Our setup at Elizabeth Ave Station, Warehouse District – West Palm Beach

It’s been way too long since I’ve given an update, but life happenings have made it a challenge to keep up with the Pashen Collection blog. There are a lot of new updates, so I wanted to carve out some time to offer a few of those up.

I have participated in a number of trunk shows at Social House in Lake Worth. They call them “Makers Meets,” as their goal is to bring together local makers and give us an opportunity (a platform – if you will) to share our talents, stories and goods with other participating vendors/artists, as well as those who simply attend the events to mingle and/or shop.  The team at Social House is AH-mazing and the events have been wonderful for Pashen… I have met a number of other local artists and we have talked about collaborating on future projects.  I have also been invited to sell the Pashen line in a number of local shops.  One of the shops where pieces of the Pashen line are now offered as a result of one of these meetings/invitations, is Elizabeth Ave Station.  Elizabeth Ave Station is located in the new Arts Warehouse District in West Palm Beach.  Prior to their opening, Dani from Elizabeth Ave was perusing the Pashen line at a Makers Meet, told me all about their plans to open and plans for expansion, and asked me to consider having the Pashen line offered in their soon-to-open shop.  Her excitement was palpable and contagious (and still is) and I am so thankful for the opportunity to be part of the project.

Three other shops where items from the Pashen line can be found are Bead & Reel, Good Cloth and Ethica.  The styles vary from shop to shop, and we still have our shop on our own site as well.

Next up – new styles are in the works, though these things take time.  Sketches are drawn, materials are being sourced and I will do my best to post more updates soon.

My primary goals with the Pashen line remain the same. – to offer beautiful, high-quality clothing and accessories, that have been ethically-produced with ethical materials and practices.  My vision is clearer than ever and I will continue to support the ethical fashion industry and other environmental initiatives in any and every capacity that I can.

Thank you for taking the time to read my update and please check back soon!

A sneak peek at something I am playing with…

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Alpacas, cousins to the llama, are beautiful, intelligent animals native to the Andean Mountain range of South America, particularly Peru, Bolivia, and Chile. The alpacas, which provide the fiber for Pashen Collection styles, are from Peru.

Adult alpacas grow to approximately 36 inches in height and generally weigh between 150 and 200 pounds. They do not have horns, hooves, claws or incisors. They are alert, curious and predictable. They are social animals that seek companionship and communicate most commonly by softly humming.

Alpacas are shorn, without harm, every 12 to 18 months. They produce five to 10 pounds of luxurious fiber. Long ago, alpaca fiber was reserved for royalty. Today it is purchased in its raw fleece form by hand-spinners and fiber artists, and by knitters as yarn.

Alpaca fiber is very soft, have the luster of silk, and is warm yet lightweight. It comes in 22 natural colors, yet it can be dyed any desired shade.

Containing no lanolin, alpaca fiber is also naturally hypoallergenic. Most people who are sensitive to wool derived from other sources find that they can wear alpaca without the itching or irritation they experience from wool because alpaca fiber is smooth. Other characteristics include: stretch, water repellency and odor reduction. For travelers, clothing made from alpaca is desirable because it is wrinkle-resistant.

Sensitive to their environment in every respect, alpacas have soft padded feet instead of hooves and can leave even the most delicate terrain undamaged. Damage to topsoil decreases long-term soil fertility and in the process, the soil is eroded and weed invasion is encouraged.

Alpacas prefer to eat tender grasses, which they do not pull up by the roots. Lacking upper teeth, they “cut” the grass with their bottom teeth and upper palate. This vegetation cutting encourages the plants’ growth. Because they are modified ruminants with a three-compartment stomach, they convert grass and hay to energy very efficiently and stop eating when they are full, further preserving the landscape on which they live. Alpacas also do not mind eating brush, fallen leaves and other “undesirable” vegetation.

Alpacas’ pellet-like droppings are PH balanced and are an excellent, natural, slow-release, low-odor fertilizer. This rich fertilizer is perfect for growing fruits and vegetables. Because alpacas consolidate their feces in one or two communal spots in the pasture, it is easy to collect and compost, and the spread of parasites is controlled.

While alpacas are environmentally friendly … and even beneficial… to the land, what makes them even more ‘green’ is the fiber they produce. No chemicals are employed either during feeding or during the industrial production of alpaca fleece into fiber. If dyeing is desired, only 20% of a normal dye quantity is required. All fiber from an alpaca can be used – even the fiber from the lower legs, belly, neck, etc is being used for things such as natural weed mats to be placed around trees. Alpaca fiber is biodegradable. Alpacas require no insecticides, herbicides or fertilizers that pollute the groundwater.

Whether it be tops, bottoms, knit accessories, or woven bags all of these wonderful attributes make alpaca a perfect fit for Pashen Collection!

(Source for reference: Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association)

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I went through my personal clutch bags and picked apart the favorite features of each. I then drew out the size of the clutch bag I wanted on a sketch pad.  I traced this same shape out a few times then started drawing and coloring designs onto the basic shape.  Through this, I came up with 3 clutch bags: 1 neutral combo with a geometric print, 1 bright and fun multicolor style with a repetitive allover zig zag pattern, and a third in black/white with an abstract emphasis on something that I really love – peacock feathers.

Next, I started pounding the ‘internet pavement’, contacting suppliers, manufacturers, artisan groups, and online wholesalers, until I came across a group in Peru that specializes in working with handbags on a small scale.  They were excited to take on the project and sent me samples and images of past work.  It seemed like a perfect fit.

They created samples based on the specs I sent them, and with just a few minor tweaks to the designs after reviewing that first round of samples, voilà… the first 3 styles of Pashen Collection clutch bags were born.

First the artisans make the design for the loom based on my specs, then embroider the loom, then they have to make the mold of each of the clutch bags and finally produce the bags.

One artisan was assigned to each step of the project. The artisans who worked on the final hand-production of the clutch bags, worked from home, enabling them to be available to their families while still earning a living.

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- Dalai Lama XIV

Over the last few years, through my work in eco fashion, I have learned that the fair trade certification process can be lengthy and costly.  Some artisan groups, cooperatives and other organizations just do not have the funds to go through the steps at this point but they have made immense efforts to change the way things are run within their group.  In other words, they abide by the principles of fair trade without having the official certification.  I have interviewed some of the leaders of these groups, visited their workshops and even checked back in from time to time and have found that they are indeed legitimately running a fair trade operation, even without the certification.

With that being said, I  know the opposite exists.  I know there are some governments (I won’t name any names) who hand out fair trade certifications like they are pieces of bubble gum, in an effort to allot these businesses a competitive edge – an opportunity to hike prices and enter an industry that is still comparably new and fresh.  Let’s set aside the fact that they are scamming consumers and focus on the fact that they are all-the-while running their business unethically with workers working arduous schedules in terrible conditions for next to nothing.

To deal with this in my search for groups to work with and because some people are just not familiar with the term “fair trade”, I have come up with various ways to explain fair trade and a list of questions about the way their businesses are run.  I have even gone so far as to change meeting times at the last minute to show up when not expected.  They may think I’m nuts for going into this topic at such length but it’s really important to me so if they want the business they will understand and deal with it.

I want to offer products that are beautiful and comfortable.  I want them to be treasured and represent a level of quality that speaks for itself.  BUT, I also want to be able to pass styles from Pashen Collection on to customers knowing that someones creative spirit went into each piece alongside my spirit and no person or living thing was harmed in the process.  My journey continues…

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