises the international aid agencies' emergency wool blankets, of which over 90% comes from Panipat. These are delivered to regional depots in Africa and Asia for stockpiling, or transported directly to disaster zones. Major aid agencies aim to procure good quality stocks from reputable companies operating factories with good labour and environmental conditions. However, sub-contracting arrangements may make it difficult to track their origins.'

Now I wonder what is being done to revise this matter. I haven't found a lot.

Firstly, let's break it down.
The 'shoddy' aid blankets are produced from mixed fiber composites. These fibers will have come from exports, possibly the UK. Second hand garments that aren't resold for use can be sold for an alternate reuse elsewhere, for example, Panipat in India. It is legal to export the second hand garments as long as they are mutilated before they cross the Indian border. These mutilated imports provide a source of raw material for India's wool industry.

Let me introduce the 'shoddy' aspect that I discovered while working at Everything Must Go.

A general lack of reliable statistics and transparent pathways in a rapidly expanding market prevents upstream stakeholders (eg charities) from being able to take sufficient corporate responsibility for the downstream effects of their economic activities. 
The current conditions in the Indian recycling industry are an example of the potentially damaging effects of this trade maintained by this lack of transparency. (Ironically, international aid agencies are one of the principle buyers of those shoddy blankets produced for the export market, unintentionally framing 
an exploitative recycled commodity chain at both the front and back ends.) 
• For example, developing initiatives that support the capture and retention of a greater proportion of the value in used clothing for socially constructive aims could prove to be an important incentive to counter the attractions of selling old clothes directly to recyclers, and encourage donations to charity shops. 
• Can alternative models for recycling textiles in a sustainable fashion be found for the surplus generated in the UK? Could improvements be implemented in the Indian industry to support the workers dependant upon it, and how might these be piloted and introduced? Worn Clothing 
http://www.wornclothing.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SummaryShoddy.pdf

The above information from Worn Clothing leads me to conclude with questions.
What can be done for the Indian Textile Industry workers? How can improvements be made to support them?
Can the surplus of second hand clothing be managed in the UK or its origin? Why do we export to countries that aren't fully educated in how to manage our generated surplus? Where is the ethical consideration?
I've found out it's not only humanity and human rights that are being affected. It is also the environment due to poor management and harmful methods for handling the surplus.

My investigation continues.

ECOCIDE

“Corporations are the ones gambling our planet away and our governments are running the casino.”
Polly Higgins, Eradicating Ecocide

Polly Higgins is a barrister, an author and the leader of Eradicating Ecocide Global Initiative.

Eradicating Ecocide is a proposed amendment to the Rome Statute, which was defined by Polly Higgins in April 2010;

‘Ecocide is the extensive damage to, destruction of or loss of ecosystem(s) of a given territory, whether by human agency or by other causes, to such an extent that peaceful enjoyment by the inhabitants of that territory has been or will be severely diminished.’ ~ http://eradicatingecocide.com/overview/what-is-ecocide/

Polly’s wish is to end Ecocide by 2020 – you can make a wish with her over on the Eradicating Ecocide website.

Make a wish for 2020 Eradicating Ecocide here: http://eradicatingecocide.com/wish20/

Polly Higgins, Earth Lawyer, http://eradicatingecocide.com/

BIOCOUTURE at SELFRIDGES for FESTIVAL OF IMAGINATION with SUPER/COLLIDER and AMY CONGDON

On Sunday the 16^th of Feb 2014, Selfridges held a Biocouture workshop for Festival of Imagination, in collaboration with Super/Collider and Amy Congdon.

Suzanne Lee opens the workshop with an introduction to microbial cellulose and introduces us to the edible, sweet kombucha style dessert popular to many in the far east of the world. This dessert originated from a coconut recipe in the Philippines, known as Nata de Coco (translating to cream of coconut); this dish is often flavoured with various fruit syrups. The fermentation of the coconut water creates a jelly like substance, which gels together through the production of microbial cellulose – a naturally occurring bacterium in the fermentation process.

Suzanne spoke about the well-known and loved kombucha health drink, and offers everyone a taste.

We were shown these simple food stuffs as kombucha drink and the dessert is the result of the fermentation of a live kombucha culture, which is the production method of growing the fabric for the above skirt!

“Kombucha is a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeasts (SCOBY).
The main bacteria, Gluconacetobacter xylinum, produces nanofibrils of cellulose which self-organise into a nano-structured, textile-like material.” ~ Biocouture

Live kombucha culture is a byproduct and foodstuffs made of kombu, or kelp, from the seaweed family, Laminariaceae.

Microbial cellulose samples

Susan Lee's Biocouture Jacket 

Microbial cellulose skirt

The fabric itself feels softer than you’d imagine at first glance. Eight sheets are lined up before us – with smaller sheets that are textured with salt, or that have been laser cut. We each get to have a feel – some caress it, other sniff it, while Suzanne encourages someone to scrunch it up, and then watch it go back to its original form, barely creased. So on first glance and through that experiment, the first impression of the fabric is that it’s durable and relatively hard wearing – it doesn’t scratch, tear or get creased up easily. But Suzanne goes on to explain that, if it got damp enough, it would turn back into its original state – it would absorb water and produce more bacteria that it is made from.

If leather got damp enough, it would do the same – it would become a little less durable and more rubbery to touch. That being said, this fabric has been known as a potential ‘leather alternative’.

The commercial ability of this material derived from bacteria isn’t strong, although, the purpose, as defined by Suzanne Lee and Amy Congdon, is to invite audiences into new ways of seeing and understanding the potentiality of this organic, and smart use of resources and to translate this into more ideas, and to design with this theory in mind.

Environmental Justice Foundation, Lily Cole and Vivienne Westwood Collaboration

On the 30^th of January 2014, Selfridges held an event for Festival of Imagination, which showcased Vivienne Westwood’s new video, directed by Lorna Love starring Lily Cole, in collaboration with the Environmental Justic Foundation ~ The NO PLACE LIKE HOME Campaign.

Selfridges window display

A T-shirt that Lily Cole designed for EJF sits alongside the panel for the evening

The film, Red Shoes, is a short 5 minute film. It takes inspiration from the Hans Christian Anderson tale of the same title.

The Red Shoes is a metaphor for ‘climate refugees’. Climate refugees is a term being used to describe victims of natural disasters that haven’t got a home to go to, and is prophesying a future when there’s nowhere left to go.

Lily Cole in RED SHOES; a metaphor for the plight of those who are forced to leave their homes because of climate change ~ EJF

The main discussion topic of the evening revolves around imagination and creativity as important tools to raise awareness of climate change. 

“In 2012, 31 million people had their homes taken away from them due to environmental disasters of some kind.” ~ EJF

Lorna Love Speaks from a personal perspective, and about her passion to document human rights films – as an artist. 

Lily speaks about not necessarily using art as a vehicle to express these global concerns, but as a passionate individual that’s what her work, and Vivienne’s, has become.

Vivienne agrees, “because I have credibility as a fashion designer, I take the opportunity to talk about these issues. People will ask me what’s the latest collection about, and I’ll be like never mind that! I’ve got something really important to tell you….” She talks about using her position (in a benevolent way)…

She talks about “hijacking” her fashion shows – with campaigns like Climate Revolution. In a true activist style… as Lily says there’s honesty in their expression, so rather than using art to communicate, they are artists communicating what they believe in.

“True culture is something that is foreign to most people.” Vivienne Westwood 

Vivienne speaks about understanding the past to communicate with clarity, the present day affairs – she speaks of trusting no governments! And to always ask questions.

Notes to Self, LCF event, The Future of Fashion: A True Story of Collaboration and Transparency

Imran Amed, The Business of Fashion

The Business of Fashion started in 2007 without a clear direction of content or purpose, other than to please its founder, Imran Amed. Imran teaches at CSM and is also a consultant.

Imran states that he needed to “just do” in order to gain a vague idea of what he could achieve on his website. The first web address of BoF was surprisingly: uberkid.com. Imran didn’t imagine that BoF would become so successful, so his first draft of the website was expectedly naïve, perhaps unprofessional but always honest.

Imran Amed started working in fashion only six years ago, before this he worked with a management consulting company called Braxton. When he worked with Braxton he developed an interest in fashion as an analytic and wanted to apply his ‘left brain’ skills into creativity. Imran suggested that creativity hadn’t been nurtured in 2004 to 2005 and in 2006 fashion blogs weren’t as prominent as they are now. He recalls Diane Pernet as one of the original fashion blog pioneers. Scott Schuman’s The Sartorialist and Susie Bubble’s Style Bubble is mentioned shortly afterward.

“People were talking about the façade and the surface of design and style at this time.”

“Today we’re inundated with media; it’s possible for anybody to join in the conversation... but in order to be successful and gain a following you must have a clear point of view.”

As Imran never studied writing or journalism and only started blogging for himself he’s confident to suggest that the internet is the most powerful tool for communication in business today for creative people, as formal training isn't necessary to some extent. He suggests that it’s easy to gain a following as long as a creative voice and an opinion is dominant.

Brand Identity: By 2008 BoF had changed and the following was growing. There were roughly 1,000 new followers signing up to read content each month within ‘08. Imran was able to recognise some of these names too, such as celebrities or fashion designers.
The uberkid.com web address had to be changed at this point in time.
Imran states that he’s embarrassed at most of the content/style of the website in its early stages, although the honesty of the site is also why it has been so recognisable and lovable; working in its favour.

With this change in 2008 came a new design. The typography had always been an important aspect of the now, digital newspaper. The creativity of the banner changes often to represent the site’s creativity; the ‘O’ for ‘of’ being the most important feature. 

By 2009 BoF was holding interviews with Giles Deacon and NET-A-PORTER.

BOF aims to join every discipline as a community. The website has become a destination for everyone to have a conversation.

2010 involved the famous Fashion Pioneers interviews which were streamed live online. The interviews between the host and the guest were intimate ones; this style isn’t usually portrayed in fashion media, as Imran states, most fashion interviews might only care about the designs, perhaps not the designer. These digital experiences led to learning and educating between the host, the guest and the audience. Another important aspect to BoF aside from educating is the community and sharing.

Right now is a very exciting time to be within the fashion industry; the most dominant areas within fashion buying and communicating according to Imran are video, social media and mobile phones.BoF operate as & are considered within:

- Business and Trade Media: Authoritative voice, opinionated

- Fashion Blogosphere: Dialogue and conversations, accessibility and authenticity

- Premium Fashion Magazines: Story telling, high aesthetics and aspirational

BoF listens to feedback making them popular among fellow bloggers.

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Bruno Pieters, Honest By

Bruno Pieters opens his talk with a very open and honest account of how he founded Honest By. The company is very honest in all media so he didn’t speak of unknown facts.
After working for around ten years within the fashion industry, including working for Hugo Boss, Pieters had to take a sabbatical as he wasn’t happy. Pieters didn’t see a purpose of just making clothes and making money, he needed something to believe in. Bruno experienced a lot of corruption within the industry during his time as a designer for various companies and the lack of transparency within the business bothered him. The corruption bothered him to the point that he eventually decided he should do something about it and he created his own transparent brand.

All aspects of the design process is contained within the Honest By website so if any customer should want the information it’s there – “if they’re willing to pay that price point” Bruno admits. Included in the open-source information is: material information, manufacturing details, price calculation and carbon footprint.

“Heritage is a synonym for past; knowing about the provenance of things is important.”

Bruno says that it’s a great fact to be recognised as the first transparent company in the world, although to him he says that’s also a reality.

Bruno speaks from a place of peace; he speaks calmly and honestly about his experiences and thoughts. “It’s important to work in the present moment, although the future is now, there’s no need to think of this way of dressing as future ideals as the future is here in this present moment. We are creating our future.” He also quotes Gandhi… “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

Bruno argues that if we buy from companies that sell fast and cheap fashion then we are paying these companies to not be sustainable. As child labour is continuing to grow, it is our responsibility if we choose to buy into these cheap fashion products or not. “We are responsible – grab that responsibility.”

“Freedom is almost a synonym of being irresponsible, although freedom should be about being responsible; the reasons you are free should be your privilege.”

“We can solve the problems through consumption as the problems are all about consumption – and the way we consume.”

Key points that Bruno raised:

- Classic fashion system is terrible

- Honest By is exclusively online

- Honest by – purity and simplicity fitting with its name

- They’re mostly about transparency and they are not ‘eco-fashion’, they’re good fashion

- Not based on seasons, they don’t create seasonal collections

- Their loyal consumers want something with depth. Their brand is a lifestyle more than something pretty. The loyal consumers want more for their money.

- The biggest loyal consumers are in the UK, within Europe and then the USA

Bruno Pieters, Honest By

   Imran Amed, BoF