With social distancing the new reality we are all looking for ways to occupy time. Here are a few suggestions for reading material that will entertain as well as educate you on the issues at the core of what any fibershed is about — local textile economy in all its forms.
Let’s keep in touch! Let us know what you are reading and if you have a recommendation for the list.
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Fibershed
Burgess, Rebecca. Fibershed: Growing a Movement of Farmers, Fashion Activists, and Makers for a New Textile Economy. Chelsea Green Publishing, 2019.
“Burgess is the Alice Waters of the slow fiber movement. Fibershed is required reading for any clothing company that claims envirnomental and ethical responsibility.” — Dan Malloy, surfing ambassador, Patagonia; cofounder, Poco Farm, Ojai, CA
Fashion Industry & Manufacturing
cline, elizabeth. the conscious closet: the revolutionary guide to looking good while doing good. plume, 2019.
“[A] thoroughly researched blueprint for making sustainable, humane clothing decisions…Melding worrisome facts, intuitive tips, and helpful resources, Cline’s intelligent work provides plenty of tips for making ethical consumer choices.” — Publishers Weekly
cline, elizabeth. overdressed: the shockingly high cost of cheap fashion. portfolio, 2013.
“Overdressed is eye-opening and definitely turns retailing on its head. Cline’s insightful book reveals the serious problems facing our industry today. The tremendous values and advantages of domestic production are often ignored in favor of a price point that makes clothing disposable.” — Erica Wolf, executive director, Save the Garment Center
Gullingsrud, Annie. Fashion Fibers: Designing for Sustainability. Fairchild Books, 2017.
“Fashion Fibers: Designing for Sustainability is an accessible reference tool for fashion students and designers who want to learn how to make decisions to enhance the sustainability potential in common fibers used in the fashion industry.”
hoskins, tansy e. stitched up: the anti-capitalist book of fashion. pluto press, 2014.
“This is a wonderful book, bursting at the seams with power, passion and politics. Tansy Hoskins lays bare the capitalist relations of production, marketing and consumption that sustain the fashion industry, and calls for a revolution to liberate us from its tyranny. Clothes will never look the same again! “ - John Hilary, Executive Director at War on Want and author of The Poverty of Capitalism
McDonough, william and michael braungart. cradle to cradle: remaking the way we make things. North point press, 2002.
“In Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things, architect William McDonough and chemist Michael Braungart present an integration of design and science that provides enduring benefits for society from safe materials, water and energy in circular economies and eliminates the concept of waste.”
Press, Clare. Wardrobe crisis: How we went from sunday best to fast fashion. nero, 2016.
“A must-read for anyone who has ever questioned why clothes matter. This richly intelligent book explains the importance of who makes our clothes and what you are revealing by your fashion choices. Fascinating!” —Anne Sebba, author of Les Parisiennes and That Woman
Thomas, dana. fashionopolis: the price of fast fashion and the future of clothes. Penguin press, 2019.
“[A] snappy, clear-minded attack on the fashion industry’s rampant labor and environmental abuses. . . [Fast fashion] has decimated labor in developed countries, human rights in developing countries, and environmental quality across the globe — and Thomas asks readers to resist it however we can.” — NPR Books
Textile History
Butler Greenfield, Amy. A Perfect Red: Empire, Espionage, and the Quest for the Color of Desire. HarperCollins, 2006.
“Amy Butler Greenfield… has mined the rich history of cochineal for wonderful stories about the biology of insects, the sociology of fashion, and the economics of colonialism.” — Natural History magazine
Hunter, Clare. Threads of Life: A History of the World Through the Eye of a Needle. Abrams Press, 2019.
“Threads of Life is a beautifully considered book that reminds us of how much sewing plays a crucial part in expressing the many facets of our lives. Clare Hunter has managed to mix the personal with the political with moving results.” — Tracy Chevalier, New York Times, bestselling author of Girl with a Pearl Earring
Legrand, Catherine. Indigo: The Color that Changed the World. Thames & Hudson, 2013.
“With more than 500 gloriousphotographs as well as specially commissioned drawings that provide close-ups of patterns and techniques, this book is the ultimate reference on an age-old technique and a compendium of the most beautiful examples of indigo textiles.”
Murphy, Brian. The Root of Wild Madder: Chasing the History, Mystery, and Lore of the Persian Carpet. Simon & Schuster, 2005.
“As richly textured, tightly woven, and colorful as the subject itself, this is a must for anyone who treasures — or even walks on — fine carpets.” — Mort Rosenblum, author of Chocolate: A Bittersweet Saga of Dark and Light
Natural Color
Boutrup, Joy and Catharine Ellis. The art and science of natural dyes: principles, experiments, and results. schiffer books, 2018.
“This is the reference for dyers and printers who wish to more completely understand the ‘why’ and the ‘how’, while ensuring safe and sustainable practices.”
burgess, rebecca. harvesting color: how to find plants and make natural dyes. artisan, 2011.
“Harvesting Color presents the entire process of infusing your life with color - finding the right plants, harvesting them at teh best time, transforming the crop into beautiful dye, and, finally, marrying pigment to fiber.”
Dean, jenny. wild color: the complete guide to making and using natural dyes, revised and updated edition. watson-guptill publications, 2010.
“A practical and inspiring guide to creating and using natural dyes from plants, Wild Color, Revised and Updated Edition, offers the latest information on current environmentally friendly dyeing techniques and more than 65 species of plants and natural dyestuffs.”
Duerr, Sasha. The Handbook of Natural Plant Dyes. Timber Press, Inc., 2010.
“Through step-by-step instructions and color-saturated photographs, textile designer Sasha Duerr explains the basics of making and using natural plant dye, from gathering materials and making the dyes to simple ideas for how to use them.”
Duerr, sasha. natural color: vibrant plant dye projects for your home and wardrobe. watson-guptill publications, 2016.
“Sasha makes a seemingly complicated process appear less daunting. Her beautifully illustrated book is filled with easy-to-follow recipes and ingredients that we all have on hand, in our gardens, or compost piles!” — Bea Johnson, author Zero Waste Home
flint, india. eco colour: botanical dyes for beautiful textiles. interweave, 2008.
“Slow dyes, like slow foods, require time and effort, but can generate extraordinary results. This book follows that same philosophy. If you take the time to delve deeply and absorb the wealth of information offered, you will find instruction and inspiration in abundance." — Surface Design Journal
Logan, Jason. Make Ink: A Forager’s Guide to Natural Inkmaking. Abrams, 2018.
“Imagine if the twigs, leaves, and bits of metal on the streets around you weren’t waste but ingredients for a rich palette of unfolding color. Imagine that the oldest tool of communication — ink — could vibrate, grow crystals, or change color on the page.”
Vejar, Kristine. The Modern Natural Dyer: A Comprehensive Guide to Dyeing Silk, Wool, Linen, and Cotton at Home. Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2015.
“In The Modern Natural Dyer, expert Kristine Vejar shares the most user-friendly techniques for dyeing at home wiht foraged and garden-raised dyestuffs as well as with natural dye extracts. Demystifying the ‘magic,’ Vejar explains in explicit, easy-to-follow detail how to produce consistent, long-lasting color.”
Textile Practice
Rodabaugh, Katrina. Mending Matters: Stitch, Patch and Repair Your Favorite Denim & More. Abrams, 2018.
“Our clothes can have a long history, if we let them. Mending is a way of ensuring a longer life for the clothes we wear and maintaining our long relationship with them. Human hands should always be a part of the making of fashion and Mending Matters helps inspire that long story. Because #lovedclotheslast.” — Fashion Revolution
Stocker, Blair. Wise Craft Quilts: A Guide to Turning Beloved Fabrics into Meaningful Patchwork. Roost Books, 2017.
“In Wise Craft Quilts, celebrated quilt designer and crafter Blair Stocker shares ways to use cherished fabrics to make quilts with more meaning.”
Weil, Anne. Weaving Within Reach: Beautiful Woven Projects by Hand or by Loom. Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 2018.
“With a detailed introduction, stunning lifestyle and step-by-step photographs, and a helpful resource section, Weaving Within Reach unravels the possibilities of the beautiful things you can make with your hands.”
Southern California Flora
Bryant Logan, William. Oak: The Frame of Civilization. W.W. Norton & Company, 2005.
“Human civilization, from its very inception, has been intertwined with the evolution of the oak. From the scientific and practical to the philosophical and spiritual, Logan amazes readers with the connections between Homo and Quercus.” — Carl Keeler, Outdoor America
Ritter, matt. california plants: a guide to our iconic flora. pacific street publishing, 2018.
“If stories of place can be read in a land’s flowers, shrubs, and trees, then this book is your guide to the history and wonder of California — a compelling invitation to celebrate and preserve its awesome beauty.” — Lorene Edwards Forkner, Editor, Pacific Horticulture
Rundel, philip w. and robert gustafson. introduction to the plant life of southern california, coast to foothills. university of california press, 2005.
“This book for the first time provides an ecological framework for learning about plants and their environments in southern California…this book also emphasizes the role of factors such as drought, seasonal temperatures, fire, and non-native invasive plants.”
Stuart, John D. and john o. sawyer. trees and shrubs of california. university of california press, 2001.
“Finally a guide to the woody plants of wildland California! The easy-to-follow vegetative keys, revealing drawings, crisp color photos, and handy range maps combine to make this a beautiful, reader-friendly resource for both the novice and the expert.” — Michael Barbour, editor of California’s Changing Landscapes