(philanthropic) material girl

I have always been a girly girl. Anyone who knows me will attest to that claim. However, I have never been one to NEED that thousand dollar purse over the twenty dollar one that looks just as similar. As I get older I find myself attracted to companies that are growing, and starting up, with a philanthropic mindset. Even big designers are slowly using their fame to deliver social messages among their industry. This is one trend I can totally get on board with.

One sector, in particular, that is leading in socially conscious retail is casual street wear companies. There are two particular companies that pop into my mind whenever I think about this term, Convey and BucketFeet. When you visit their site, it is instantly obvious that they just do not want their customers wearing their brand. They want their customers to find a meaning deeper than that. Clothes and food (art in general) has the ability to unite minds and heart in a way that simple policies cannot.

I don't think I will be describing what BucketFeet does, because they probably could say it better than I can. Here is an excerpt from their site

    " We've made shoes that are super original and unbelievably comfortable and light at a very affordable price. We've hand-selected artists to create exciting designs that are also extremely versatile. Our product quality is unmatched and we pride ourselves on being at the forefront of design.

BucketFeet gives artists a platform to connect with people and showcase their work in a new way. This is why the brand was started, and this is our central focus. We give back to artists by purchasing their work, and paying them royalties for every pair of shoes we sell. It doesn't stop there. We also support kids through programs in art, music, and sports. Aaron and Raaja met volunteering with kids, and it's important for us to stay true to the story of the brand. With every purchase, we donate a percentage of sales to our non-profit partners. "

 What I find beautiful about this brand is that the founders go out of their way to find artists from all over the country, and incorporate them into the brand. They are open to expanding broadly, if the right opportunity arises. This connection between countries via art on shoes (something we all use) is a phenomenal idea. They do not go about the conventional way of simply hiring the most well known artist for their brands. Instead they take an artist and make them well known through their brand. I have tremendous respect for them. I am so glad to hear that they have my size so I can't wait to order my pair.

They are also extremely responsive via email and twitter. All the links are either hyperlinked or you can find all of them at the bottom of this post.

Convey is another brand that I also find myself drawn too. They may even be a bit more well known among those who are into this genre of clothing. Again I will use their excerpt to describe their brand. 

     "We all aspire to let the world know what defines us as individuals. We all want to convey a message personal to us. A message that explains to the world who we are. We use different mediums like fashion, art, and music to explore and craft our unique messages. Through these mediums we convey ours:

We are only as strong as our weakest link.

Humanity represents this link as a whole. When one chain of the link becomes impoverished, we all become powerless. Millions around the world live in conditions far worse than ours and without the luxuries we are so fortunate to have. Even basic human necessities such as water, food, shelter, clothing, and education are scarce in many parts of the world. We want to improve these living conditions. We want to aid global causes in simplistic ways to convey our support for humanity.

Our goal is create an initiative where simple acts result in huge impacts in parts of the world.

We are not fashion designers. We are just people with a voice. People who wear our hearts on our sleeve."

The tone of their brand is very apparent through this excerpt. They want to design with a vision and with a purpose and that is what they do. They don't sell their clothing, instead they provide vital elements to those who cannot acquire it on their own. They have teamed up with CharityWater (which is an excellent organization) to help deliver water to those in need. They take the simple things we take for granted, pair it with things we buy for luxury purpose and create a brand around that.

I would love to see if Convey, BucketFeet and others like them could even collaborate and create something big for this fashion scene. Perhaps a week of fashion show theme events that also raises money for charities. When I see such things I gain more respect for our generation and start having that much more faith in humanity.

Keep up the work classy people. Stay stylish' 

More Info

BucketFeet:

w: bucketfeet.com

twitter (aaron) 

twitter (raaja)

Convey:

w: conveyyourmessage.com

twitter (convey)

CharityWater

w: charitywater.org

captive minds (9/11 story)

A captive mind is a dangerous weapon, especially when we don't realize it. One way to get out of this captivity, I have found, is to question your inner demons and angels. Ask yourself questions that really get at the core of why you feel a certain way. Don't make the mistake of thinking you don't judge, or that you do not hold prejudice and stereotype. That flawed thinking is precisely what sometimes leads to us having more of these preconceived notions. I find myself thinking and questioning my actions more and more as I see new injustice unfold in the world.

Right now I just want to share a story.

During 9/11 I was in my second hour music class. We all were just being lazy students and our eccentric music teacher was in her own disheveled world. At this precise moment we noticed a birdlike object approaching the twin tours. I promise that looking back now there is nothing I regret more, however we were kids and we were in the thought that bad things just do not happen to us. We laughed and called this "bird" an idiot for flying soo low. Then we see smoke come out of the tours and even then we didn't react as we should. It was not until TV's were brought into our classroom and students were coming into my class to see if they could see the tours still, many of their parents were working in the area. I still remember being mad at the fact that my parents didn't pick me up from school. The depth of what had happened never hit until a few months later.

My dad worked in Manhattan at a quaint restaurant and all of a sudden his name tag was not well received anymore. My mom and I would wait near the subway to make sure he would be safe coming home. I have to say that I developed a love/hate relationship with New York at this time. However, can I blame anyone for hw they were feeling at that moment? No, I can't. They were captive in their minds because of all that was happening around them, unless they could be introspective they would probably not even realize what they were doing. We later moved to Michigan.

This past weekend I visited the Ground Zero with my brother in law and father. My brother in law is a pious, religious man, with a full beard and a very obvious look that just screams "Muslim Man". He worked in the Millenium Hilton at that time, so he has a certain attachment for that area. It was about 1:30 am when we decided to go, and I was scared. I was scared the police would stop us and suspect my dad and brother in law, even my mother. I was scared someone would scream some insult and I would lose it.

This feeling of fear in my head was more uncomfortable then the fear itself. Why was I scared? Because I am human. It's because I cannot simply think that someone would not look at us and say what are "they" doing "here" at this hour. Am I condoning this behavior? Absolutely not. However, just try and place yourself in other peoples' mind and thought (and not just their shoes) and then it's easy to love humanity a bit more. It becomes easier to tolerate people when you understand why they may feel this way, what is catalyzing their emotions and what can we do to try and alleviate that type of emotion.

We should not think of ourselves soo highly that we think we are non-judgmental, non-stereotype forming people. The challenge is in challenging your own judgments and stereotypes and understanding when it feels legitimate to feel that way and when the bounds of society have created that notion for us.

Next time I visit the Ground Zero, no matter what time and with who I go with, I will be a little less scared. I will know that even if I get stares and any unfortunate name-calling I can walk away with my head up high. I was affected too and my heart aches for all those lost, then and now.