Well, I have a new discovery.. Its called the "Slow Clothes Movement"... Its something akin to the Slow Food movement, where people actually buy raw ingredients and make food for themselves, rather than buying so called "fast food".. So slow clothes??
To be honest I just see clothes as clothes, the things that you wear to cover your rude bits, to keep you warm and to generally make a statement about who you are... So shall we define Fast clothes??
Apparently the difference between "clothes" and "slow clothes" is down to the way its produced, or purchased.. If you buy cheap mass produced clothing from High Street stores, technically its Fast Clothes... the stuff that you wear once then give away, or throw in the back of the wardrobe forever, knowing that it wasn't that well made, and quite frankly will fall to bits, bobble like crazy and will generally be a bit rubbish. So with that in mind, comes "Slow Clothing"... Whereby its better quality, produced ethically, out of better quality materials and will last longer (one hopes).
Slow clothing is basically anything that is "Fair Trade" (I can see a dozen dancing hippies singing "We told you so".... ). If its fairly traded, it means the manufacturers got a decent price for the garment, according to their economy and they've been able to reinvest in their own economies and been able to afford sustainable housing, food, etc.. while we in the West sit smugly and feel like we've done a good thing (Which we have). As someone who already purchases the odd Fair Trade item, I feel a smug sense of satisfaction that I'm actually doing some good... 1 Slow Clothing Brownie point to me..
Slow Clothing is also clothes that have a story, they have history. That doesn't mean they're carrying a whole heap of emotional baggage "I wasn't loved, so I was taken to the Charity Shop", rather they might be better quality items, that were sitting in the wardrobe not being worn, so their kind owners handed them over to the Charity Shop. Now, as any of you who know me well, know that I prefer Charity Shops to regular shops, why?? Because you never know what you're going to get in a Charity Shop.. its completely random. Rather than pay £25 for a pair of jeans, I pick up a couple of pairs, for say £3 each.. I get funky jeans, that are perfectly suitable for wearing.. and I give money to a good cause too.. All round win! 1 Slow Clothing Brownie point to me...
With regard to clothing having a history, there's the recent resurgence in "Vintage" clothes... OMG, I mean, seriously... Vintage shops, vintage markets, the plethora of recycling that's going on in the name of "vintage" is simply wonderful, as an antithesis to regular fashion, people are raiding their grandparents wardrobes and making a style of their own,. Obviously a follow on from such fashionistas as Kate Moss and Sienna Miller (where's she these days??).. with their "Boho" inspired looks... It started an upsurge in recycling old clothes and calling it "vintage".. Once upon a time you couldn't give away a 1970's style mustard yellow crimplene jumpsuit, whereas today, some trendy Urban uber-babe will sport it with a fake 1950's fur coat, stilettos and a plethora of chunky jewellery.. making the style her own.. As someone who has always struggle to fit into vintage fashion.. Its mainly for the more slender amongst us.. I have, however, found a few pieces that are just delightful.. and I had to have them, I've helped out small business and I feel good about that too... 1 Slow Clothing Brownie point to me...
Slow Clothing also includes handmade.. so the sitting and making of clothes, or up cycling old clothes is also "Slow Clothing".. So here is all the hand knit jumpers from granny, the crocheted scarf you've been unpicking for weeks because the pattern is written in some strange Coptic text and the hand sewn, carefully deconstructed and reconstructed creations... I create myself from this section, part of my business Ananassa Multimedia is based around these concepts (note to self, upgrade the website and use relatively newly coined term in all advertising from now on!). Handmade, quality, something different than the High Street... Being a trend setter, rather than following the in-crowd.. Making a difference. The joy that comes from making something yourself, or upcycling something into something more useful is simply delightful.. It gives a sense of real satisfaction and confidence, the "I'm wearing something that NOBODY else has got!".. When you wear something handmade, then amount of people who ask "Where did you get that from??!"..is simply astounding. So, I think 2 Slow Clothing Brownie points to me..
So, when you're rethinking your wardrobe, or are out and about and looking for something "new" to wear, consider "Slow Clothing"... I've been doing it for years, only I called it "Being too hard up to afford clothes in shops, so am making do, mending, buying from charity shops and second hand and making my own style"... you know it makes sense.
Friday, 10 January 2014
Thursday, 9 January 2014
New Year, New Me??
Hi folks,
Well, I promised myself back in November that I would blog more.. and I let myself down, however, I have resolved to not do that from now on. If I can't blog all the time, then I can blog some of the time.
So, did I make any resolutions for 2014.. actually I wouldn't call them resolutions as such, more goals.. or mini-targets.. I don't want to make sweeping statements and not be able to follow through, so better that I reduce it down to more manageable pieces really.
So I started my business, which has been growing steadily, I had a few sales from my Etsy shop before Christmas, which was encouraging and a few gigs booked.. and have been booking gigs for 2014 since the turn of New Year, with quite a few confirmed and ready to go.
So, anyway, a slight aside and now back to the topic.. Goal setting.
So for 2014 I would like to achieve the following:
1) Continue growing my business through making things, singing more and the like
2) Do more "me" stuff, I've found myself giving too much time over to certain people, now's the time to look at what I would like.. Sounds selfish, but I've had my head full of certain things and I needed to clear that really.
3) Do more spiritual endeavours. I've been neglecting my spiritual side in recent years, I've realised that I get a lot from being involved in spiritual matters and know a lovely group I can go to to mingle with like minded people.
4) Decorate my lounge. I've had the paint for nearly a year.. Its about time I got cracking with it and set some goals for achieving that.
5) Get more exercise. I've put on some weight, and my clothes are getting tight.. I can't fit into certain things, so I would like to lose some weight and do some more regular exercise.
6) Continue sorting my hair out.. It might not seem like a big thing, but to me my hair is important, it helps me to feel more confident, if my hair looks good, then I feel better. I've finally got a colour I like, just waiting to get rid of all the nasty over processed ends.. Not much longer now!!
7) To start living by the "one in, one out" philosophy when it comes to everything. I could be said to be a bit of a hoarder, so with the continued de-cluttering of the flat, I would like to implement that. It makes sense.. One book in.. one book out, one dress in, one dress out, etc.. It'll be a challenge, but will hopefully make life simpler.
8) Write more.. I'm not just talking about blogging, but generally. I've harboured an ambition to write a book and I laboured under the impression that I would need piles of books and piles of research and that I wasn't quite good enough. However, I realise that I am good enough and I can. I can write about pretty much I like.
9) Spend time with inspirational and positive people. Too long I've spent my time with naysayers and "yeah but" people. I've decided I would prefer to be with "you can" people.
10) To allow myself to be successful. Too long I've sat there and been jealous of the success of others, and been too much of a "yeah but"... I've decided to move on from that and to allow myself the joy of being successful and to want more in my life. Too long I've said "Well, I would, but..." or "I don't think I'm good enough"...So now I'm turning that around, releasing the old self doubt and allowing myself to enjoy being successful.
On the subject of naysayers and of our own self limiting beliefs, I've been reading some great books lately, which are inspiring me to unpick my past and turn myself around. I long believed that to be successful you needed to restrict the flow of things and generally not be attached to anything.. So much so I wasn't attached to stuff so much that success was literally sliding off me... Non-attachment is great, but when its accompanied by negative self talk.. the "yeah but" is alive and well and demands attention.
Negative self talk is destructive ultimately. Unpicking the past, going back as far as I can remember and allowing the flow of energy, love and the like to fill up the emptiness caused by the sense of lack is extremely fulfilling. I expected to be overwhelmed by the task, but its small baby steps. Healing the past, leaving all the baggage behind isn't easy. I'm not going to suggest that we gain quick fixes, cos quick fixes only plaster over the cracks. We have to do some serious "peeling away of the onion skin" (to quote a lovely lady I was chatting to this past weekend) to get the root of who we are, what our life's purpose was, etc.
Incidently, as an aside.. the lady I was chatting to about onion skins.. I have to tell you this, cos I think its funny and just a lovely indicator in there "ain't not thing as coincidence.
I sat on some chairs waiting to go into receive some healing and I was chatting to a lovely vibrant lady and her partner. I had met her briefly before and was taken to talk with her. I asked her, as I'd seen her videoing something previously, if she was a film maker.. Her response really shook me, "No, I'm not... Oh hold on, yes.. yes I am a filmaker".. they both went on to explain that she enjoyed filming things with her iPad and recently did an interview with someone and so that now, yes she was indeed a film maker. It may sound insignificant, but this really proved something to me.. If we sit in our place of negative self talk, we never achieve anything, however, if we sit in a place of ultimate possibility, then, yes, we can be whatever we choose to be. The conversation continued and I felt such warmth, fun and love from the couple. I went away and didn't think about it. I figured I'd check online with some of the things she had said, as a personal follow-up, if you will. I went on to discover that the lady I had been talking to was none other than Dawn Gibbins, a very successful woman, who delivers incredibly upbeat lectures in success and business, etc.. has received dozens of awards for her work and even appeared on "The Secret Millionaire"... I sat in front of my laptop in absolute astonishment. I had been sitting next to one of the most successful people in the area. Has it changed my opinion of her?.. No, not at all.. I am amazed at the work she does and the life she creates for herself. I would say that while many naysayers will say "yeah but"... I have decided to embrace the discovery of my life's true purpose and to be open to possibility. Its easy to not achieve anything, its a whole lot harder to push through our personal limitations and say to ourselves "I am me and I truly love myself, I can achieve whatever I set out to do, I might not be able to do it overnight, I might need help to achieve it, but I can and I will"
So, with that in mind.. I will say to myself "I am me and I truly love myself, I can achieve whatever I set out to do.... I can and I will"
:-)
Well, I promised myself back in November that I would blog more.. and I let myself down, however, I have resolved to not do that from now on. If I can't blog all the time, then I can blog some of the time.
So, did I make any resolutions for 2014.. actually I wouldn't call them resolutions as such, more goals.. or mini-targets.. I don't want to make sweeping statements and not be able to follow through, so better that I reduce it down to more manageable pieces really.
So I started my business, which has been growing steadily, I had a few sales from my Etsy shop before Christmas, which was encouraging and a few gigs booked.. and have been booking gigs for 2014 since the turn of New Year, with quite a few confirmed and ready to go.
So, anyway, a slight aside and now back to the topic.. Goal setting.
So for 2014 I would like to achieve the following:
1) Continue growing my business through making things, singing more and the like
2) Do more "me" stuff, I've found myself giving too much time over to certain people, now's the time to look at what I would like.. Sounds selfish, but I've had my head full of certain things and I needed to clear that really.
3) Do more spiritual endeavours. I've been neglecting my spiritual side in recent years, I've realised that I get a lot from being involved in spiritual matters and know a lovely group I can go to to mingle with like minded people.
4) Decorate my lounge. I've had the paint for nearly a year.. Its about time I got cracking with it and set some goals for achieving that.
5) Get more exercise. I've put on some weight, and my clothes are getting tight.. I can't fit into certain things, so I would like to lose some weight and do some more regular exercise.
6) Continue sorting my hair out.. It might not seem like a big thing, but to me my hair is important, it helps me to feel more confident, if my hair looks good, then I feel better. I've finally got a colour I like, just waiting to get rid of all the nasty over processed ends.. Not much longer now!!
7) To start living by the "one in, one out" philosophy when it comes to everything. I could be said to be a bit of a hoarder, so with the continued de-cluttering of the flat, I would like to implement that. It makes sense.. One book in.. one book out, one dress in, one dress out, etc.. It'll be a challenge, but will hopefully make life simpler.
8) Write more.. I'm not just talking about blogging, but generally. I've harboured an ambition to write a book and I laboured under the impression that I would need piles of books and piles of research and that I wasn't quite good enough. However, I realise that I am good enough and I can. I can write about pretty much I like.
9) Spend time with inspirational and positive people. Too long I've spent my time with naysayers and "yeah but" people. I've decided I would prefer to be with "you can" people.
10) To allow myself to be successful. Too long I've sat there and been jealous of the success of others, and been too much of a "yeah but"... I've decided to move on from that and to allow myself the joy of being successful and to want more in my life. Too long I've said "Well, I would, but..." or "I don't think I'm good enough"...So now I'm turning that around, releasing the old self doubt and allowing myself to enjoy being successful.
On the subject of naysayers and of our own self limiting beliefs, I've been reading some great books lately, which are inspiring me to unpick my past and turn myself around. I long believed that to be successful you needed to restrict the flow of things and generally not be attached to anything.. So much so I wasn't attached to stuff so much that success was literally sliding off me... Non-attachment is great, but when its accompanied by negative self talk.. the "yeah but" is alive and well and demands attention.
Negative self talk is destructive ultimately. Unpicking the past, going back as far as I can remember and allowing the flow of energy, love and the like to fill up the emptiness caused by the sense of lack is extremely fulfilling. I expected to be overwhelmed by the task, but its small baby steps. Healing the past, leaving all the baggage behind isn't easy. I'm not going to suggest that we gain quick fixes, cos quick fixes only plaster over the cracks. We have to do some serious "peeling away of the onion skin" (to quote a lovely lady I was chatting to this past weekend) to get the root of who we are, what our life's purpose was, etc.
Incidently, as an aside.. the lady I was chatting to about onion skins.. I have to tell you this, cos I think its funny and just a lovely indicator in there "ain't not thing as coincidence.
I sat on some chairs waiting to go into receive some healing and I was chatting to a lovely vibrant lady and her partner. I had met her briefly before and was taken to talk with her. I asked her, as I'd seen her videoing something previously, if she was a film maker.. Her response really shook me, "No, I'm not... Oh hold on, yes.. yes I am a filmaker".. they both went on to explain that she enjoyed filming things with her iPad and recently did an interview with someone and so that now, yes she was indeed a film maker. It may sound insignificant, but this really proved something to me.. If we sit in our place of negative self talk, we never achieve anything, however, if we sit in a place of ultimate possibility, then, yes, we can be whatever we choose to be. The conversation continued and I felt such warmth, fun and love from the couple. I went away and didn't think about it. I figured I'd check online with some of the things she had said, as a personal follow-up, if you will. I went on to discover that the lady I had been talking to was none other than Dawn Gibbins, a very successful woman, who delivers incredibly upbeat lectures in success and business, etc.. has received dozens of awards for her work and even appeared on "The Secret Millionaire"... I sat in front of my laptop in absolute astonishment. I had been sitting next to one of the most successful people in the area. Has it changed my opinion of her?.. No, not at all.. I am amazed at the work she does and the life she creates for herself. I would say that while many naysayers will say "yeah but"... I have decided to embrace the discovery of my life's true purpose and to be open to possibility. Its easy to not achieve anything, its a whole lot harder to push through our personal limitations and say to ourselves "I am me and I truly love myself, I can achieve whatever I set out to do, I might not be able to do it overnight, I might need help to achieve it, but I can and I will"
So, with that in mind.. I will say to myself "I am me and I truly love myself, I can achieve whatever I set out to do.... I can and I will"
:-)
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