eco fashion – the {r}evolution apparel blog

The Story of Rainboots, $18,000, and a Passionate Entrepreneur

Not too long ago, our friend Dave Ursillo connected us with an awesome artist and entrepreneur, Jessica Swift. You’ve probably seen her name or her patterns somewhere on the web (she blogs here and Tweets here), as she’s an insanely popular print designer, among other things.

Don’t get us wrong — we love all entrepreneurs. But there’s a special place in our hearts for other women who are pursuing passions, making beautiful things, and creating successful businesses in the process.

Jessica is in the midst of raising $18,000 on Kickstarter to produce her first line of super-cute rainboots. Supporters can buy the boots in advance, and ensure that Jessica has enough capital to make the project successful.

Yesterday, Jessica reached her $18,000 goal. But she’s still raising money, and the more she raises, the more colorful prints she can produce.

In the midst of the fundraising madness, we had the chance to ask her one question about guts and glory.

{r}: Choosing one path and “going for it” is tough for many. What are your thoughts about jumping into the deep end, taking risks, and focusing your energy on just one project that you believe in?

JS: As cliché as this is going to sound, I truly believe there’s no better time to start than now. I know from experience how easy it is to make excuses for why you’re not ready to start something – I don’t have enough money, I don’t have enough time, it’s going to be too hard, and on and on — and then wait and wait until all of a sudden months or years have gone by with nothing accomplished.

But I also know from experience that the best way to counteract those excuses is to just DO something to move yourself toward a goal. Anything! Just get into action. I’ve been extremely fortunate in my career so far to get to do what I love full-time, and I don’t take that for granted. I honestly believe that with a lot of hard work and determination, everyone can be successful at something they’re passionate about. We all have the seeds of success within us. And the only way to see what we can accomplish and create in this life is to just jump in!

If I waited to start a project until I had all the info, had done all the research, or felt 100 percent comfortable and safe, I think I’d be waiting (ie: procrastinating) forever! I much prefer to just jump in and figure things out as I go. I know I’ll make mistakes along the way, but I learn important lessons about myself and my business in the meantime.

I also truly believe that the right people and opportunities will show up to help at the right time, and all you have to do is keep your eyes open for them. This has never not been true in my life. It’s the old “jump and the net will appear” cliché. I’m full of clichés today, aren’t I?! Ha ha. But when I look back on the things I’ve done in my career so far that felt the scariest and most risky, those are the leaps that have taken me to new levels that I hadn’t previously imagined.

In my experience, the act of leaping and risking sets a whole lot of amazing things in motion and hurtles you down your unique path faster than you might believe possible! If someone had told me this time last year that I’d be starting a line of rain boots by myself, I would’ve thought they were crazy. And yet, here I am, on my way to doing just that!

Because an idea grabbed me, I ran with it, people and circumstances appeared to help me along the way, and I’m figuring it out as I go along. Is it scary? Heck yeah! But it’s mostly exciting and exhilarating, and that makes it totally worth it. I think when you feel nervous and excited about something at the same time, it means you’re definitely on the right path and that it’s time to do whatever it takes to make your idea happen!We owe a huge thanks to Jessica for taking the time to give us her thoughts, and encourage us to keep “going with it,” too. For those interested in getting their own pair of rainboots, you can find and fund Jessica’s project here! {r}

Who You Are is More Than What You Do: Part I

While this blog is completely about our project, we don’t really post much about ourselves on here. The things we do on a daily basis. Our personal lives. Our hobbies. Our lives beyond the {r}evolution.

The most interesting part about reading blogs, for me, isn’t so much what someone is doing or their musings about business, but how they do what they do, and who they are. What they do every day that keeps them going. How they manage their money. What they do for fun.

So this week we’re doing things a little differently. Writing about the lives we lead when we’re not dreaming about organic, fair trade cotton.

Today, it’s my turn. I’m writing from Denver, my home since April.

I guess the most interesting (and {un}fortunate) thing about my life right now is that I’m newly unemployed! I was doing internet marketing for an online company, until they went bankrupt several weeks ago (not my fault!).

So I’ve been working on another passion of mine — photography. I’m getting a few paying gigs, and hoping to scrape up what money I can. It’s a financially stressful time, but I’m waiting until my savings are really hurting before I get another “job.”

I’ve also been altering things like grandma skirts from the thrift store, and I’m taking about $600 worth of upcycled goods to sell at a local market on July 9! My all-time favorite thing in the world is our garden. My roommate, Bailey, has taught me the joys of growing veggies this year, and I am 100 percent addicted.

(The first almost-red cherry tomatoes of the season!)

I bike. A lot. ‘Cause I don’t have a car! My quads thank me.

I play keg-ball on Tuesdays. With a team called “Slippery When Wet.” My body doesn’t always thank me.

I work at a shared office space for sustainable businesses, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. It’s called Green Spaces. I’m taking a break from it for awhile (I can’t afford the rent!), but it was a saving grace during my “work from home” marketing job!

I never liked cats. I 100 percent love dogs. But this jungle kitty lives with me, and I think he’s pretty darn cool, even if he sheds all over my clothes.

I have no idea what the future brings, and it drives me crazy. I mostly dream about the {r}evolution and how it’s going to change a lot of lives, and try my best not to lose my mind with excitement/anxiety/impatience in the meantime. {r}

A New Route for {r}evolution apparel

{Last week, we wrote about one of our big challenges thus far — the sample process. We waited for months for a sample maker to bring our designs to life, only to be hugely disappointed. You can read that post here.}

Starting a business is, quite simply, a mindgame. It’s mentally challenging. It’s amazing high highs, and horrible low lows. And everything can change in an instant.

After receiving our last batch of samples, we were pretty down in the dumps. We lost two months in the process. And we lost our faith in people. We started wondering if the world is just one big blob of incompetence.

And then we realized that we just had a bad experience. Stuff happens. What’s done is done, and we’ll never get those two months back.

So we’re taking a different route. Instead of using one, vertically integrated company that can do everything from prototype to production, we’re putting all the little pieces together ourselves. Contracting out all the work, and managing the sourcing, sewing, and shipping.

Betsy is the first step in our new route. She’s a talented seamstress, designer, teacher, and pattern-maker who lives in Denver, CO. And she’s already helping us save the day by sewing our samples, one piece at a time.

We gave her our sketches and technical sheets, and within days of receiving the crash-and-burn samples, I found myself in Betsy’s basement trying on a prototype of one of our designs.

It’s a simple piece — a tunic that can double as a dress. And it’s in the very rudimentary stages. But when I put it on for the first time, I couldn’t help but grin stupidly in the mirror and think, “Wow. We did this. And it’s real. And it doesn’t suck.”

(A “rough draft” prototype.)

So, this is happening. As we slowly source our own fabric and make these samples one piece at a time, we get one step closer to launch. It might not be the process we envisioned, but it’s going to work and it’s going to be, quite simply, awesome. {r}

The {r} Interns: Meet Adeline

This week, our two interns, Adeline and Adrienne, begin working with us. To introduce them to our readers, we asked each one to write a post about herself. Today, join us in welcoming Adeline to the {r} team!

We all want jobs we love. We don’t want to dream of days off during our workdays and dread workdays during our days off. We want to live in the moment, and be able to choose work that employs our passions.

Fortunately, All of Us Revolution is providing me that opportunity. Adrienne and I join this week, and I look forward to the daily gratification of doing work I’m interested in and passionate about.

To give you an idea of who I am:

Born in Queens and moved to a Connecticut suburb just in time for kindergarten. Halfway through getting my Culture and Communications degree at Ithaca College.

Recently returned from a semester abroad in Spain, and currently experiencing a bit of reverse culture shock. Three ethnicities and one nationality, and still trying to figure out what each one means. Want to have a home base, but live with nomadic tendencies.

Photographing over painting. Dancing in the rain over singing in the rain. Vegetables over fruits. A single flower over a bouquet. Underdogs over top dogs. Metaphors over the literal. Analog over digital. Memories over memorabilia. Rethinking over reiterating.

This is the reflection I see when looking into the pond.

– Adeline {r}

A Journal Entry: The Difference a Year Makes

After college, I had 14 months of bliss. Nearly a year spent bartending in Australia with people so close I’d call them family. Three months in Southeast Asia with two of my best friends.

And then I came home.

I look at my journal from that period and relive the darkness that was “coming back to America.” It was a really frustrating, depressing time, when I didn’t know what I wanted to do or be, and how I would ever decide “what to do with my life.”

Here’s part of my journal entry on May 8, 2010:

“So I never thought I’d be here before. I figured at this age I’d know what I wanted to do and would have the chutzpah to do it. I figured that I’d be happy and constantly feel less lost in the world. Now I get why some people get sucked into lives they don’t like or stay in relationships that aren’t perfect. I get why people do boring jobs. Because, unless you have a serious drive, it’s the easy road out. You don’t have to think and you don’t have to constantly be unhappy that you aren’t doing something different, because you’re too busy doing the same thing…”

“…I am so unwilling to go after what I want. I guess it’s sheer fear, the thought of failing in front of others. So I continue to work a comfortable job and waste all my free time thinking about what could be, if only I weren’t in such a rut.”

It’s hard to believe that was me. It’s hard to read that, and even harder to share that with the world.

Being this age is difficult, no matter how many people tell you to “enjoy these days” and make the most of your youth. It’s confusing and full of new situations that aren’t easy to navigate. The “quarter-life crisis” sounds trivial, but it’s real, and I know that I’m not the only one who has felt the unbearable weight of adulthood take my zest for all things good in life.

This is the age where we decide, or let it be decided for us, what kind of person we are going to be. Will we take risks? Play it safe? Do something comfortable, or pursue something wild? I knew I wasn’t meant to play it safe, but I couldn’t take a chance without someone else.

I really needed help. So I called Shannon, because I knew she would understand.

And together, we just started doing something. It wouldn’t have mattered what it was.

As young people, I don’t think we talk enough about the tough things. We keep it in, and hope that eventually things will work out. I chose one person to reach out to, and everything changed. So I’m sharing this pretty personal bit of me to hopefully reach out to anyone who’s there: Uncertain, frustrated, totally clueless, and without direction.

I don’t have the answers. But only one thing brought me to living a life more meaningful, and that was sharing my struggles. And by opening up about the things that are hard about being 24, I slowly began to enjoy the totally awesome parts of being a young person, trying to make sense out of the chaos. {r}

{r}evolution apparel is Growing: Welcome, Interns

Somewhere in the middle of Guatemala, Shannon and I made a list of goals. We sat down with a pen and paper and a plate of cookies, and decided what our lives would look like for the next few years. (Here’s a screencapture of video we took that day. Yes, dorky.)

We’re going to talk about sustainable fashion on the Today Show. Get our clothing into REI. Go international.

Some milestones have already passed – we’re not launching this summer, we’re not going to pay ourselves this year, and that celebratory trip to Europe probably won’t be happening as soon as we’d like, either. But, one thing is going exactly as planned:

we’re expanding the {r} family.

This month, we’re going to introduce you to the two newest additions to the {r}evolution apparel brand, Adeline and Adrienne (we didn’t plan that!). Both are super-talented, motivated, and sustainable-minded individuals who are going to be key in making this thing happen.

It’s a really exciting time for us – going from two to four, and increasing our power to create change with the help of other driven, passionate people. They’ll be starting with us in the beginning of June, so you’ll hear a lot more about each of them in the coming weeks! {r}

How to Stay Motivated: 9 Bloggers Weigh In

As we’ve mentioned before, Kristin and I have been dealing with some motivation issues lately. We’re still stuck in an awkward phase, which has made it a bit more difficult to stay focused and driving forward. So, to counter our feelings of ‘now what?’ we’ve sought out advice from some of the experts of the blogging world.

This is a group of people who, for the most part, work independently. They battle the motivation war on their own and have to figure out a way to keep themselves motivated each and every day. These are their words of wisdom for the rest of us — for the days when we just can’t seem to get going.

Dave Ursillo of DaveUrsillo.com

I strive to immerse myself in the lives of others. Make the lives, the welfare, the happiness of others — from family and friends, to strangers and members of your community — a greater concern than your own doubts and fears. With this shift in focus and attention comes a shift in energy: we are reminded that our goals and dreams don’t simply exist for our own independent benefit, but for the greater good of those around us. And with that shift in energy comes renewed motivation, time and again.

Nate Damm of Nate Walks America

I think everyone has their own way of staying motivated. I personally try to break things down into small goals and stay as mindful and aware as I can of each step along the way until I reach them. A lot of people will focus on the long term final destination (which is great!), but it just doesn’t work for me, it tends to make me feel intimidated and lose focus on what I’m doing at the moment, which is very important.

Jessica Bourland of Slow Fashioned

I’m an artist at heart, so to stay interested and motivated in any job, assignment, or project I get creative! Sketch ideas rather than writing a list while brainstorming, create a fun new graphic for a blog post, or just take a break to do a fun hobby project to get my creative juices flowing before getting back to work.

Josh and Ryan of The Minimalists

We tend to put things off, especially when the task doesn’t feel exciting anymore, but if we take the first step, we get momentum and we are much more likely to complete the task. Sometimes we just need to take that first step—as difficult as that might seem at times—and the rest falls in line.

Jeannie Mark of Nomadic Chick

A key thing in keeping purpose flowing on projects is asking why you’re doing one in the first place. Projects that win are those fueled by passion, not always monetary gain. Seeing a vision come to life is sometimes the most rewarding pay-off you could ever receive.

Lauren Rains of The Mad to Live

It’s all about staying true to who I am at my root and the person I know I’m meant to be. I have a vision I’m trying to create for myself as this free-spirited, life-loving, wild and crazy, yet somehow also classy and sophisticated, young woman who is always up to something she is passionate about be it a business, a blog post, or an adventure. As long as I stick to this essential value, I’m always motivated because at that point everything I set out to do will help me learn to be a better person — and live the life I’m meant to live.

Joel Runyon of The Blog of Impossible Things

Have a vision of the new reality you want to create. Individual goals are great but when things get hard, following through on those goals becomes rough. In order to keep going when things get rough, you need something more, something bigger. Remind yourself that your goals are more than just goals, they’re building upon each other in order to create the new reality you want to see in the world.

Kenny Eller of Me vs. MJ

The old saying of if you do something you love, you’ll never work a day in your life, never really hit home until I began my quest to play Michael Jordan. If at the essence of your journey is pure passion — not fame or money — then motivation will be the least of your worries. If you’re following something that makes you feel like you felt as a kid before Christmas, then waiting will be the hardest part.

Nick Laborde of LocationLess

I’ve found that the best way to stay motivated is to associate with motivated people. Non-doers have a way of pulling you into their crap… if you let them.

Thanks again to everyone for offering your input and experience on motivation. I know I’ll be referring back to this post on those ‘don’t-want-to-do-anything’ days! {r}

Photo Credit

Building a Sustainable Business: It’s Not Just About the Product

As we wait for things to fall into place with our clothing line – like prototypes, the website, and our fundraising video – we work on the details. The little things that make a huge difference.

And one of the biggest hurdles is something that consumers rarely think about. In fact, they think about it even less than where their clothes come from.

Where the packaging comes from.

Let’s face it, humans are pretty ridiculous when it comes to packaging. We still use styrofoam (really, guys, really?). And more times than not, I feel like I’m cracking open one of those Russian dolls with plastic wrap after plastic bag, until finally, I get to whatever I bought in the first place.

And that’s the stuff that everyone throws away immediately. Unless you’re really cool and recycle or compost it. But let’s face it – not everyone is as cool as they should be.

There are, quite literally, a million factors to consider in the whole packaging process. And, as with fabrics, there is no “perfect” solution. So, the goal is to come up with the best solution we can.

But like much of our business so far, our best ideas come from family, total strangers, and mostly, you guys.

So as we start to make decisions about packaging and shipping that will be awesome for our customers and our planet, we have a favor to ask:

If you’ve recently bought something with great eco-packaging, or noticed some interesting trends in minimalist packaging, drop us a comment below.

No more styrofoam popcorn. Or any of that super-fun-but-really-destructive bubble wrap. Or layers upon layers of plastic. With your help and a ton of research, we’re sure that we can make our shipping process the best that it can be. {r}

Photo Credit

Building a Sustainable Business: It's Not Just About the Product

And one of the biggest hurdles is something that consumers rarely think about. In fact, they think about it even less than where their clothes come from.

Where the packaging comes from.

And that’s the stuff that everyone throws away immediately. Unless you’re really cool and recycle or compost it. But let’s face it – not everyone is as cool as they should be.

But like much of our business so far, our best ideas come from family, total strangers, and mostly, you guys.

So as we start to make decisions about packaging and shipping that will be awesome for our customers and our planet, we have a favor to ask:

If you’ve recently bought something with great eco-packaging, or noticed some interesting trends in minimalist packaging, drop us a comment below.

Photo Credit

Finally: A Sneak Peek of Our Designs

It’s been a long time coming. We’ve talked about these pieces for months now, but thus far we haven’t given a “real” look at how it’s all going to come together.

So here it is: a taste of the {r} collection. These sketches feature 8 of the designs, but we have a few more on the back-burner that we can’t release yet. And of course, we haven’t even begun to explain all the ways these pieces can be worn…

We’ll just have to keep you waiting.

: (click to make larger)

How to Succeed: Don't Be an Expert

I’m guessing that most of you out there have something you really want to do. But you don’t know how. And you don’t even know where to start.

And that’s a discouraging place to be. When you know nothing about nothing, you feel like you’ll never succeed.

Trust us, we know.

But after our trip to Asheville, we realized how important that phase of “knowing nothing” was.

We designed our pieces without knowing the limits of construction, sewing, or the basic fashion “rules.” We had no idea what the laws of fabric were. Or production. We had an imagination that seasoned designers just don’t have – because they know too much.

We realized, as we were working with our pattern and sample maker, that we were attempting to create something that no one has ever created. All because we just didn’t know any better.

So I guess the lesson is short and sweet.

Sometimes, they only way to think outside the box is not to acknowledge it, or what’s inside.

And the fun stuff, for the most part, is outside the box. {r}

Photography by Adeline Nieto

How to Succeed: Don’t Be an Expert

I’m guessing that most of you out there have something you really want to do. But you don’t know how. And you don’t even know where to start.

And that’s a discouraging place to be. When you know nothing about nothing, you feel like you’ll never succeed.

Trust us, we know.

But after our trip to Asheville, we realized how important that phase of “knowing nothing” was.

We realized, as we were working with our pattern and sample maker, that we were attempting to create something that no one has ever created. All because we just didn’t know any better.

So I guess the lesson is short and sweet.

Sometimes, they only way to think outside the box is not to acknowledge it, or what’s inside.

And the fun stuff, for the most part, is outside the box. {r}

Photography by Adeline Nieto

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

{the blog}

Tagged: eco fashion

The Story of Rainboots, $18,000, and a Passionate Entrepreneur

Who You Are is More Than What You Do: Part I

A New Route for {r}evolution apparel

The {r} Interns: Meet Adeline

A Journal Entry: The Difference a Year Makes

{r}evolution apparel is Growing: Welcome, Interns

How to Stay Motivated: 9 Bloggers Weigh In

Building a Sustainable Business: It’s Not Just About the Product

Building a Sustainable Business: It's Not Just About the Product

Finally: A Sneak Peek of Our Designs

How to Succeed: Don't Be an Expert

How to Succeed: Don’t Be an Expert