Kickstarting it Into High Gear!

We've launched a Kickstarter Program to help cover the remaining costs associated with getting our Organic Women's Clothing Collection to San Diego for Fashion Week. It's an All or Nothing Deal ... so, there's really nothing to lose ... and you gain a wonderful feeling of helping an artist recognize their Dream ♥

Check out our Kickstarter Program!

Facing Fears

This coming week marks a milestone of sorts.  On Monday, I will be participating in a Press Conference in Hollywood ... designed to promote me and my art form ... my participation in 2013 Fashion Week San Diego.  This Press Conference serves to introduce Who I Am and What I Do to the rest of the world.

I am excited ... and scared ... all at the same time.

So many "what ifs..." are coming to the surface.

What if ... I am late for the conference?

What if ... I say the wrong thing?

What if ... I drop my drink/food/purse/etc.?

What if ... not one person likes what I make?

What if ... no one likes me?

The last one is kinda a biggie to me.  I spent many of my formative years fighting against a parent telling me that I would never be "good enough".  Impressionable teen years railing against classmates that bullied or ridiculed me because I was too smart or too pretty or too quiet or too whatever happened to be their particular pet peeve at that moment.

Over the last 10 years, I've worked tirelessly to face and remove those fears.  I've brought those concerns to the forefront of my life ... letting those who participated in my growth know that the words spoken in the past  no longer have an affect on my present or on my future.

I love me ... who I've become ... and the path that I am creating for my future.

I love my life, the profession that I've chosen to invest my heart and soul into, and all of the decisions that I've made along the way to get me to where I am right now.

And I suppose ... in the bigger picture ... it doesn't really matter what other people think ... so long as I have put my best foot forward and put everything that I Am into the Dream that I have chosen to pursue.

I am reminded of words spoken by Darryl Anka:

            "circumstances do not matter ... state of be-ing, matters".

I know this ... to my very core.  But sometimes ... I forget.

Guess it's time to dig it out, dust it off, and put it into practice.

Will let y'all know how it turns out.

xoxoxo

Raison Ethique - formal launch July 2013

Coming in July 2013

Artisan soaps, body products and candles.

Locally hand crafted in small batches using premium, certified organic and sustainably-sourced, natural ingredients.

Because what's placed ON your body

is just as important as what's put IN your body.

Countdown to Hollywood!

We're in the last days before our trip to Hollywood for the LA Press Conference ...

These last couple weeks have been split between preparations for this event and re-stocking our organic body products.

This morning, the shoes for our debut garment arrived via FedEx from Hourglass Footwear!
[gotta love them ... always so quick with their deliveries]

Of course ... the contents are Top Secret until after the 19th  =)

And ... doncha know ... a Designer HAS to have something new to wear ... just in case a photo [or two] is taken.  So ... I've been working on a new look just for that occasion.

Might need some sort of handbag ...

Took all afternoon to create ... but I think it will work well with the shoes.

Oh ... and it's all from recycled materials that I received from one of our Sponsors:  Rose City Upholstery!

Can't wait!

I've been a bit remiss ...

Being wrapped up in the planning and preparations for a super big event ... a person tends to get a bit overwhelmed ... and forgetful.  Some days ... REALLY forgetful.

And in the last 45 days ... WOW!

So much planning ... so many trips back and forth to San Diego ... and then the sudden planning of having my daughter come out for the summer ... the Sponsors' page for the website kinda got shoved to the back burner just a little bit.

With just a smidge over 3 months remaining before the release of our Spring 2014 Collection, I finally had a moment to get everything up to date on the site.  YAY!!!

So, with no further ado, here is a listing of our amazing Sponsors ... for their help and generosity I am eternally grateful ... because my Spring 2014 Collection wouldn't be a complete collection without their help!

Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing GOTS Certified Organic Textiles for the creation of our SS14 collection

Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing discontinued textiles for the creation of accessories for our SS14 collection

Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing discontinued fabric samples for the creation of our SS14 collection

Hourglass Footwear
Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing custom designed footwear for our SS14 collection

Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing exclusive jewelry designs to complement our SS14 collection

Neema Bags by RH
Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing exclusive handbag designs to complement our SS14 collection

Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing exclusive hair & makeup design for the lookbook production of our SS14 collection

Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing exclusive photography services for the lookbook production of our SS14 collection

Proud sponsor of Second Star Designs for 2013 Fashion Week San Diego
providing an excellent location for the lookbook production shooting of our SS14 collection

An Artist's Statement

I create clothing … beautiful architecture for the human body.

I cannot not create … it is in my blood, my genetic code, to take ordinary materials and turn them into something extraordinarily pleasing to the eye and the touch.

I look at a piece of fabric as though it is a blank canvas … the flow and feel of the fabric dictates the garment design, rather than the other way around.

Trims should accent, rather than take away from, a garment’s overall design.  There can be a point where there is too much … and a true artist will know exactly when to stop before the accents and trims take away from the overall feel of a good design.  Much like perfume, a little bit can go a long way.

Regardless of the type of design, clothing should be an exquisite pleasure to wear.  Fabrics used in a design should feel amazing next to the skin.  And whether you have donned a raw silk ball gown or simply grabbed a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans, the clothing that you wear should never feel as though it were separate from you.

I believe in maintaining the integrity of our environment with every action I do, every garment I create, every belief that I hold close to my heart.  I create with intention.  I believe that whatever you get back from The Universe is directly proportional to what you put into it.  Having this belief is the reason why Love is the main component of everything I have ever created … no bad product has ever been made where Love has been present in its creation.

I aspire to limitlessness.  I believe that imagination and openness to potential are the two most important tools any artist can have in their possession.  I explore and break through the perceived boundaries of my creativity at every available opportunity.

And finally, I firmly believe that everyone should discover and pursue that which is their Greatest Excitement in Life.  For it within this pursuit that a person’s truest potential is discovered and miracles are created … creating a beautiful world filled with amazing inspiration for others to follow.

Caryn Stockwell

Color Alchemist

Second Star Designs

The Anatomy of a Soap Label

The handmade lotka paper is made in the highlands of Nepal by rural craftspeople in an environmentally friendly process with 50% recycled content. The raw material for our paper is the Daphne bush. It is farmed and harvested from 3-4 year old plants that are cut down and stripped of their bark. The plant is not destroyed when cut down, it regenerates from the root. The cane like stick, once its bark is removed is dried and used to heat the villager’s homes, to provide fuel for cooking and also for the production of the paper. All of the water used in the paper production is reclaimed and reused. The bark is beaten by hand and boiled to break it down to a pulp (where it is mixed in with recycled pulp and paper scrap collected from the card and envelope manufacturing process) that is then pored into screens to form the sheets. These sheets are then dried in the sun. The whole process is not only earth friendly but also provides a large community with a healthy enterprise.

It is from this paper that we create the cigar band labels used to wrap our soaps.

Our seed paper has a blend of wildflower seeds embedded in the paper; Tolerates partial shade; needs 4 hours a day of direct sunlight and grows to about 3'. Seeds include Spurred Snapdragon,Tussock Bellflower, Creeping Thyme, Lilac Godetia, Foxglove, Catchfly, Monkeyflower, English Daisy, Red Corn Poppy and Showy Evening Primrose. This blend is specifically designed for those who wish us to print directly onto the handmade seed embedded paper.

Germination may begin as quickly as one week or may take up to six weeks depending on your regional growing zone.  If you plant the seed paper in a pot, or in your garden please cover with just 1/8” of soil and keep moist until established.