REVO 2015!

This weekend, I was honored to be a part La Sierra University's 2015 REVO event. Along with pop-up shops, food, and live entertainment, there was a fashion show. 

This fashion show featured nine different student designers who each dressed a handful of (mostly) student models. The wonderful Klarissa Kurtz was our fearless leader and with the help of her boyfriend Nick, as well as two make up artists, everything fell into place for both  the Ubuntu event on Saturday night and the REVO event on Sunday night.

Racing through Facebook last night, I found some photos of the line Voyager by Klarissa. There are some detail shots (photo credits to Nick) and there are a few runway shots as well (photo credits to Nathan, one of the school's resident photographers). 

(I got to walk with this dapper prince!)

(We walked to Shakira's La La- the 2014 World Cup Song!)

(The modern huntress Diana)

If you were unable to make it to the event but would like to donate, check out notforsalecampaign.org

There are many more photos of this and 8 other lines. I'll be posting links as they become available.

Thanks so much to everyone who came out on Saturday night, and thank you, all my readers, for stopping by the blog!

I Am Because We Are- Charity Fashion Show Events

Hi, everyone! Hope all are doing well! 

I have some exciting news (at least it is for me)! Some months ago I asked to be a model for a charity event. Business student, designer and Modish Iconoclast blogger Klarissa Kurtz designed a line of clothing for last year's REVO Event, and this year, I'm so pleased to say that I'll be modeling one ensemble for her line. This REVO event will be working towards ending slavery and human trafficking on behalf of the Not for Sale Campaign, and will be held at La Sierra University. 

Doubly exciting, we get to walk the runway twice. Loma Linda University is having a charity event called Ubuntu, which will send it's proceeds to orphanages and gardening projects in Swaziland. Having heard the word  ubuntu a few times before, my favorite definition of it is "I am because we are", a sort of community-based approach to being and existing. This event has been planned by AfriNet LLU.

I've been asked to keep mum as the word on theme and details of this line, but all will be unveiled on the 16th and 17th. If you'd like to see the big reveal as it happens and are in the area, reserve your tickets for the Loma Linda event here, or the the La Sierra one here! 

These causes are mind-blowing and exciting to me, and I'm quite antsy to be a part of my first runway modeling gig! I'm so grateful for every last person who will be there, cheering us on. If you can't make it, but would still like to donate to Not for Sale, you can do that HERE!

I'd love to see everyone who can stop by either of these, and as always, I'm so glad you stopped by my blog page, as well! :)

(more pictures and info about Unique LA to come)

What're you doing this weekend?: Unique USA Los Angeles

Hi, All!

Just wanted to say thanks to all my new readers, as well as those that would drop by from before. I've been getting a lot more of you guys checking this blog out, which is great.

Sometime during January or February, I started looking at the world a little differently, which has led slight shift in direction for the blog. Three weeks ago I was content to say "I'm done blogging indefinitely."

But lately, I've seen this little blog as a platform for seeking out either classic, quality or fair trade items for myself, as well as my friends and readers. If I could find all three in one... I guess that's what Giselle Koy would call a "Windom."

Taking a look at the participants page of Unique USA, I see those words and others like them peppered everywhere!

Which leads me to ask: What are you doing this weekend? Because this is what I'm doing this weekend, and I'd love it if you'd join me!

Here's a little more information, don't worry; I wouldn't leave you hangin' like that!

There are also events in New York and San Fransisco (the two US cities I dream about)!


Anyway, take a look and I'm sure you'll be as excited as I am! I would love it if anyone in the LA area would drop by this event, check out the good vibes and free food, and of course say hi if you see me!

Exciting News: the Tesla Powerwall!

The possible applications of Elon Musk's key note talk on April 30th in Los Angeles are far-reaching and astounding. Last summer a statement was released said "Tesla Motors was created to accelerate the advent of sustainable transport." It seems that Tesla now aims to lock arms with any willing person or company, in order to give electricity to remote areas (a particular dream of Nikola Tesla himself), and  prevent further global warming. 

On June 12, 2014 Tesla Motors announced their decision to open source all of their patents, and that still stands, including with the Powerwall. Basically, if you believe in solar power at all, or want to be convinced, he's asking you to take this technology. 

People have told me that solar power isn't a viable option because of the inefficiency of the panels themselves, the batteries, and because the need for electricity exceeds what solar power can offer. Musk has addressed the last two (better batteries for storage, and increasing amounts of panels going up). As for the design of the panels themselves, like the Tesla Model S and now X, early adopters might see much left to be desired, but using solar and electric will encourage innovations. 

Elon's designs are almost as elegant as Nikola Tesla's, and a little less seemingly sci-fi, which means we're more likely to feel safe using them, will have little trouble comprehending how it functions. And, at least in my opinion, thanks to the curved T and the font created for the motor company, Tesla remains impeccably dressed. And yes, I think that rap battle made an excellent point on behalf of my favorite Serbian-Croation-American of history. ;)

Recommended Reading: Vivienne Westwood and the Gentlewoman

Vivienne Westwood talks with Deborah Orr of the Gentlewoman Magazine, and it is magnificent! To read about how Westwood talks of clothing with have you fall in love with fashion all over again, and perhaps for different reasons.

I would really love to hear more designers talk about planned (and avoided) obsolescence, globalization and environmental topics. Globalization is something of a new topic for me; I'm just starting to read up on it. And yet it's related to a slew of other topics. It's shocking to me how many people dislike certain aspects of globalization going wrong, without getting to heart of the matter, or being able to name it. But I suppose that will have to be for another blog post, on another day.

This article, though, doesn't merely talk about avoiding obsolescence and fast fashion. It seduces you with the permanence fashion can offer. "Investment" is a word used in this article, and perhaps it's doubly as correct: the "vestment" part referred to clothing, like a coat, at one point. Maybe that's why I feel warm and safe while I am reading it.

Perhaps it's just me, but I was reminded of something funny when she brought up chickens. In my last post, I recommended John Oliver's talk on fast fashion. He closes with the phrase "Eat this wagon of mystery chicken!" Upon watching it, my room mate and I looked at each other in bewilderment, and then repeated the line to one another, and burst out laughing.

In the 5 days since we watched that video, the phrase has become our code for "get up and do something that's difficult, but that will make things better for yourself in the future" (... and I hope you can see why it's easier to just borrow Oliver's phrase...)

With voices like Westwood's leading the way, we may be able to do just that.

Recommended Viewing or "Fashion... Turn to the Left... Turn to the Right"

Alright, so it happened! John Oliver is talking about fashion! Or rather the creepy Yeti of an industry behind it. After watching this video I have to front load and say: I was formerly unaware, but now am ashamed of some of my aloof posts. I thought I was cool for not purchasing Nike…

If you just laugh along to some of the jokes that he tells, you can miss a couple of details that are rather alarming. But if you look carefully you'll see a couple of compounding / snowballing patterns that I'd like to point out. It must be difficult to point out some of the nuanced details while trying to also cover of breadth of knowledge on the topic.

So here are the downward rolling snowballs that I saw: 

1. We're putting ourselves into a low-price trap. (We can't say it only hurts those making the clothing, honestly.) We outsource so that the item will be less expensive, which means we will have fewer jobs in whichever country ours may be, which means our next items will need to be more inexpensive. I don't care to see how far downhill that snowball will roll. Although I imagine it would and somewhere along the lines of: "This 1 dollar bill would be more expensive than that dress, if only we could afford the scotch tape!" (Don’t believe me? Check this mess out!!)

2. Subcontracting is don't-be-mad code for "We outsourced these outsourced items", and with that comes human rights abuses that no one is directly accountable for. Hey Walmart, you sent your work to someone else, and then lost track of where they were? Really? Because at least one Old Navy subcontractor has figured out how to keep track his workers (unethical though tying children together indeed is). What could possibly be next for the people who get mixed up with the subcontractors’ subcontractors? I can't bring myself to make something light about how things could get any worse. But maybe next time a manager looses track of a subcontractor, they should be tied together until some answers are produced... But I'll leave it at that; this snowball is too cold to handle.

3. Lastly, the dazzle and dodge techniques used by these companies are rivaled only by Richard Genre's character in Chicago. Each glittering snowflake of lovely garments, the joy of shopping and cool advertisements are all compacting together to blind us. Each time it comes up in the media, I think it's going to be handled, and then it's not. As soon as we turn 3/4 away from the problem, companies seem to try even harder to make buying clothing into a moral mine field. It's like we can't take our eyes off of them!

"So what are we supposed to do about this, Marla?" is the question my sister asks me each time I make her watch an episode of Last Week Tonight, and hope you're thinking the same thing. I say "We can't take our eyes off them!" Keep an eye on fashion companies/suppliers. They have shown us that they're willing to not so much bend morals distastefully, as do obscene back-flip after obscene back-flip in order to get our money. So can we make an effort to use our money to... encourage… (read force) these acrobats to stand upright, and be ready to keep in step with the march of progress.

If we take that laser-focused critical eye and point it at the business practices of a fashion company, rather than merely at the details of the garment, the above patterns won’t have a snowball’s chance.

Below are some resources my sister has collected along the way in order to 

help her become a more thoughtful shopper. Thanks so much for collaborating with me, Sis!

Thank you to Elizabeth S., The Notepasser, for her list of 7 Ethical Fashion Resources: http://thenotepasser.com/blog/2013/9/13/ethical-fashion-resources

Cheer on these NYC-based underdogs as they push back against those that would push them out of business. They’ll point out who to shop with, Where you can get the hook-up if you’re a designer, and even who to bother if you want to contact elected officials!: http://savethegarmentcenter.org/about/

Sara Laughed has a list of ethical brands both in the US and abroad, which creates plus sized clothing for women: http://saralaughed.com/index.php/ethical-fashion-plus-sized-ethical-clothing/

Busy Mommy must have been very busy listing 150 companies that are sustainable, fair trade, or have charitable donations built into the budget. Not just clothes: Coffee, soap, futbols, hats!: http://busy-mommy.com/2014/12/150-social-good-companies-with-fair-trade-buy-one-give-one-products-or-who-donate-a-portion-of-proceeds.html

I’m not sure how Good Guides works, but you can type in clothing brands and other items and get a rating based on how healthy the item is, the environmental impact and it’s effect on society. You can also get the app for your mobile devices. http://www.goodguide.com/

There's also this handy flowsheet!

A Favorite Place- Day 2

My second day in San Diego I checked out the zoo, thanks to a generous friend who shared her season passes with me, and let me meet her darling kiddos.  At the end of the day I walked around Balboa Park some more, and caught a belly dancing troupe and a second performance of a didjeridoo player.

A belly dancer and her pet snake.

What a cool Noah's Ark necklace!

I don't know what you are, but you're cute...

Can you tell I liked these pandas?

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