Fashion Trends @ South By Southwest

Monday, February 27, 2012

South by Southwest (SXSW) is one of the largest festivals in the country with film, interactive and over 2,000 artists playing in over 90 venues. One of the great secrets about SXSW is that you don't necessarily need a badge to participate in the festival. Check out austin2012.sched.org to see a complete schedule of free events.

Fashion-wise, don't worry we've got you covered and are here to help you prepare for the chilly nights, warm days and crowded events that go until the early morning hours. We want you to feel like a rock star while staying comfortable as you trek all over Austin. 

Austin's motto is "keep austin weird" so you can expect to see a lot of unique fashion statements. While some will make you think of trying a new style yourself, others will leave you wondering how in the world that person thought that looked good when they left the house. Its one of the great things about the festival and our city. Fashion is highly diverse and varies between the bold and the overly feminine. Last year the trends were feather extensions, black rimmed glasses, crop tops, high waisted jean shorts, loafers and Native American inspired patterns. 

This year you can expect to see a lot of light weight blazers, strappy sandals, fur vests, large jewelry, cute bags, bold prints, long skirts and crop tops once again. To help make sure you are fashionable, yet trendy here are some recommendations around some emiLime pieces that will be sure to make you a standout at this year's SXSW street fashion walkways - 

emiLime's fingerless gloves and wrist warmers are great for keeping warm on chilly nights while still being able to text and check your SXSW mobile party apps. Also helpful at holding that cold (usually free) beer! 

Our cross-body purses are not only stylish, but durable, light-weight and a great way to keep all your gear close and  worry-free! 

This versatile scarf can be worn multiple ways to keep you warm! From shawl, to scarf, to hood you'll be prepared for anything SXSW throws your way!

Here are some more ways to help find that perfect SXSW style depending on which part of the conference you plan to attend. 

 If you're all about SXSW Film Festival - 

If you're all about SXSW Interactive -

If you're focusing on the music -

What SXSW styles are you most looking forward to taking advantage of this year? Leave us a comment on how you plan to incorporate emiLime swag into your SXSW plans and receive a 10% discount on your next purchase!

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Update from the Road: Retablos and Ceramic Artisans

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

An update from Peru from Emily

This week I got to go visit a cooperative of ceramists and retableros in the outskirts of Lima. 

Understanding the Culture

One "taller" or workshop I went to visit was from a group of artesanos who are all originally from Ayacucho. When terrorism from the Sendero Luminoso or "The Shining Path" struck the region many people moved to Lima to have a safer life. This group of Ayacuchanos stuck together after they moved and created a small artesano village where they still practice the traditional techniques from the region such as the "retablos". The spanish word retablo translates to "behind the table or altar" in Latin and are regularly used as portable altars. They are formed in wooden boxes and the clay sculptures inside the box depict a scene that holds religious, historical or everyday significance to the people of the the Peruvian and Bolivian highlands. They were brought over by the Spanish to teach the indigenous people of Peru about Catholicism. Much like the other many socially significant rituals and traditions that the Spanish brought over, Peruvians, in a very syncretic fashion, starting fusing their culture and depicted everyday life instead of focusing just on the Catholic religion. I was super impressed by the retablo below depicting Noah's Ark. The person showing me this told me that it was this particular artisan's social commentary on how we are polluting our Earth.

 Encouraging Good Luck

I couldn't resist buying an adorable Ekeko from the co-op. Ekeko is the god of abundance and joy, and figurines are known for bringing good luck. A tradition is to place cigarettes in the Ekeko's mouth once a year. Our Ekeko is already up to a pack a day, so we think we are going to have tons of luck. The Ekeko is traditionally depicted as a man with a mustache wearing traditional Andean clothes and completely loaded with bags and baskets with food, household objects and currency bills. He is commonly found as a little statue to be put some place special in the house, in this case, our new office in Lima. 

The legend of the Ekeko tells about an Indian girl working in Bolivia who was in love with Isidoro Choquewanca. She left the town where they both grew up and in an attempt to protect his love, Isidoro gave her a small statue known as an Ekeko. Isidoro enrolled in the indigenous army and was briefly reunited with the girl. He left food near the statue every week, but no one knew it was him. As the story goes, during a siege on the town, it was believed that the Ekeko provided food in hard times and helped people survive.

Writing this blog entry, I started to explore the idea of emiLime being a pioneer in syncretic fashion. As I meet more talented artisans everyday, I immediately start to design and think of how I can take their amazing skills and adapt them into a product that I would want to wear or display in my home. Is syncretism a bad thing? If the merging of cultures and people inevitably happen, should artistic traditions stay isolated and in their original form? I believe everything is fluid, especially human beings and our thoughts and feelings which are at the root of creativity, so I like the idea of very traditional techniques retaining their essence, but being able to adapt. I think this is best way to keep these traditions alive.  For me, bringing my culture and my perception of beauty and fashion and blending it with the amazing materials and skills that I come across in Peru is pure fashion syncretism.

Remember to sign up for our newsletter to receive more updates on my travels as well as an inside look at our upcoming new designs! 

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