Innovator Interview ⋒
Get ready for some life inspiration from our Innovator Interview this week featuring Masego of @coconut_cracked and co-founder of @cnscs_ . Masego has been an outspoken sustainable style icon of ours for quite a while now and we particularly love how she prioritizes second hand looks and styling.
Pronouns: she/her/hers.
Visual description of Masego: Masego is a Black South African and Japanese cis woman with a dark brown fro and brown skin. She loves looking at all the sea creatures in rock pools and thrifting at charity shops.
Here is a snippet of the interview below. See the full interview in our stories and website.
How did you get into slow/ethical/sustainable fashion? I've worn pre-loved clothes most of my life because it's my mother's preferred way of shopping, if not local designers. Consciously I got into slow fashion in 2015. I used to want to be a fashion editor/stylist, after learning about the state of the fashion industry and particularly the fast fashion industry, I thought I didn't want to be involved in the industry at all. I watched the True Cost and found out there were brands out there implementing sustainable and ethical practices, so I started to focus on trying to find more brands and people speaking about ethical and sustainable ways of having relationships with our clothes.
Who is your style icon? I look at different people around me and on Instagram for inspiration, but my mom is definitely my biggest inspiration.
Image descriptions: [The first image is a photo of Masego rocking a beautiful magenta printed dress with drapey sleeves and natural Afro. Border collage art by @bleubyrdie of shapes and leaves in earth tones. The next nine photos are of Masego wearing amazing second hand looks in various outdoor locations.]
A year ago today we started this account intentionally on the first day of Black History Month! Our first month celebrated Black makers, creatives, and innovators in sustainable, ethical, and slow fashion. It has been an honor and joy to create content for this community this past year. The Buy From BUPOC team ( @yokeandbore , @thebeaologist and @little_kotos_closet ) look forward to a slow and steady pace of continued collaboration with creatives and the content that you have come to expect from us and— we want your input.
What would you like to see from this account this next year?
Image description: [A painting by @bleubyrdie of a Black person with chin length natural hair wearing a green shirt, rests their head and arms on top of earthy colored geometric shapes. We have added the words “community question” to the graphic in a rust colored font.]
Meet the Maker ⋒
For our Meet the Maker post today, we have the joy of featuring an up and coming creative whose pieces sell out every time she releases a new collection. It’s our honor to share more about the life and creative work of Salina Fu of @fu_ceramics! For the full interview go to our stories and website feature linked in our profile.
Pronouns: She/her/hers
Visual description: Salina is a Chinese American cis woman with long dark brown hair and brown eyes. She loves to mix patterns and incorporate color in her outfits.
What inspires your work?
My work with Fu Ceramics is inspired by all the things that fascinate me about my culture. Chinese culture is abundantly full of beliefs, customs, and superstitions. There are traditions and ideas that I didn't care to understand too deeply as a child. I think in part, it had to do with wanting to assimilate with white culture and not wanting to be different. As I've gotten older, I find myself more curious about my heritage and Fu Ceramics is an extension of my identity exploration.
Image descriptions: [The first photo is of Salina sitting in a bright green garden wearing a colorful puffy coat. She is wearing glasses and is smiling at the camera. The border is a photo of her Lo Lo Tong necklaces. The other photos are of her various Lo Lo Tong necklaces, a vase she made, and a photo of her painting the ceramic necklaces in different glazes.]
Meet the Maker ⋒
For our Meet the Maker post today, we have the honor of sharing about the brilliance of Alicia Goodwin, the gifted jewelry maker of @linguanigra . Please enjoy an excerpt of her interview below and read the full interview in our stories and on our website, linked in our stories and profile.
Pronouns: She/her/ hers
Visual description of Alicia for photos: Alicia is a curvy brown skinned black woman with twisted hair and a generous smile.
What inspires your work?
My work is inspired by nature. At first glance, it might not look that way, but the techniques I use and how I apply them to metal are controlled and still completely random, much like the forces of nature. I'm also somewhat of a romantic and one of my favorite periods for jewelry is the Victorian era. This was an era where things were not really what they seemed, with braided hair encased was the norm, amongst other mourning jewelry. Another period I just love is practically any pre colonial meso american period. The gold that was used was so strong and bright and so powerful. There were so many talismans and so much jade! I could go on and on.
Image descriptions: [The first image is of Alicia looking down at display plate she is holding that has two pairs of earrings on top from her collection. Alicia is a curvy brown skinned black woman with twisted hair and a generous smile and she is smiling in the photo wearing a beautiful red woven short sleeve top. The photo has a black and multi colored collage art by @bleubyrdie framing the photo. The other nine images are of Alicias jewelry line.]
Meet the Maker ⋒
For our Meet the Maker post today, we are excited to feature @keilalleist of @vidabotanicals! Keila makes luxurious and beautiful naturally dyed accessories. We especially love her head wraps and scrunchies.
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Visual description: Keila is a Boricua American with mid-length curly hair.
Please see our stories for the full interview and our website linked in our stories for the website version as well.
Here’s a snippet: When we asked Keila about what inspires her work, here’s what she said.
In no particular order, I am inspired by Black, Indigeneous and People of Color. I am inspired by our resilience, creativity and love in spite of our histories of colonization. I am inspired by our overall dopeness. I am inspired by my ancestors, the Taíno people of the Island of Puerto Rico and my African ancestors of Sub-Saharan Africa. I am inspired by my grandparents who were descdendants of chatel slavery on the Island, their stories run through my DNA. I am inspired by them to heal the trauma of their stories, to heal myself and carry on healing to future generations. Finally, I am inspired by our Madre Tierra and hope to honor the land by creating eco-conscious goods made with lots of amor. I am also always inspired by my children.
Image descriptions: [A series of photos of Keila and her silk naturally dyed @vidabotanicals pieces. The first photo is a profile photo of Keila wearing one of her large silk scarves as a head wrap. The border is collage artwork by @bleubyrdie. The last photo is of Keila and her children.]
