LOVE this film by Claire!! Here it is for those of us who couldn’t make it to the Bookstand pop-up at The Standard.

Today is Earth Day, (or maybe yesterday, there seems to be discrepancies with the official date).. Either way I hope everyone is at the very least recycling today, or using a reusable water bottle, (which saves an average of 166 plastic bottles a year!), or buying all natural toxin-free soap, (or more beautiful handmade soap), or checking out books like this one for amazing tips for at home.

There are so many easy things you can do, check out more resources and info here on The Ecology Center’s new site I helped develop. Get familiar with easy ways you can make a difference, not just for the planet but your own health too! Those two things are surprisingly more related than you could imagine : )

More photos from California. So many plants, I miss that here in Paris..

This Thursday night is the opening for a very exciting exhibition PLANTS: Our Silent Guardians, by Lili Cuzor of Tigers to Lilies in collaboration with Lauren Spencer King of the Sphinx and the Milky Way, and Claire Cottrell of Art Bookstand who will have a pop-up bookstand shop set up, all taking place at the Standard hotel in Hollywood.

The installation and shop will be up from 3/21 – 4/21, go check it out! I know it’s going to be amazing! I so wish I could be there to see it! There are some sneak peeks on Lauren’s blog here and here.

Opening Ceremony this Thursday, March 21st, the Spring Solstice from 7:00pm – 9:00pm Claire will be debuting a film she made and there will be herbal teas, plant installations, artwork and more!

FASHION. ADVENTURE. PHILANTHROPY. Change the industry, change the world.

I’ve been wanting to write about this project for a while, and just found a great explanation of what The Supply Change is all about from Trend Union.

Chrissie and I used to work together at American Eagle on the concept team. She is an inspiring friend and traveler, her positive energy is as infectious as her drive to do good and create change is. I am a huge fan of what she is doing, and I love that she is combining all the things she loves, traveling, fashion, adventure, and change into one. Here’s her story and what her recently launched project to develop change in the fashion industry is all about.

Chrissie Lam, a senior concept designer at US retail brand American Eagle Outfitters for twelve years, always wanted to connect her passion for fashion, adventure and philanthropy.
After taking a sabbatical from her design position to go to Rwanda and explore clothing craftsmanship, Chrissie decided to launch The Supply Change, a network whose purpose is to alleviate extreme poverty by connecting artisans in emerging economies with the global market place.

Chrissie explains: “We are curating experiences and enlisting like-minded design colleagues in order to help them realize the potential of sourcing in developing countries. I believe change comes from within a company, and currently there is a disconnect between people in the design industry and social enterprises/artisan groups abroad. We want to create ambassadors that can influence change within their companies and raise awareness and action through real stories and word-of-mouth experiences.”
The venture, she ads, is not a non-profit, for it is meant to bring resources to those involved.
The Supply Change has partnered with travel agency Extraordinary Journeys to create unique travel programs under the name of Fashion Designers Without Borders. The first program will be held in Kenya on February 16-23, 2013 and will educate and connect participants with artisan social enterprises that work with brands like Edun, Suno, Puma, Max Mara, Whole Foods and others.

www.thesupplychange.org

www.fashiondesignerswithoutborders.com

For even more info, great photos and articles visit The Supply Change facebook page

I’m very excited that this weekend at 0fr, Cecile Daladier who I’ve posted about before will be selling some plants and pots along her husband Nicolas Soulier, who will be speaking about his powerful book “Reconquering the Streets” and talking about Japanese potted gardens. Plus there will be an exhibition of photos for the launch of new issue of The Plant Journal by Daisuke Hamada. Plus an after party at Candelaria, who has a new site made by David. This is an 0fr event not to be missed!

Info ici:
18h15-19h: discussion autour du livre “Reconquérir les rues” en présence de l’auteur, l’architecte urbaniste Nicolas Soulier, et focus sur les jardins de pots au Japon avec projection des photos de Daisuke Hamada pour The Plant Journal.
21h15: soirée à la Candelaria
Tout le week-end: pop-up store de boutures et jardinières Assaï. Apportez votre pique-nique, terrasse 0fr végétalisée pour l’occasion.

This weekend is the We Love Green festival in/just outside of Paris. I am really happy to be participating thanks to Rosemarie whose Ringo Atelier is hosting workshops for kids there this weekend. I’m in good company too, The House that Jack Built, and many more talented friends will be doing workshops as well. Mine will be a Richard Tuttle inspired eco-friendly mobiles free-for-all craft experience. Sign up a little friend of yours here, space is super limited. I’m very excited to see Charlotte Gainsbourg, Beirut and Herman Dune play! Come check it out!

This is heartbreakingly sad! Growing up my summer vacations were spent camping in California parks, and California needs all the natural greenery it can manage to hold on to. I hope these places don’t get developed with track homes or filled with toxic waste. If anyone wants to take a minute to see what they can do click here or here for some options. If you’re looking for where to go on for a summer vacation any of these places would be cheap and beautiful experiences, and a great way to support them.
More links here:
Cal Parks
A list of the 70 parks they are closing.

I had the best bread ever while I was in Tokyo at Kosmos Lane (and I live in Paris). Tsukimo Bazaar is run by a really nice Japanese guy (with a very cool hat) who travels around in his cute VW bus, painted with illustrations by Boojil, serving incredible organic bread creations around Tokyo. His bread creations have so many super interesting flavors, check some of them out here. Also check out his site, it has a calendar of where to find him, all in Japanese but there’s always google translate. ; )

Starting this Saturday, Lili of Tigers to Lilies will be having a pop-up flower shop every Saturday in April and May at Cookbook in Echo Park. LA you are so lucky!! Lili is a natural floral wizard and is one of my dearest friend’s, go say hi and get yourself some beautiful organic wildflowers! (how rare and amazing is that! beautiful flowers that are grown as locally and naturally as it gets from Silverlake Farms) Here are some photos from her Valentine’s Day sale.

The other night I had the pleasure of visiting the atelier of Cécile Daladier. The space alone is impressive, adding to that we were told it used to be the studio of Alexander Calder at some point while he was in Paris, but what makes it so beautiful and inspiring is the spirit and aesthetic that Cécile has created within it. Her ceramic pots are created to hold very small flowers and plants that she procures from the sidewalks and streets of Paris. Finding those tiny specimens that grow between the cracks of the cities pavements and bringing them back to her amazing award winning garden to give them a place to really grow wild. She is not solely a ceramic artist and botanist, her work spans intuitive piano lessons, she makes incredible tree branch creations (no other words to explain them), her and her husband, Nicolas Soulier who is an architect, have a company called Asaii together, they also have a talented group of kids who I hear all do amazing things, and a very beautiful home which I did not realize was featured in the same book David and I are in.
The opening was a beautiful event, the bread was all homemade, the tiny oyster shaped ceramic dishes were handmade containing the most incredible rice pudding and ice cream, and then there was the biggest table of oysters I’ve ever seen. I can’t wait to see more images to come of her work. There is a very unique beauty to what she does and I am so happy to have been able to visit her studio.
Thank you to Clarisse for inviting us!
last 6 images are via her site.

I recently helped with the design and content direction of the new exhibition/shop at The Ecology Center in California, Tools for Change. Focusing on tools for basic needs that can help to build a more ecological and thoughtful community. If you are in southern California go check it out. They are having an Earth Day event on April 14th filled with fun activities and food. Graphics & Art Direction by David as well, and all photos by Scott Sporleder. More photos here.

been in CA, so sunny and beautiful. a little peak at something I made for the ecology center.

Happy Summer Solstice this weekend! I am feeling very inspired by the Michael Besançon talk at the Eco Center, and on a very different level by these amazing Maria Carla images as well. There will be a podcast up online soon of the discussion that I highly recommend listening to.
Dress well, eat well and enjoy the extra light this weekend!

Help support the Ecology Center! This Thursday starts off the first of several talks focused on basic needs and features special guest Michael Besançon of Whole Foods discussing the topic of food, of course. It’s all the way down in Orange County but in the middle of an organic farm outside an old farmhouse, it’s a pretty nice setting and worth the trip.
6:30 p.m. – 9 p.m. 32701 Alipaz. St. San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675