tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post954206991815044061..comments2024-03-22T12:29:10.499-07:00Comments on Thanks! I made them!: New Alabama Chanin Collection! Nude is not a color.Bianca shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-3050170983603320612020-02-24T15:04:39.453-08:002020-02-24T15:04:39.453-08:00I came to this page through Sewing Pattern Review....I came to this page through Sewing Pattern Review. It's funny, because I was just thinking about this issue. About six years ago, I was irritated by a student art display in a hallway case at the Fashion Institute of Technology. The student had described the peachy tones in her fashion sketches as "nude." I was tempted to contact her teacher.<br /><br />FIT loves to preach diversity and sensitivity, but it's often only for show. Recently, it sparked a scandal when administrators gave accessories to a student to use for his MFA runway show. They were grotesquely big lips and ears. As a foreign student, he was not aware of their meaning. A black model hired for the show refused to put them on. Two top administrators were suspended.<br /><br />https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/23/nyregion/fit-racist-fashion-show.html<br /><br />We've all go to stay on top of this stuff, which keeps recurring.Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10716852988721397395noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-45481177505613360052020-02-24T14:56:55.962-08:002020-02-24T14:56:55.962-08:00It's not for you to tell People of Color what ...It's not for you to tell People of Color what they are allowed to be offended by. Your response displays arrogance as well as ignorance and racial insensitivity. <br /><br />The issue described is a real one. On top of that, I was disturbed by the lack of black women in the early Alabama Chanin pattern books. The company's story is "The New South." Well, the South was made possible by black people. As a result, I also feel deeply ambivalent about the company.Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10716852988721397395noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-425693112857820542019-07-01T21:01:08.756-07:002019-07-01T21:01:08.756-07:00Thanks so much for reading and for your support Na...Thanks so much for reading and for your support Natasha! I appreciate it. Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-78604952914098421122019-07-01T06:35:05.508-07:002019-07-01T06:35:05.508-07:00Thanks for posting this. I am joining you in your ...Thanks for posting this. I am joining you in your decision not to support them financially. I'm also unhappy with their response to you. Happy sewing!<br />Natashahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05184657883114245901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-12666676177325369732019-01-02T14:32:58.730-08:002019-01-02T14:32:58.730-08:00Hello Rachael, I am so sorry for the delayed respo...Hello Rachael, I am so sorry for the delayed response. There was a glitch in blogger for months that prevented notifications of comments. Thanks for sharing your experience with me, it sounds difficult to go through. I hope you never have to feel that way again. <3 I did not get a response from AC after my initial communications. Many of my readers boycotted, emailed, blogged, make message quilts to share their outrage. The name was changed, but I had to be told by a reader, not the company. They have new models, but it appears nothing much has changed based on experiences people have reported to me. I was told as recently as last month about the exclusive and elitist practices still in place. The person who told me wanted to "give them another go" after my experience. They sadly had multiple bad interactions could not continue to support them. <br />So it looks like more of the same. <br /><br />Thanks for stopping by! Happy New Year!<br />Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-62896807846040263062018-08-26T18:29:24.966-07:002018-08-26T18:29:24.966-07:00I just discovered Alabama Chanin last week (throug...I just discovered Alabama Chanin last week (through someone's dress on Pinterest)...went to the website...loved immediately that there were models of more than one colour....got quite excited..kept googling images....found yours (love that dress you entered into a competition) and sadly found this experience of yours. I am the opposite of you - had two nicknames at school: the white-faced witch and the white maggot (clearly not given by friends - my friends just called me by my name). That year my school teacher even made a point of telling the whole class that I was the perfect example of description she was reading out loud to us - peaches and cream complexion. I see now she was encouraging me, but it has never changed how WHITE I am! I recognise that white puts me in the position of being the majority culture so I do not know exactly what it is to be at the opposite end of the spectrum, but I have empathy and believe in justice. My initial smiles at the AC website dropped a little when I read your post and I wondered cynically if those ladies are a PR stunt. Have you had any further correspondence with them? As well as believing in justice, I believe in grace and I woudl want to be gracious enough to allow AC the opportunity to realise they made a mistake and take responsibility for that, which would include changing behaviour (certainly the names and models have changed to reflect a positive inclusive view of colour) - just wondering if you ever got a personal apology, because now that I know about this incident I can't overlook it.Rachael Ayreshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10508649544629271024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-91315251483540845762018-04-10T06:27:05.379-07:002018-04-10T06:27:05.379-07:00Thank you so much for this. Your support and insig...Thank you so much for this. Your support and insight are encouraging and affirming. 💝Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-82820191636116393412018-04-07T08:51:28.843-07:002018-04-07T08:51:28.843-07:00Thank you for your work and your voice! The compla...Thank you for your work and your voice! The complaint someone made about being "too PC" only represents a fear of change, a lack of education, and the all-too-pervasive belief that any decision made in the past shouldn't be contested for the simple reason that it was made. Or that "it costs money." I only recently stumbled across Alabama Chanin's books and thought the concept was amazing. But the "nude" color in her swatch palette also gave me pause. She is heavily invested in her Alabama roots and should consider first and foremost the history of Alabama, if nothing else. Even if it's now changed to "ballet," the fact that this term had been used for so long by her company is a bit perplexing. I read some reviews of her instructional videos that indicated she was more preoccupied with promoting her lifestyle brand than with sewing. So I will take the idea of hand sewing garments and leave the rest. Thanks for posting other sources of organic jersey. Your work is beautiful and your voice essential.Oakland Slow Sewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04662989036809184763noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-74952176123122720952018-03-20T19:48:57.328-07:002018-03-20T19:48:57.328-07:00Hi Nancy, Thanks so much for your comment. I appre...Hi Nancy, Thanks so much for your comment. I appreciate your thoughtful introspection after reading this post and comments. We view life through our own lens and it makes sense that we don't know all sides. It's what we do when the other perspective is revealed, that matters. It makes me so happy that you were motivated (knocked up-side the head) to update your post and educate your readers. <br />Blessings to you!Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-18702337784838322422018-03-20T19:38:03.172-07:002018-03-20T19:38:03.172-07:00Hi Beth, thanks for your thoughtful response. I am...Hi Beth, thanks for your thoughtful response. I am sorry for the delayed reply. I saw it, got distracted and forgot to come back to it. The point you make about the ease of correcting a misstep today, resonates. It would have been so easy to acknowledge the error and correct it. Even now, years later, I get a pain in my chest and heart reflecting on her (lack of) response.<br />I too am a big Sashiko fan for decorative purposes and visible mending. I am trying to improve in that craft. I watched GOT for the first season, but found it wasn't my cup of tea. I did enjoy seeing the costumes and "pinned" a few inspirational pieces. Thanks for the reminder to see what I have missed. <br /><br />I appreciate your words of support and encouragement! <br />Best to you!Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-8323464289269998472018-03-20T16:24:18.555-07:002018-03-20T16:24:18.555-07:00Thanks so much for calling out this "nude&quo...Thanks so much for calling out this "nude" issue. On my own blog (about style, not exclusively sewing) and in my books and program slides I try to be inclusive of every dimension of our differences - ethnicity, age, size, etc. But reading your comments started ringing a little bell in my brain to go back and check a post I did a while back about so-called "nude shoes" and sure enough, although my words were inclusive, virtually all my visual images were in pale colors. Thanks to your reminder I went back and created new updated artwork in a greater variety of colors and re-posted the piece. We can sure be dense sometimes, but appreciate a gentle "knock up-side the head" as my grand-dad used to say.Nancy Nix-Ricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15041082486403463230noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-9536172967374481132017-12-29T18:05:52.817-08:002017-12-29T18:05:52.817-08:00Bianca, thanks for the post. The area I live in, n...Bianca, thanks for the post. The area I live in, northern Wisconsin, is not ethnically or culturally diverse, yet I still strive to know more about the world. In my daily life, the subtly of descriptors like this don’t come up. So I’m glad that you shared this, as a reminder. I appreciate you taking on that burden. As far as Alabama Chanin’s response, It’s just as easy for a firm or individual to apologize or make a correction for a seriously vulgar slur as something that’s wrong or uninclusive. Companies do this all the time when dealing with copyright, trade formulas, and intellectual property. I’m a graphic designer as well as a costumer. Plenty of times i had to change text and photos for legal, marketing and many other reasons.<br />I’m disappointed of the response you got from the representative and from Ms Chanin. That makes my stomach churn. I’m glad you pursued this in a very thoughtful way. Total kudos!<br />I’ll stay clear of AC for the near future. I’ve been getting interested in Japanese Sashiko “functional embroidery” as well as the embroidery of Michele Carragher, from the costuming team of HBO’s Game of Thrones. Sashiko comes from mending clothes in a geometric and attractive way. Michele Carragher has “liked” embroidery replicas from the users on the FB Game of Thrones Costuming page, and is very generous with her process and material sources. <br />All of us make mistakes, are insensitive or innocently ignorant, but it’s our duty to repair the wound. Then we can make more than physical beautiful things. We can make beautiful gestures and friendships, too.<br />Again, grateful I stumbled on this, the effort you’ve made in informing people and your wise actions.<br />Best wishes!Beth at Tailored Occasions Wisconsinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03295088220988878063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-30511040752298776752017-05-07T15:15:30.961-07:002017-05-07T15:15:30.961-07:00Thank you! I appreciate your unique perspective as...Thank you! I appreciate your unique perspective as a local. The absence of the history of cotton and the true originators of these techniques was troubling to me also. When I first discovered the company there was diversity, then that changed with this collection. I have not returned to see what they look like now. It doesn't matter to me at this point. "When someone shows you who they are, believe them."Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-86558084306134581262017-05-05T16:49:45.751-07:002017-05-05T16:49:45.751-07:00Thank you Bianca.
I've just recently come acr...Thank you Bianca. <br />I've just recently come across Alabama Chanin as an idea. My interests are related to methods of textile surface design.<br />As I read more and more about the company and the woman behind the company my gut gnawed at my brain insisting that something wasn't quite right. <br />For all the commentary about organic and eco-friendly this and that I am disturbed by the omission of references made to the people who made cotton the king in that part of the south. I was also disturbed by the absence of many people who look like me in northern Alabama employed as the 'artisans' who make the company what it is. <br />Eventually gnawing gave way to anger on behalf of my Mother and Grandmother who taught me the artful necessity of 'stitching'. They were the first 'artisans' I knew who loved their thread and clothed their families.Quantum Consciousnesshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06076569595276504387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-25099572931229753162017-04-28T11:11:46.174-07:002017-04-28T11:11:46.174-07:00oh my goodness.... I'm laughing so hard....
a...oh my goodness.... I'm laughing so hard....<br /><br />at your description of how you felt you wanted to do them a favor as motivation for the email.... I know people who would walk around with their a** showing, totally unaware of its inappropriateness. Great analogy.<br />Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18034044910725960067noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-72982327965978303912017-01-12T18:32:27.143-08:002017-01-12T18:32:27.143-08:00Yay! I am so happy you are doing this! :) Let'...Yay! I am so happy you are doing this! :) Let's all keep commenting like that. Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-12778518890383190812017-01-12T10:02:14.044-08:002017-01-12T10:02:14.044-08:00Since this post years ago, I've become quite c...Since this post years ago, I've become quite cranky about this. Anytime someone posts something "nude" and it is not people without clothes, I comment: "Nude is NOT a color." Rarely do I get any response. I will continue commenting anyway.<br />365 Dresseshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05370083544324974912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-31973740087635010352016-07-27T08:10:53.990-07:002016-07-27T08:10:53.990-07:00I am stupid, I guess I don't get it. Nude, an...I am stupid, I guess I don't get it. Nude, an adjective.. to much PC...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10840335512614156943noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-77162035802728309772015-11-17T06:13:28.400-08:002015-11-17T06:13:28.400-08:00I love your name Shameless Old Baggage! Thanks for...I love your name Shameless Old Baggage! Thanks for your support and generous words. It is a sensitive subject and it is a fine line of expressing one's point and "going off" on someone. I am glad I communicated the importance and urgency of recognizing and correcting this bias. Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-53028148038303094582015-11-15T08:29:40.782-08:002015-11-15T08:29:40.782-08:00We were Yankees in Northern Alabama until recently...We were Yankees in Northern Alabama until recently and, I'm ashamed to say, unintentional racism and sexism is still the cultural norm in a lot of areas (I was often addressed as "Old gal" and my daughter was "Girly"). Your polite, gentle, yet firm approach to correcting this area of awareness is highly commendable and I only hope that all of us can learn to be as gracious in making people aware of hurtful attitudes.Shameless Old Baggagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16260408308256511458noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-15002576784766588652015-07-14T19:22:11.829-07:002015-07-14T19:22:11.829-07:00SoSoLili, I am glad you are embracing your new &qu...SoSoLili, I am glad you are embracing your new "Nude" awareness. It is one of those things that you don't see until you do, and then you see it everywhere. As a former EEO investigator, I appreciate your parallel with gender inequality in the workplace. Both can be extremely isolating. The feeling of being disregarded based on an obvious and unchangeable part of yourself is hard to deal with. It is more so troubling when it comes for people/companies you respected. Here's hoping more people speak up and more companies make the change. Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-64483470143330488452015-07-09T06:44:53.938-07:002015-07-09T06:44:53.938-07:00Bianca, I read your comments as I was viewing your...Bianca, I read your comments as I was viewing your garments. It really just stopped me. As a white woman, I wondered how many times I might have used the term 'nude color' without a second thought. especially With the variety of skin tones available in american girl dolls, as an example. Nude is a personal and internal term I guess. I will be awAre of how I use the term going forward. It made me recall what is was like to be the first woman manager in the fleet group in Pepsi 's corporate owned company. Going to a golf outing and being the only person in the women's changing room, being mistaken as a secretary (no offense to those who support managers) , supplier lunch meetings that were really planned As a date, the secretaries assuming that my boyfriend had abused me ( I had no boyfriend) when i entered the office after I had totaled my car. And having my bum pinched by male co-workers. I wish you more successful efforts. It can take a while to help people see a position from another's viewpoint.SoSoLilihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08505712591944070859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-6601841163788324712015-05-22T20:09:43.908-07:002015-05-22T20:09:43.908-07:00Thanks so much for your support Maureen, it means ...Thanks so much for your support Maureen, it means so much to me. I am surprised how often I get a message from someone who has been affected by this issue, Many have shared that they contacted the company to voice their sadness at the lack of response. I believe we all made this concern relevant. AC has since changed the name of the color! I was notified by a fellow blog reader that the change was made. That is a step forward, but it still leaves a sour taste in my mouth. A quick scan of the models in the newest book communicates an important message on the issue of inclusion on which they need to continue to work. <br /><br />I will be sharing a tee shirt design inspired by this issue very soon. I have also contributed to a quilt project on this issue by my friend over on Entropy Always Wins. I cannot wait to share them soon! <br /><br />Your story of your sister's experience is so sad. It breaks my heart to think about how terrible she must have felt. I want to hug that little 5 yr old and throat punch that teacher!<br /><br />Thanks again for you kind words and support :)Bianca shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01421915590922478790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-74972079569328093042015-05-22T10:39:06.472-07:002015-05-22T10:39:06.472-07:00I'm a lot late in reading this thread but coul...I'm a lot late in reading this thread but couldn't resist adding a comment. I am white. Very white skinned. Snow White has nothing on me! And I am so exhausted from people constantly bringing it to my attention - like I didn't already know???? I was born like this, I can't "help" it. I am in my 50's now and still I cover up just to avoid remarks some might consider funny but I am offended and hurt by them. I would like to tell a story that happened to my sister when she was in kindergarten. She is a red head with freckles all over her body the size and shape of Corn Flakes. On the first day the teacher wanted a note to confirm she did not have a communicable disease. And that little girl cried while pinching the skin on her forearm, " But it's me- it's me!!" Makes me cry every time I think of it! Sometimes you just can't fix stupid! All colours are beautiful. You do what you have to do-boycott AC - I respect your movement for change. Change is slow to happen yet I have faith that they will change the name. As always I remain a religious follower of your work and your blog.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15878529035729438114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4374429434678247364.post-34596299433242005002014-12-03T07:41:23.966-08:002014-12-03T07:41:23.966-08:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09902264397980609315noreply@blogger.com