This Mothers Day give the special women in your life a LiveFashionABLE scarf.  This is not just a gift from you, its a gift of hope to the women who make them and their families.  
Its not a donation, its not a handout, its a sale that will keep the business sustainable, and a sustainable business will give the weavers and their families a future.  The crux of this business is empowerment, and what its employees are ABLE to do with their lives, these are some of their stories.

Frehiwot scarves in Marigold and Rose Red.LiveFashionABLE employs women who were forced into the sex trade to support their families, a question of survival not choice.  Anybody who has lived in Africa knows that women are the heart of the continent, they keep their families alive through good times and bad, with love, dignity and very hard work.

Saba infinity scarves in Citrus and Rose.
Two scarves I designed were finalists in the competition LiveFashionABLE ran at Alt Summit, I am hoping one of them might make it into production later this year, I will keep you posted.  The winning scarf has just been released, called the Genet for the weaver that made her, and for the Janette that designed her, its a sophisticated black and white, perfect for the coming winter season.

At Alt SLC I met Barrett who is the force behind this amazing company. Its always inspiring to meet someone who is really making a meaningful difference to our world.  The scarves are priced from $36, for just $36 you can make a real difference too.

Two lessons I am taking from Alt Summit are: 
- having guts to take risks pays off, and 
- design collaboration pushes your creative boundaries and can produce great results.

This struck a chord with me specifically because in the the last month I had two unexpected design successes.  Both came from collaborations (from Alt Summit related contacts) and both were out of my comfort zone, both meant I had to take a chance and face possible rejection.

The first came out of a collaboration with Ashley Pahl, a wonderful blogger I met during an Alt Summit online lecture.  Ashley needed submissions for her ezine, Snowed In and I worked on a few ideas.  One was an embroidery DIY, I haven't done embroidery for years but I saw something quite basic in a high end children's design store and thought I could improve on it.
Not only did Ashley accept the DIY for her magazine, but a few weeks ago my embroidery was picked up by Apartment Therapy!  In the blog world this is big!  I still can't quite believe it so I included a screen print just to make sure!!

The second collaboration came out of a competition run for 2013 Alt Summit SLC attendees by fashionABLE.  FashionABLE is an inspiring organisation.  A grassroots business creating a sustainable business in Ethiopia, empowering vulnerable women, helping them create new lives for themselves and their families.  They weave and sell beautiful scarves and when you buy a scarf you are not making a donation, you are buying a desirable item and giving the woman who made it hope, a future, a purpose, dignity.  Touchingly each scarf has a handwritten note from its creator, telling you simply what they are ABLE to do because you made this purchase.  As I said before, very inspiring, go and have a look for yourself.
The fashionABLE challenge was to design a scarf, the best designs to be woven in Ethiopia, presented at Alt SLC, and voted on by attendees.  The winning scarf to be made for Mothers Day.
I was inspired by the Africa I love, sketched madly at 3 in the morning and sent off multiple designs, and I was totally honoured to discover that two of my designs were not only created but chosen for the top four.  The top two below are mine.

Ultimately neither won the contest (the beautiful black and white was the champion) but it was exhilarating to have something go from my imagination to reality.  I really do feel I won the jackpot anyway.  And there is a good chance the yellow design, called "A Prayer for Rain" will be made this year, I will certainly let you know!!  Thats me below modelling them at Alt!

Hopefully the true winners will be the women whose lives and families are being changed forever.    And I hope it is not the last time I collaborate with the fashionABLE organisation.

For me taking the plunge, pushing my creative limits, risking rejection, its been very worthwhile.  I look forward to future collaborations, meeting incredible people who are taking on the world, to working on projects that will make me grow, its just a part of this wonderful journey that blogging is taking me on.

I am going on a journey.  Specifically I am going to Alt Summit in Salt Lake City Utah this January.  Less specifically this blog is taking me on a journey and I am loving the ride.   
I have met wonderful people in the blog community, become a social media consultant, & found a very satisfying creative outlet for all the projects and images in my head.  I have been asked to write, interviewed lovely creative people, collaborated with other bloggers, and been published in a magazine.  All from taking that first step, jumping in and joining the conversation. 

Sometimes its a bit daunting, will I have anything else to say?  Are there any ideas left in my head?  Sometimes you just need to put your feet on the road and see where it goes.  Like these gorgeous vintage travel labels that I didn't know existed before this morning.  Wish travel was still this stylish.

I am getting very excited for Alt, only a few months away as we speak.  Last year I watched the Alt buzz online, this year I get to be a part of it for the first time.  Dear Miss Modern is helping me design the all important business cards and media pack.  I have admired Christine's work for years and its a pleasure to work with her.   Can't wait to see the finished product.  And I can't wait to be at Alt meeting all the other bloggers who love this world.  There is something about the blog community, and the Alt community particularly, that is so supportive & so inspiring.  Have a look at this clip of the recent NYC Alt to see what I mean.
Can't wait!!!

Bamboo globe via the DesignerPad, selection of vintage luggage labels: TWA, La Baule, Pan American Grace Airways, Continental Palace Saigon, United Air Lines, Yellowstone Park, Moana Hotel, KLM.

Do you wish you could make your blog better, attract more readers, or look more professional.

You are going to be so happy!  Altitude Design Summit (Alt affectionately) runs online courses that have all the information you need to know, and you can do it from the comfort of home.

  

Where to go: Click here or on the logo above, choose a class and sign up

Cost: Courses are US$15 each, very reasonably priced, but thanks to Bing you can get two classes this July for free!!  Thank you Bing!!

So far I have made my blog look better by learning about Illustrator, dipped my toes into the mysteries of better SEO, learned how to my increase traffic (I hope it working), and looked at working with sponsors.

The instructors are serious blogstars in their own right, you will probably know and love their blogs, but they are all down to earth and approachable.  They make me want to be part of the blogging community even more than I did before.