The Wedding Registry: Was Your Grandmother Greener than you Thought?

Can a wedding registry be an act of eco-intelligence?

I always thought that registering was a bit, well, gauche.  Greedy.  As in, “Hey, we’re getting married, so to celebrate, why don’t you read this long list of stuff we want and buy us some of it?”   That didn’t stop me from doing it, by the way. We had a ball running around REI making a wish list of every cool tent and camp stove we coveted.  And after a great deal of persuasion from my grandmother, we even registered for dinnerware.

Twelve years of marriage and two kids later, I was loading those very same plates into the dishwasher yesterday, and I realized that we have used these colorful plates, handmade by a wonderful artist in California, almost every day of our marriage.  Breakfast, lunch and dinner.  They have a few chips in them now, but they still work just fine, and they’re still quite beautiful.

I never would have bought these plates for myself.  They were expensive, in other words.  But thanks to the registry and friends of my parents, who knew a thing or two about long marriages, we received a full set for our wedding, alongside the tent and a really nice camp stove.  And all of them are still working just fine.

A damn fine camp stove.

In an age when we are encouraged to think of our possessions as short-term fashion accessories, and to hunt for lowest possibly price in acquiring them, I am thinking again about the value of a wedding registry.  In one sense, it is a chance for a community  to come together to invest in items that are meant to last a lifetime for a couple, and even to be handed down to the next generation.

Now, a wedding registry filled with plastic items from Bed, Bath & Beyond is not what I’m talking about here.  But a set of china or stoneware that will be used for a generation or two is worth writing down, so that everyone can get on the same page and give the couple something useful.  Perhaps if we called it a “crowd-sourced sustainability investment,” it would get more play with the hipster set?  In any case, I’m tipping my hat to my grandma, who had it right all along.

 

My Granny and me.

 

Money Magazine: Prototypes, Patagonia, and Presses

MONEY_JANFEB2013_ARTICLE

 

 

Cool creations from Somerville

Cool creations from Somerville.

ReFleece Goes Fringe

Cool, right?  These letters belong to Mike Dacey, who owns Repeat Press, and who manages Fringe — an awesome studio workspace that is now home to ReFleece as well.  The old-fashioned press is right across from our space, flanked by pots of saturated, thick paint in big pots… it’s a visual feast.

Last winter, when it became clear that it was time for us to move out of the cold basement and into an actual office, we dragged our feet.  Sam said he preferred to stay put, surrounded by his beloved antique tools (and wearing mittens), rather than end up in a cubicle again.  So home we stayed.

But come spring, a friend mentioned that he was vacating his space at Fringe, an old warehouse that had been turned into a shared workspace, so we decided to check it out.  The first hopeful sign was the chicken coop  in the parking lot (we later found out that it belongs to the folks next door at Metro Pedal Power).  On the other hand, the constant stream of young hipsters was a bit intimidating.  Would a soccer mom fit in here?  Would I have to get a tattoo and a better haircut?

The hipsters, it turns out, are also engineers, entrepreneurs, and artists, each starting his/her/their own little engine of economic development.  To a person, they have been helpful and generous, sharing resources and ideas, as well as friendly smiles and a dose of encouragement.  I am still struggling to learn names (I am AWFUL at names), but I finally figured out that most of the men are named Mike, which did help.

Pretty Things Beer operates out of the corner office, with Cuppow right next door.  ReCover Green Roofs has the space next to ours, and I get happy every time I see the pictures of the green roofs they are building.

Stebs Schinnerer runs Paper Fortress, which I am assuming does absolutely amazing videos, because every time I walk by there is rad music playing and someone skateboarding, snowboarding, or otherwise being amazing on the monitor.  He lets us use his photography studio, which is downright decent of him.

There are many more cool businesses there:  Natalya Zahn does gorgeous animal illustrations; Foret creates floral designs and installations.  RocketMouse and Atedrake both do kick-ass web design.  (And they sit right next to each other.  Which is confusing.)  Michael and Christine run Price Hamilton Design/Build, which means they get to, well, design and build all day, which makes Sam slightly jealous.  Plane Paper makes beautiful laser-cut designs.  And Brian Hart paints stuff like this, which speaks for itself.

Painting by Brian Hart

We moved in this summer, and are busy organizing the space.  Or at least, we are going to organize the space.  Soon.  Drop by and say hello!

Biking on the Brain

Thinking a lot about biking lately.  ReFleece spends a lot of time at Ride Studio Cafe, in Lexington.  It’s on the bike path.  (The one that the Rails to Trails Conservancy created along the old railroad tracks in our towns.)  When I’ve spent too long staring at the screen, I jump on my old bike that Sam built me and ride the 15 minutes or so, fast when it’s time to clear the brain, slower when it’s time to daydream about new designs.  Ride Studio is all about good coffee and good bikes.  Friendly folks, a relaxed vibe, and free internet.  Perfect!

This is NOT the bike Sam built for me. Too bad. It’s a Public bike… great company out of the Bay Area, building straightforward city bikes.

But tomorrow, ReFleece is officially relocating to Fringe, an awesome collective workspace in Somerville, MA (more on that in a later post…)  Fringe is an even better distance for a nice ride (about 6 miles), but the problem is, it’s not on a bike path.  How can I daydream when I’m terrified I’m going to get hit by a bus?

Why doesn’t every major street include a bike trail?   No need to restate the obvious benefits to our collective health, state of mind, and air quality that more biking would bring to our cities.  But it’s just too dangerous in most cases — for me, and certainly for my kids.

ReFleece just joined 1% for the Planet, which is motivating us to get our ducks in a row in terms of giving money to great environmental nonprofits, and I think I’m going to start researching bike advocacy groups.  Feel free to chime in with suggestions.

For the record, I usually have a few ReFleece cases in my pack when I’m riding. The fact that they weigh 3 ounces each makes the ride even better.

Shop Talk: Annie’s Blue Ribbon General Store

We love Annie’s Blue Ribbon General Store!  Annie’s carries ReFleece cases as well as an amazing variety of fun, useful, and inspiring gifts, home goods, toys, accessories, and general what-have-you.

Photos courtesy of Annie’s Blue Ribbon General Store

What’s in a name?

There’s nothing like the feeling you get when you see a blue ribbon on that jar of pickles you made, that science project you barely finished in time, or the perfect pumpkin you carefully grew.  Okay, so maybe most of us aren’t actually going to the country fair for anything other than something fried and sprinkled with sugar, but it doesn’t hurt to day dream a little.  Annie’s Blue Ribbon General Store definitely wins the blue ribbon for best modern general store collection.  The “general store” part of the name was inspired not only by owner Ann Lopatin Cantrell’s love of stepping into general stores in her childhood in rural New Jersey, but also by Remo General Store , which she fell in love with in far-away Sydney, Australia.

Why we love it

Annie’s has a great balance of form, function and fun.  The store is full of fabulous designs, many functional and others that  just add a little lightness and playfulness to your home.  They’re a great shop to visit when you just want to browse and see what people come up with, or when you need a gift for  a birthday, house warming, baby shower, or rainy day pick me up.

How do we fit in?

Walking into Annie’s always makes us smile.  First, the folks inside are always friendly and welcoming.  The shelves are lined with inventions, toys, and other surprises.  The shop itself is beautifully arranged, to showcase an amazing variety of items.  Their carefully curated collection of general store goods, housewares, and gifts reflect both their love of design and uplifting sense of humor.  They also have a good selection of eco-friendly wares as well as reusable bags, recycling totes.

Other Buzz:

New York Magazine

Robot Vegan Interview

Sycamore Street Press Q & A

The Kitchn

Three Brains are Better Than One

Folks occasionally ask us why we have chosen to produce ReFleece cases in the U.S. instead of abroad, where we could — one presumes — make them for less money. Our recent trip to our factory, here in the U.S., illustrates some of the reasons.

First and foremost, it is our goal to create healthy communities — environmentally, economically, socially. We try (with varying success, admittedly) to do this in our own lives, and it is a natural extension to try to do this through our company as well.

Could we do this in China, Thailand, or Vietnam? Probably, but frankly, we don’t know how yet. We don’t speak those languages, we don’t know those cultures well, and we know that it’s all too easy for English-speaking representatives to cover up the actual working conditions and environmental practices of factories overseas. We have friends there, yes, but it’s not easy to visit, and it’s not easy to be sure that we believe in the way our cases are produced.

This past week was my first visit to our factory here in the U.S. (Sam has been several times), and I loved it. We spent lots of time with Michael, who manages the factory; we met the women who sew the cases (why all women? That’s a post for another day), we even blew soap bubbles with some of their kids and grandkids who come by after school until the shift ends at 3:00.

In terms of efficiency, I think there is something to be said for solving problems and working out details together, with the people who are actually making the cases. Carmen, an experienced seamstress, Michael and Sam (all pictured here) spent hours working through details together. They were as obsessive about every seam as he is. We all sorted colors together, with suggestions from the shift-managers and fork-lift drivers along the way.

It was reassuring to see that the floor is clean, safety practices are in place, the area is open and airy and ventilated well (in fact, I kept having to put a rock on my papers because there was such a breeze!). And it was nice to know we could come back soon, and see these folks again!

New photos from Justin Keena Photography!

New photos from Justin Keena Photography!

Check out all the new photos on our website!  Huge thanks to Justin Keena at Keena Photo, and all the folks at Fringe in Somerville who helped out.  Justin is an amazing photographer, and about to head out to the SF Bay area.   Anyone needing some awesome outdoor or product photos in that area should definitely check out his site!

ReFleece goes global….

Anyone know what this says?

Patagonia’s Common Threads Initiative

Did you know you can return your used Patagonia clothes to a store near you?  Or mail it back?  That’s the first step in  the creation of ReFleece: customers return their used gear instead of letting it go to a landfill.  Patagonia passes usable gear on to those in need, and tries to up cycle or recycle the rest of it … including to ReFleece cases!

Here’s the link: http://www.patagonia.com/us/common-threads/