About the Makers // Julie Demaggio
Hi, I’m Julie DeMaggio and I’m a fashion designer. I mostly design and make clothing for women, but I get bored easily so I also dabble in swim wear, fashion illustration, and geeky accessories & jewelry like fanny packs and earrings made from computer parts. I live, eat, breathe and design with my two kids, two chickens and adopted cat in Chico, California.
As a young person, it took me a long time to realize fashion design was a real thing you could actually make a career out of. So I eventually got a degree in Apparel Design from Chico State and moved to L.A. to start making it happen. L.A. Is rad in so many ways and I miss it a lot sometimes. But, I wasn’t that interested in raising my kids there, so after putting in some years in the fashion industry, I came back to Chico. I’ve been teaching fashion classes at Butte College and doing my own design thing on the side since then.
I make clothing simply because I often feel as if I will explode (or maybe implode) if I don’t create.
I am inspired by color. I am inspired by certain people sometimes; a muse now and then. I’m constantly inspired by my children and their imaginations. I design clothing that is wearable, happy, and that has a bit of a sense of humor.
My process is over time I collect images, little artifacts, memories, etc. and when the creative juice starts flowing (of which I have no control when it strikes) I begin swirling everything together. Sometimes I sketch first. Sometimes I drape fabric on the dress form. Sometimes I draft a pattern. It’s always different. And that keeps it interesting.
I always have a person in mind when I design. I think that’s a basis for successful fashion. She is not of any certain age, but she has a youthful outlook, she’s playful. She is active and wants to be happy and have fun, but also wants a certain degree of comfort and utility.
I have a couple of favorite pieces. One was a wool plaid dress I made after being inspired by a vintage 1960′s gown. It is a halter, A-line, knee-length dress made from vintage wool plaid fabrics a friend’s mom passed on to me. For some reason I think about it a lot even though I made it years ago… Another is a skirt I made as a wearable art piece using blue and green latex gloves. Some day I might make a top to wear with it. Maybe.
What a wonderful shop (Three Sixty Ecotique) Crystena and Lorna have created! One gets such a great feeling just walking inside. They’re masters at curating the perfect selection of vintage for a given time and customer. I rarely leave without buying something I love, and always leave feeling refreshed.
I met Crystena years ago at Butte College and we connected a number of times when I had my little downtown shop, GreenDot Designer’s Lounge. These ladies have been wonderful in allowing me to sample some of my humble wares in their boutique. They play a very important role in supporting local “makers” in our community!
This [feature] is coming at the perfect time because I just recently made a very conscious and purposeful decision to rededicate myself to my craft. I’m embarking on a new chapter to be filled with intuitive art/design-making in conjunction with earning my Master’s degree in Fashion Design.
I am trying to be more “out there” on the web, but it definitely takes effort. Here are my links…
Etsy Shop
Blog
Pinterest
Instagram
Twitter
Photography by Briana Morrison
Unleash Your Inner Wild Child
Every once and awhile it’s fun to stop and embrace that inner rebellious child. You know the one that demands ice cream with gummi bears, rainbow sprinkles and any number of odd combinations only a 5 year old would think is delicious. The child that used to watch Saturday morning cartoons and pretend the carpet was hot lava. The one that would color outside the lines. The one that lived in this moment right now and didn’t care what anybody thought.
Today’s photo shoot unleashes that inner wild child, complete with a vintage Strawberry Shortcake crop top and neon green lightening bolt earrings both found only at 360 Ecotique.
A vintage fashion photo shoot.
Clothing provided by Three Sixty Ecotique.
Photography and Writing by Shannon Rosan
Reflections on Motherhood – Celebrating Mother’s Day
This is my first official Mother’s Day, as a Mama that is. On May 21st 2012 my son was born and we are preparing to celebrate his first year in the world next week. This year has gone by so fast and I have been living in a dreamlike whirlpool of so many profound emotions that it would be impossible to find words for them. Mostly I find myself in awe. Not just at my son, but at the entire world. Have you ever been in a huge crowd of people, and looked around and thought to yourself…every single person on earth came out of a woman’s body!?!?!?! That one incredible fact is humbling. We are each born into this world to follow our hearts or fulfill our destiny to live each day until we die and we all started inside someone else.
Wow, crazy.
This little person that grew within my womb is walking now, making talking sounds and trying to figure out how to use a spoon. Someday he will run, swim, get his heart broken, fall in love, fail and win. My heart aches with love as I watch his wings unfolding daily. I’am humbled and proud all at once, a servant to the greatest love.
This whole “becoming a mother” thing is really confusing. You see, I’m still me. I have my own dreams and desires, hopes, fears and hang ups. I have my humanity and yet now, I’m some other persons Mommy. I’m supposed to know things. Things no one has ever told me, and if they did I would never have believed. Like this love would break me, into a millions different parts in order to full-fill a million different needs. Or try to at least.
So this is my first official Mother’s Day. My thanks and praise this Mother’s Day go out to all of it. My entire lineage of Mama’s and all the others too. My thanks goes to the planet, Mother Supreme as she continues to nurture and house and feed us all as we still grow inside her belly. Our wings unfolding, the miracle continuing.
Happy Mother’s Day Everybody
“Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”
-Elizabeth Stone
Words by Alana Flores
Photograph by Briana Morrison
Starting Over – A Story About Spring and Renewal
Clean, Purge, Repurpose. As new life springs forth from the dead of Winter, I find myself once again looking for a fresh start. Unlike previous years when starting over meant new relationships, foreign travel, or a new career, this year it begins with something as simple as a little spring cleaning.
Tucked far into the depths of my closet, hidden by boxes of art supplies, a shabby plastic electric guitar, and bins full of printer paper and broken cameras, were hangars full of clothes that still smelled of the mold and damp of an ill-fated life in
England. They were ugly (stylistically, and emotionally speaking) reminders of a failed relationship, and a vain attempt at entrepreneurship. Looking at them was, quite frankly, depressing.
But, then again, there were stories in those threads; first loves, London nightclubs, an African adventure. Even though they hadn’t been worn in a year, it was hard to let go.
We all keep mementos of moments that are important to us, of things that happened a lifetime ago. Whether and old t-shirt, a piece of jewelry, or an abandoned photo album, we hold tight to these mementos despite our futile attempts to forget the things in our past they represent.
Letting some ripped up jeans and an over-sized sweater stay in the back of my closet for decades wasn’t doing them, or me any good. And so, as I sucked it up and threw them in a box to donate, I made a resolution. This year, spring cleaning wasn’t just
about out with the old and in with what’s in; it was about starting fresh. It’s not just building a new wardrobe, but making a concentrated effort to create new healthy habits, and establish a new me.
This year, if you find yourself in a funk, or looking for a fresh start, I challenge you to look around you. Take the time purge all those the things that are holding you back and look at this spring as a chance to start over as the person you really want to be.
Words and Art by Dani Dirks
About the Makers // Amy Waltz Designs
Hello… We are Amy Waltz, Dianna Santilli Young and Jocelyn Glatthaar, the girls behind Amy Waltz Designs (AWD). We all live and work in the lovely and quaint town of Chico, California. We make jewelry with intention, purpose and meaning … SOUL jewelry.
Interestingly enough, AWD was born from my (Amy’s) photography work. Photographing newborns, I wanted to make pendants for the new mamas with photos of their babies so that’s where all of this began. I also very strongly connect with and believe in the power of positive thought. All along, the jewelry has always had a very mindful and purposeful component to it. My heart space with it was to use it as a way of propelling goodness and light. With little hidden mantras and words and hand-written notes of inspiration with each order, I thought it could help people to breathe a little deeper, let go a little more and treat themselves and each other with a little more heart. This will always be the *intention* of AWD. As I have grown, though, it has grown and at the present I have never felt more at home with it as I do now. These beautiful girls, Dianna and Jocelyn, round it all out for me. I feel such truth with what we are doing. More than making jewelry, we are living life together. We laugh, dance, cry, create, sing, and share in this journey. We all bounce ideas off each other and each of us brings a beautiful uniqueness to the table, offering something totally different and inspiring to the process and all of it together just flows and feels right. I would not be where I am today without Dianna and Jocelyn (obviously!). They help to ground and center the journey and bring a greater depth and creativity to the designs and outcome. And our families are right by our sides. With total support, they help to carry us and allow us to spread our wings and fly.
It’s so interesting because all of us dwell in a very similar place with our art. There have been many times that I bring something up to Dianna that I want to do and she’ll say she was just thinking that or Joce brings something forward to me and I’ll have had a vision about it. It boggles my mind. I love where we are right now with our craft. We literally start with a blank canvas of sheet metal and allow it to form into something magnificent. So we listen. We are open and we allow it to work through us. Within one sheet of metal is everything and nothing all at once. It holds all the possibilities that we don’t even realize are there yet. I love that we can take this flat, sort of dull, sometimes scratched up surface and cut it, sand it, shape it, stamp it, hammer it, sand it some more, and bang away on it, add words of inspiration and possibly a patina until this magical, beautiful love-soaked piece of adornment is created. It’s amazingly inspiring! With 20 years of jewelry creating experience, Dianna is a force of creative brilliance and knowledge. We have just launched into the soldering arena and she’s made it happen and taught us along the way. She is so gentle and kind. I am thankful that it’s jewelry that has brought us together for she is now not only a teacher and creative partner but also a dear friend to me. Jocelyn blows me away with her intention. I say I want to make purses and she brings back amazingly thought out and creative designs with purpose. Our purse line is partially upcycled which we all love. We love taking something that would be discarded and making it new again. She has taken skirts, jackets and pieces of scrap leather and transformed them into the most amazing bags! Thank god she said yes when I begged her to come work with me! She is one of my oldest and dearest friends and she just gets me. It’s an unspoken, soul connection we share. Personally, much of my inspiration comes from these beautiful women for it is our collective spirits that intertwine and mix and collide, taking our artistic expression to even greater heights. It is not one, but all of us and that’s the most beautiful part. It’s letting go of ego, opening your heart, listening, respecting, appreciating, allowing …. It’s trusting; trusting the process of this journey, the process that is actually much bigger than me. And if we are open and put our intentions to work, there really is nothing that cannot be accomplished.
I’m always drawn to the pieces that hold a message, an inspiration, something that causes us to pause and think and respond with ourselves and each other with a lightness of heart and being …. I know Dianna likes the patina pieces a lot and I would guess she would say leather but I can’t ask her as she’s in Italy right now! Jocelyn likes all the metal pieces because they are grounding and she likes mixing them up!
We have just recently launched our spring 2013 line! It’s all about fabulous color – Lemon Zest, Spring Green, Dusk Blue, Mustard Yellow, and Hibiscus Red. It’s also bangles and ultra skinny stacking rings and purses!
(AWD chose to sell their designs at Three Sixty Ecotique) Because Three Sixty rules!!! Both Lorna and Crystena have to be the sweetest gals and they have created such a wonderful, welcoming vibe with their boutique! Our designs also have a boho flair to them so I think they are perfectly matched in their sweet shop!
Thank you for sharing with us and taking the time to read. And a big thank you to the beauties of Ecotique for wanting to feature us! How thrilling! And Briana, thank you; you’ve been darling. We loved having you come to our studio and share and document our journey! We are blessed to live in this community and feel so deeply loved by all of you!!
Blessings & Light, Amy, Dianna & Joce
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Photography by Briana Morrison
Beautiful Rebellion
Let us embrace the freedom that comes from a little beautiful rebellion…
Who says you can’t be both?
(not because Bob Dylan told us to).
Models: Hana Jones & Mali Jones
Stylist: Mermaid Soup
Hair: Johnna Kay
Indie designers: Mermaid Soup, Julie Demagio, Sadie Rose, Megan Rose, Claire Fong, Kerri San Jose (Beyond Mundane), & Zeeko Bag
Renewal and Rebirth – Thoughts About Spring
There is something so special about the spring, a delicate strength and beautiful grace. Coming through the portal of the long dark sleepy winter into the soft newness of spring fills our hearts up with love and inspiration. We re-member what we are made of and what we long to become. Beauty, and Love and Trust. Life is such an incredible journey with each season lending something important to us. Spring reminds me to be brave enough to share my beauty with the world and to trust it will be seen and received as such and yes to do it only for the love. I welcome spring and look forward to seeing what new parts of me bloom and with the summer what bares fruit. I hope this is just as true for all of you too. That too is what spring is about, hope. What died in fall and froze in winter is born again anew.
Anaïs Nin: “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom”
Words by Alana Flores
Photograph by Kim Unscripted
Gems of the Earth: Fire Agate
With it’s deep amber color and circling rings, fire agate is known as a stone of courage, protection and strength. In mystical folklore it is believed that this beautiful stone halts and even reflects any threat of harm back to the source.
It is also known for promoting and enhancing energy (for instance meditation) and for assisting the healing of the circulatory system, lymph system, and intestines.
Hmmm…
I especially like the fact that it’s used in spells to increase skills in communication, in writing, and speaking. It can also heighten creative visualization. Yes please!
About The Makers // Claire Fong
My name is Claire Fong and I’m a jewelry and fashion designer from Northern California. I currently live in the verdant valley, but lived for many years in San Francisco.
While in the bay area, I studied fashion design at the California College of the Arts. Fashion, clothing and the art of adornment have always been important to me. I use these mediums as an escape from the day to day and a way to ease my anxiety. Whenever I’m having a rough day, my first self-soothing technique is to change my outfit. What a person is wearing can change their whole identity. I originally began my design career making clothes and costumes, but transitioned my focus to jewelry because of it’s versatility. There’s no sizing or need to be a certain body type to fit a particular piece. The process of making jewelry is also much quicker than making a garment. I tend to be pretty impatient, so having a final jewelry product done in an hour or two, as opposed to days or weeks with a sewing project, is much more doable for me.
When it comes to my creative process, I often feel like I’m not really in control. Sometimes, I’ll get a “creative download” and the work just flows. Ideas come rapidly, colors and shapes fit together perfectly, and my concentration is unshakable. After those periods, I’ll look back at what I’ve made and feel a certain disconnect, like I was just a conduit for the art to come through.
But most of the time, my process is far less glamorous. I have to sit down and do research and sketches and make a million awkward pieces or jewelry before I get it right. Finding authentic inspiration is the key. I’ve definitely looked at fashion blogs and tried to recreate things that are trending, but that never feels right. I really try to stay true to myself and my intuition. Currently, I’ve been drawing inspiration from space, solar activity, Freddie Mercury and sci-fi movies from the 80s like Krull and Conan the Barbarian.
One of my favorite things that I’ve made recently is a necklace that is definitely fit for a Sci-fi princess. It’s a giant chunk of amethyst wrapped in gold chain and gold wire hanging from a vintage piece of heavy gold chain. It feels very powerful. (This piece is pictured in the first image at the top of the page.)
I also draw a lot of inspiration from the people around me. My partner, Scott Barwick, is a musician and one of the most driven and creative people I know. I’ve learned a lot about dedication and follow-through from him. Also, my dear friend Amber Bass, who runs the label Mermaid Soup, is someone I can always turn to for artistic advice. Having a nurturing community is so crucial for success. I am so fortunate that I’ve been able to receive so much positive encouragement and support for my creative abilities. The owners of Three Sixty have always been so supportive and they are a vital part of the amazing artistic community. I have so much gratitude for them and their dedication to make local, custom-made & couture micro label fashion accessible to the public.
Come visit me at ClaireFong.Etsy.com or www.facebook.com/
Photography by Briana Morrison
A Little Green Charm
So why is it so important to wear green on St. Patrick’s Day anyway?
Some say the color green represents the Catholic population of Ireland and is worn to celebrate St. Patrick’s conversion of the island to Christianity. Others say it is worn in celebration of Ireland’s nickname, the Emerald Isle.
Me? Well, I wear green because I was always told that if you don’t wear green on St. Patrick’s day you might get pinched!
But really, who needs a reason to wear such a beautiful color?
Wishing you all a very safe and fun filled St. Patrick’s weekend.
1. 03/52, 2. Untitled, 3. balance., 4. plancton
