Fashun
Posted by Eliza Coleman on September 2, 2010 · Comment
Four great things: the classic gospel song “Wade in the Water,” the voice of Patty Griffin, a cool video, and a Southern selvage denim company. This video was made by
John Moessner for
Imogene + Willie Jeans.
Imogene + Willie is a denim (and more) store housed in a cool old gas station in Nashville and i run by Matt and Carrie Eddmenson, a couple with experience at other industry standbys like RRL and Levi’s. But not only is it a store selling new and vintage denim, they actually make their in-house brand of selvage jeans on the premisis and they’ll customize your pair for you the same day you buy them.
In love with their building… I’d like to move in please.
Posted by Eliza Coleman on August 24, 2010 · Comment
Window-shopping is getting even more appealing in Montreal these days Dave Arnold, or “Mr. Sign,” is bringing back the art of hand-painted window signs. Apparently, his work is catching on like wild-fire and store owners are eagerly seeking him out.
Isn’t that cool?? A resurgence of hand-made anything is pretty exciting. If you missed the post with the video about the dying art of hand-painted billboards in New York, check it out back
here. It’s a pretty touching homage.
[Dave Arnold/Mr. Sign]
[Poppytalk]
Posted by Eliza Coleman on July 2, 2010 · Comment
Apolis Activism’s latest project:
Bringing classic board short company (originally boat-cover-makers) Kanvas by Katin up to date with a men’s chambray trunk. As usual, it’s all about the quality. Love it.
And, as usual, great video with a great story!
Also, I didn’t realize these guys could surf!
Love them! Available here.
Posted by Eliza Coleman on June 30, 2010 · Comment
California is mighty wonderful, but you just can’t get food like this out here.
Posted by Eliza Coleman on June 9, 2010 · Comment
This unassuming cafe in Paris, called Sweat Shop, has become the cool new hangout for hipsters with a penchant for sewing their own clothes/accessories/crafts/etc.
With ten Singer sewing machines, customers can use the cafe like a sewing version of a cybercafe– paying to use the machines either by the hour or for a full day, in which case coffee, tea, and snacks are included.
Above, owners Martena Duss, a makeup artist, and Sissi Holleis, who had her own clothing line before opening the cafe. In addition to cafe fare and use of the sewing machines, the ladies offer classes on various sewing techniques as well as kits that include all the patterns and materials necessary to make different things…
The whole world is going Handmade Nation… and I love it.
NYT article about it
here.
Posted by Eliza Coleman on May 20, 2010 · Comment
This video about the hand-painted billboards on the sides of buildings in New York, and the people who paint them, has a really magical quality. It sort of feels like when something starts with an image of the world from outer space and then zooms in and zooms in and zooms in and you finally land on one tiny detail on ground level… here the detail is the little world that revolves around the tiny and dying industry of hand-painted billboards.
It’s one of those things you might stop to think about for a brief moment every once in a while– “Who painted that? How long did it take?”– but then you never really get answers so your mind never wanders very far. In this really well-done (love the cinematography and the editing) short sponsored by Stella (brilliant move), you get a close-up peak at this world that not only gives those answers, but also puts human faces to the signs that seem to magically appear around town.
If nothing else, watch the the thirty seconds at the end between about 12:00 and 12:30… you miss out on the story but the visual is still awesome.
Posted by Eliza Coleman on May 14, 2010 · Comment
The Mast Brothers (who are actually brothers) do everything for their “American Craft Chocolate,” from bean to packaging, at their Brooklyn “factory”– a model not often seen in the chocolate industry. And, there is no sugar or cocoa butter added– the chocolate is purely what comes directly from the beans they grind and melt.
As such, their product has a great story, and I also happen to love their packaging and the look of their storefront/factory!
I love the combo of the beautifullly patterned and retro looking papers with the incredibly simple logo and modern font. And it’s awesome that their logo is a mast that also sort of looks like a crown, and the hand-drawn quality lends a homemade feel to the product and keeps it from looking like they take themselves too seriously.
Click through for more photos and a behind-the-scenes video at their Brooklyn storefront/factory…
The combo of brick, wood beams, maps, grain sacks, chalk board, and industrial equipment is pretty awesome looking. I think they nailed the aesthetic for their little operation.
And of course, since I love behind the scenes videos… a video about their story and process. And you get to see what the brothers are like!
Mast Brothers website
here.
Photos and questionnaire from
The Selby Chocolate available for sale online at
Provisions.
Posted by Eliza Coleman on May 11, 2010 · Comment
The sheer existence of a company like this, still doing things the same way they’ve been doing it for years, and doing it because they love it, makes me feel a little bit better about the world. Oh, and the video is really well done.
“Grafica Fidalga, a printing press in São Paulo, Brazil, makes posters on a 1929 German letterpress using hand-carved wooden letters.”
Posted by Eliza Coleman on May 11, 2010 · Comment
GREAT article
here on the trend of consumers wanting to know the source of their products and food, as well as the story of the company.
As we all know, buying local and handmade is very important to the eco movement, but this article, which is by a trend-watching firm, also discusses the added status that luxury goods companies can attain by making it known through their marketing that they use traditional methods and eschew outsourced production. So true and very interesting.
See previous posts on this topic by clicking the “provenance you can believe in” tag directly below this post.
Posted by Eliza Coleman on May 6, 2010 · Comment
Love these behind-the-scenes, see-how-it’s-made videos…
I think we as consumers are definitely going to keep moving in the direction of wanting to know the story behind the product and where it came from, and even paying more for something just because of the story, whether bags or food.
Here’s a quick one on the classic L.L. Bean “Boat and Tote” Bag.
