Urban Counterfeiters

Since I first figured out that scissors + fabric + thread = clothes, I've been making most of my own. At the age of 25, after 2 failed attempts at post secondary education, I was at a loss about what to *do* & I frequently bemoaned the fact. One night, my roommate at the time eyed the dress I was hand sewing ribbon embroidery onto & told me that literally, the answer was sitting right there in my lap. That was that.

Learning how to design clothes was the most exciting thing ever - making a tactile object from what starts as a rough sketch was incredibly satisfying & everything I've made has been made with great care & attention & a sort of maternal pride.

That is why I'm glad I stumbled upon a blog called Urban Counterfeiters. A new blog that stands up for the independent designer & calls big companies on their shit. There's only a few entries so far, but they've really reminded me of *why* I feel slightly slimey every time I walk in/past Urban Outfitters, why my throat contracts every time I see an ***American Apparel ad, and why H&M is losing it's (already shakey) standing with me.

Of course, lots of people, myself included, wouldn't realize that some of these designs have been shamelessly ripped off by small design companies & individuals who do this because they *love* it - not because they love seeing every 15 year old come through the doors of their intensely designed shop space to snatch up shirts for $50 each.

Not a crafty post - but a reminder - it's easy to see something cute in a store & hand over your cash for it, but it's just as easy to fork your dough over to the designers themselve(or make it yourself!).

some of my favourite places to buy stuff:

etsy.com
Magic Pony
Crowded Teeth
My Paper Crane
Erica Weiner

There's a BILLION awesome AWESOME AMAZING places on the internet to get the coolest stuff - and it's about a kajillion times awesomer to get stuff that not just anyone can go to the mall & get for dirt cheap & then throw away after only a couple of wears because it's poorly made. (coughH&Mcough)



***American Apparel & I have a weird relationship - while I appreciate the fact that they pay their workers well & it *seems* to be a good working environment, I've never been happy with things I've bought there, and like - that guy Dov Cheney is the grossest human being. ever.