Ethical Fashion Blog

WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT THE CO-OP?
Mata Traders’ fair trade clothing is made in India and Nepal by women’s cooperatives.  Last summer I got the chance to visit three of them.  I had a great time meeting all the women and getting to know their stories.  I even interviewed several women on video with the translation help of social worker, Sampada, who took me on a tour of her co-op.
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VISIT DONNA’S DRESS SHOP!
If you’re ever in Kansas City be sure to stop by Donna’s Dress Shop.  Situated in KC’s hip Midtown neighborhood, you can shop new & used clothing, books, and more all in one block.  Donna’s is carefully curated by the lovely Donna herself (check out her awesome aesthetic in the photos below).  The Shop is filled with vintage curios and new Fall styles from Mata Traders fair trade fashion and other brands we love like NooworksGlobal Mamas, Many Belles Down, and Tulle.
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COLORFUL INDIA
This post will be a recurring segment to highlight just how colorful India really is.  If you like these, I encourage you to visit our Photos page (top right sidebar) to see the best of the best photos from our travels.  India is a very colorful place indeed.
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VISITING THE BLOCKPRINTERS
Maureen and Kristin are in India at the moment working with the co-ops on next Spring’s collection and even getting started on Fall 2012.  This past weekend they visited one of the block printers where we source our fabric.  Maureen said they got a lot of great photos and video, and it motivated me to finally get these pictures up from last summer when Michelle and I visited another block printer we use.
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PETITION FOR JUSTICE
If you’re a fan of Mata Traders, you probably care about how your clothes were made. It’s true that all over the world, people are being exploited – or worse – making the clothing that we wear everyday.
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WHY YOU NO COME MY SHOP?

Hello, or Namaste as they say in Hindi!

Joni, Michelle, and I are nearing our forth and final month here in India, and I am embarrassed to say that this is only my SECOND group e-mail.  How did this happen?  I’m not sure exactly, except that this traveling lark is a bit time consuming, so much to do and see, and the whole of India to discover in only a few short months.  Still, it’s no excuse.  A few weeks ago, as we were trekking through the hot Rajasthani sand on our way to the Jaisalmer desert festival, I remarked to Michelle that this trip is like one big, long day.  There’s so much to tell, and yet how did it get to be three months from the time I last wrote?

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STRETCHING OUT SUMMER
This weekend is the “last weekend of summer” and I’ve been living it up and wearing my most summery pieces, as tomorrow is the last day to wear white…(does anyone follow that rule anymore?)
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INDIAN TIME
In the past month, I have had a palm reader tell me that I was fit, and a yoga instructor tell me I would NEVER get fat.  The palm reader worked inside the 16th century Jodhpur fort and with bifocals hanging on to the end of his nose resembled a university professor.  Using more gracious phrasing, he called me a cheap indecisive double-checker who had the most “fit” health he’d read in years.  The robust young yoga instructor suffered from attention deficit disorder and assured me that w/ my long and lean body type I could eat as I pleased.  Good news from strangers, when every face is unfamiliar, is so believable.
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THE DESOLATE COUNTRY – THIS STATE IS ALMOST ENTIRELY A SANDY WASTE…

Monday, February 9, 2004 Travelogue:  Excerpts from past impressions and experiences in India (see the first travelogue segment we posted)

Rajasthan, Northern India

“The desolate country – this state is almost entirely a sandy waste…”  This is how Jaisalmer’s Palace Museum describes the northern desert-smeared state of Rajasthan.  The temperature has dropped remarkably and I, like every other tourist, have succumbed to wearing shawls (i.e. blankets) around town to keep warm at night.  Our noses are sun burnt red and our lips chapped by the blazing hot daylight sun and contact lenses are an impossibility here in the land of ‘fine desert dust floating through the air.’  Spring is on its way but as we’re traveling north, so the cold gathers.

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IT’S AUGUST ALREADY?
This summer has been scorching.  Also, this summer has been the busiest.  Lots of exciting projects!  I’ve pretty much resorted to wearing dresses only.  This slightly cuts my prep time in the morning – dresses are no-brainers because it’s like an instant outfit.
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MATA MEETS INSPIRATION
Here’s a pic of me and my friend Rian out to lunch at the new Inspiration Kitchens that opened up 2 months ago in Garfield Park.  The restaurant is the newest social enterprise of Inspiration Corporation, a non-profit homeless service organization.  The delicious “contemporary American cuisine” is prepared and served by students and graduates of their food service training program.  Of course, there is an obvious connection between Inspiration Kitchens and Mata Traders as organizations with a double bottom line:  a sustainable, self-generating income and a social mission of being a vehicle providing people a way out of poverty.
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