Six a magazine

Myths and Symbols -reclaimed fabric skirts
designed to tell a story,
made in USA by djb
photo from "Species on the Verge & Other Works w/POV

& from across the sea - courtesy of SIX magazine, comes this great video on ethical fashion and London Fashion Week. Hear and see what new design means to several emerging (ethical) designers.

show busy

repuposed and borrowed

long shot of Species Installation

Donna Lough : wooden, painted sphinx

repurposed, reused, recycouture and womens voices, this show is like a miracle as we are living in the art. The more the give the better the return, playing with the rules of the universe as we balance them against the rules of mankind.

The Universe Rules!!!

Art Walk

tonight in Wallingford 5-8 at the Wallingford Center (1815 n 45th st) , see the show, say hi.
cheers,
d

show opens tomorrow

Joe's Jeans

urban wildlife -the pigeon-
wearing a feather design in a limited palette, and so worth seeing.

I was in Macy's a few days ago. My bus stops outside the door which makes it a convenient 'rest stop.' The ladies bathroom is in a sea of women's wear, but of course! so i look for signs of creative design, something inspired as i walk through the racks . I have been disappointed more times than not, maybe it is just hard to surprise me or maybe because real design has been tanked by "what will sell."

This focus on sales over design changes the dynamic just as the pursuit of profit has resulted in loss of other values. Energy goes the way of the focus and that squashes diversity. This is bad for ecosystem health and design health . Bio mimicry of the disastrous appears a silly patten that we best change.

Ok this in my head along with the cost of production, aka real costs ( human, environmental, health et al) so I went up to a clerk and asked her where the sweatshop free clothing was. She took me over to a rack of Joe's jeans that are supposedly eco friendly though label says made in Mexico and i looked at the company site and saw nothing to validate that idea.

The aha side of this story is that we conversed after she had seen Zeitgeist and was in need of knowing that changemakers are running around in the real world. The moral of this story is: speak up, get out in public and show yourself. This will build our cosmic capacity and sets the change in motion from all points of energy, especially when and where connections spark it forward. This is good for you, me, us and all living things, including the living universe.

Kucinich at Hempfest

2011 Collector Poster by Cory & Catska Ench.

And so was the mayor, however Metro wasn't. The online bus planner told me that i could catch a #15 and walk 0.2 miles SW to Myrtle Edwards Park. However all the buses have been funneled down 3rd avenue and the stop wasn't just farther away but was in a creepy (to me) industrial part of town) It was ok for the coming but might be dicey on the exit.

I found out this stupid was the symptom of a bigger stupid, the tunnel. Tunnels on fault zones are a bad idea- humans cannot control the movements of Earth and we apparently disconnect old ideas of "progress" with new fangled "global warming." It is time that the wealth making of the few is exposed for the charlatan it is. Ever promoted as public good actions, they have instead led to fiscal imbalance, fraud and other economic ills that tie into all other health and welfare issues. Which leads back to the Hempfest. (medical marijuana, prison populations, fiber crops that use pesticides, synthetic fertilizers & herbicides harm all of us eventually)

Hemp is a fast growing, water friendly, pest lacking weed that makes for eco sane fibers These fibers can be woven and knit into clothing that makes sense. Like solar and wind power, some things have more plusses and fewer side effects than others, that is where technology can add to the benefits while spending less energy on mitigating the fall out. The focus and aim is better from the get. That is smart, however a lot of money still rides on the old agenda which is why some of us are feeling like Alice in Blunderland.

Line Drying is Simply better

Line Drying is an easy to accommodate, better choice than machine drying.

Fresh air dried clothing is a healthier, saves energy ie watchces personal and family carbs (carbons), is sun sanitized and scented by nature. It is widely acknowledged throughout the world that line drying clothing is far gentler and wiser than tumbling them around in metal drums .

This photo was taken at last Sunday at the Sustainable NE Seattle Festival. It was a small but cheerful event that was patterned much like others before it. These local sustainable festivals lack a sophisticated urban edge that i appreciate. I do not hold that a return to farming need be everyone's cup of tea. I endorse fresh, local, organic farm produce but would rather find an urban farmer to till my backyard then do it myself. That way we both win and if the garden is prolific, so will others.

As for livestock, the goats, ducks and chickens are cute from a distance but my grandparents had a farm and there is a lot more to it than meets the novice urban eye. I appreciate them for their natural services and pet-ability but have other plots to tend, thank you very much,...really.

connections and patterns

Seattle bus stop

Connections and patterns, once you see them, you will not be the same.

Consider the ocean food web and the way species support and enable each other's lives in a dance of life and death. This harmony is disrupted when a species prevails and dominates the territory. This causes eco system unbalance that can become disastrous for the species that out-thrived its system

At a certain point it hits a max population and then it starts to decline as illness from the environmental damage of overpopulation, disrupts the food webs and things start falling like dominoes. This is part of the evolution picture, the point where a species adapts to new circumstances, ie moves on in skills or place or both, or bids the planet adieu.

Humans are not immune.

New Showtimes

On With the Show

Pop in guests and partners for next years "Title TBA" big talent show off, are showing up for the "Species on the Verge and Other Works w/POV"and dress forms are coming in the door, i am in psyche mode. This is like the best high that creates energy in self as it creates energy in the actions that create this awesome cycle. Like biotic/abiotic cycles it is perhaps a real tapping into the beauty and wonder of this universe. Driven from the heart, constantly refueled with information and support from the energy it attracts it is Wow!

palmistry

This small wall hanging reminds me of my short stint as a palm reader, my day as a carnival mystic in a backyard of Beacon Hill. This is an embroidered piece with a hand worked motif and machine stitched script. (part of Amulets and Talismans collection for "Species on the Verge and other Works w/POV")

What is an education for, anyway?

This top documentary is a pretty good answer to the USA dilemma where grade competition and test scores have left our children full of need.

"Children Full of Life" should be a staple of teacher education, is it? Please take a few minutes out of your day to view this very moving and informative work that applies to anyone who has ever been a child or who plans on bringing one into the world.

"Mr. Kanamori, a teacher of a 4th grade class, teaches his students not only how to be students, but how to live. He gives them lessons on teamwork, community, the importance of openness, how to cope, and the harm caused by bullying." (from the Top Documentary website, retrieved 6/19/11)

Thank you Robin, for bringing this to my attention.