What's something we may not know about you? My middle name is Happy, true story
If you could share a joint with anyone in history, who would it be? I don’t smoke weed, but it would be Prince. Because….obvs.
What's the best vintage item you've ever owned? A Public Enemy tee shirt I stole from an ex boyfriend that’s about 30 years old
What's your dream car? Early 1970’s Porsche 911
What album or song most represents you as a person? That is the most loaded question I’ve ever been asked! For a song, I would say ‘Mystify’ by INXS or album would have to be Frank Ocean ‘Blonde’
What's your favorite song to dance to? ‘Holiday’ by Madonna, any party, any dance floor
Do you have any special creative talents you rarely share? I can throw down in the baking dept.
If you could be anyone in history for a day, who would you be? In history is a deep question but off the cuff, Julia Fox. Because wouldn’t you love to know what the F is going on inside that brilliantly insane head for a day?
]]>What's something we may not know about you? I had three aquariums once in my bedroom.
If you could share a joint with anyone in history, who would it be? Frank Ocean only smoke solo.
What's the best vintage item you've ever owned? A Porsche 964.
What's your dream car? A Twingo Perrier, a Polo Harlequin or a Renault Espace 1.
What album or song most represents you as a person? Surf’s up.
What's your favorite song to dance to? Vintage Timbaland prods.
Do you have any special creative talents you rarely share? Is Bbq is considered creative?
If you could be anyone in history for a day, who would you be? Anyone in a seat during a Michael Jordan match.
]]>If you could share a joint with anyone in history, who would it be? David Bowie
What's the best vintage item you've ever owned? A gold metallic hand woven ribbon dress that was my Grandmother's when she was a teenager
What's your dream car? A Jaguar XKE Roadster
What album or song most represents you as a person? Any song by Fleetwood Mac
What's your favorite song to dance to? Give up the Funk ( Tear the Roof off the Sucker ) by Parliament
Do you have any special creative talents you rarely share? I have incredible penmanship & often do intricate calligraphy on bones for friends as gifts
If you could be anyone in history for a day, who would you be? Marie Antoinette
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Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I believe all business is a spiritual game. If it’s a bumpy road some days those “bumps” are there to teach me something. If I can keep the mindset that problems are good, then I can move to the next moment smoothly with that growth under my belt. One of the biggest issues with making clothing in Los Angeles... read the full article here: FULL ARTICLE
]]>David Meerman Scott and his daughter Reiko are very different - one is a baby boomer business strategist, the other a millennial medical student. But both noticed that the kind of enthusiasm they once reserved for pleasures like the Grateful Dead (David) and Harry Potter (Reiko) now extends to all sorts of companies and organizations. So they teamed up to explore a big question: Why do some brands, even in supposedly boring categories like car insurance and enterprise software, attract not just customers but raving fans?
The key is creating what they call a "Fanocracy" - an organization that puts the needs and wishes of fans ahead of every other priority. It can be scary, at first, to focus on intangibles like community, generosity, and fun, rather than squeezing every penny from each interaction. But those who apply the strategies in Fanocracy are more likely to dominate their categories. And beyond the financial benefits, a Fanocracy spreads more joy and inspiration to the world at large.
why do you feel it is necessary to shot everything on film and super 8 and 16mm motion film?
Elliot: to time travel to the what I call "the golden age" you must teleport through the film.
can you explain that in more detail?
Elliot: nope :) hahah..
film is a living entity that takes on a character of its own the moment you push the shutter button on the camera. It captures a deeper feeling and more of the story that I want to share to the world. When I look at photos of my family from the 70's there is feeling in those film photos that I can't explain. I don't get those feelings when looking a digital photos on a screen.
well, people are viewing these film photos on a screen, does it capture the same feeling?
Elliot: Yes, it does. The feeling is there, even on a screen when shot on film.
film is way more expensive than digital?
Elliot: YES!! ha, but I am telling a story with depth and just like the quality of my clothing I chose to not cut any corners just to save a buck when it comes to the integrity of what I do. I will always go far beyond the "standard" or easier softer way. This is important to me and why things cost what they cost. INTEGRITY.
how do you stay in the 1960's-1970's or as you call it "the golden era" when shooting?
Elliot: for the most part you will never find a modern day item in our photos, except our clothing. I select locations, props, cars, accessories, etc from the golden era only. We also prefer models to be completely natural & without makeup & wear their hair the way nature made them. Natural beauty is hugely nostalgic of the Golden Era.
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My significant other and I have a plan in place to eventually raise our family in a sustainable home that is unconnected to urban centers. We’ve quickly discovered that creating a lifestyle that feels in tune with our values and with the environment comes with plenty of challenges that feel anything but free and easy. In the process, we’ve leant plenty along the way about how to combine the dream and vision of creating and managing a sustainable household whilst finding practical ways to make this reality. We’ve found it requires a lot more than the desire to live in harmony with nature, but also a great level of commitment and resourcefulness.
One of the first challenges we faced was how to manage our own expectations about what we meant by off-grid, sustainable living. It was tempting to visualize a remote wilderness location as the place to establish our home, and the place to raise our family. Yet, the reality is that wilderness and amenities rarely go hand in hand. How much remoteness did we really want, long-term? Could we really live without connection to a public utility power grid, water, or sewer system? As with so many things in life, we learnt to find our balance. To combine, in a delicate dance, our wants and our needs – our creative value driven vision and the more pragmatic reality. Finding the middle ground of somewhere between the two extremes of remote wilderness and concrete jungle felt a happy compromise.
Small steps became our motto. As we reflected and planned for the perfect location, we took literal steps, seeking to rely less on gas-driven vehicles and more on amenities that were within walking (or cycling) distance. That seemed to be an embodied way to commit to the vision and gave us the motivation to think about how we could implement metaphorical small steps towards our goal of a sustainable household. We began to implement one day a week as a “no purchase” day, to reduce our reliance (some might say, addiction) on consumption. Small changes were made to our menu plans, so that we incorporated more local produce and less carbon greedy meat and dairy produce. We began to adopt a more minimalist lifestyle – focusing on need rather than want. Also, we began to get our hands dirty as began to grow an ever increasing number of vegetables and fruits, as well as repair a whole host of items, rather than buying new. YouTube tutorials became our friend, and we leant the art of make-do-and-mend. Each one of these actions were an important small step towards our ultimate goal of making the dream of creating a sustainable household a reality.
Doing our homework has been important. Whilst the idyllic dream of living at one with nature seems almost at odds with detailed planning and research, we quickly learnt that it we were to make the vision happen, we needed more than spontaneity. A family home that is sustainable in the long-term takes careful thought. That’s meant a deep dive into building materials and techniques. Insulation, roofing options, energy sourcing and waste disposal are not glamorous topics, but they each contribute to the overall vision of a home where, as a family we can be free to live a life in harmony with our values and with nature. We have needed to learn about the thermal insulation properties of a range of materials. We’ve also begun to consider the people involved in the supply chain of products, to ensure that our drive for a sustainable home does not adversely impact others who don’t necessarily have the degree of choice that we do. At a basic level, that has meant asking questions about the origin of materials and products and opting for Fairtrade products whenever possible. We have also begun to look at the ethical credentials of finance products and institutions that we are using to help fund our dream for sustainable living.
Along the way, we’ve met and learnt from pioneers – those who have taken the plunge towards a more sustainable home. We saw firsthand how Monique and her tribe of beautiful children lived amidst a series of converted shipping containers, welded together to form a metallic sculpture like home. Recycled and repurposed interiors, and carefully thought-out storage options to make the most of the limited square footage was an inspiration. The children seemed oblivious to our endless questions for Monique as they explored the nearby woodlands and constructed their own dens and hideouts. The compost toilet was not a point of curiosity for them, as it was for us!
We also had the pleasure of meeting Ade and his family who were making sustainable living work for them in a more urban environment. Living in a basic home in the suburbs, they’d found ways to reduce their carbon footprint to practically zero. Thought and care went into every aspect of home life. The family had shunned all reliance on plastic or on fossil fuels. The compost heaps in the yard had become their secret weapon against waste, as they transformed a huge array of “waste” products into nutritious compost for their shared allotment garden, which had evolved into a meeting place for a range of residents who came together to work the land and build community as they did so. Listening to their laughter and chat was priceless and reminded us of those vintage photos from 1960s kibbutz, with volunteers working the land and living in harmony with nature’s bounty and with one another.
So, whilst creating and maintaining a sustainable household in which we can raise our family is still a work in progress – it is more than just a dream. The dream is integral to helping us towards where we are heading. That vision of free-living, harmony and creativity is what inspires us and keeps us taking those small steps towards a hopeful future.
written by Jade Piper
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The single most important event that made hippies known was the week long Trip festival at the golden gate park in california. The Golden Gate Park was one of the two parks that all hippies knew well. The Trips Festival was designed to celebrate the LSD experience. Hippies thought that LSD put them in touch with there sorroundings. "what a trip"
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What we need more than ever, to help stand in our truth, is community of like-minded folks. It's all love but people have different options regarding everything. Find the ones you vibe with and see how it goes from there. Together we stand strong holding each other up arm in arm. Find your community to build your immunity. The lone wolf is not the way today and it never has been.
It’s been a long time coming for Stoned Immaculate to be making home decor. We thought we would start off with our favorite and most iconic California Dreamin sweater and turn it into a blanket. This blanket is so beautiful it’s made out of 100% merino wool just like the sweater and it’s double layered which has the perfect weight for winter and summer time use. We always wanted to do a home collection and more will be coming from us soon to fill your home with that California vibe.
Made of the softest ethical 100% Merino wool that is, NOT itchy, and feels like cashmere in retro rainbow intarsia.
Size 60” x 60”
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Inspiration comes from all things vintage
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Photos by photographer Roger Steffens and the Family acid. Taken mainly in the sixties and seventies, Steffens’s self-consciously psychedelic pictures “imagine a different America, one of strange beauty and mystic truth,” as his son Devon put it. Enjoy the ride :)
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D.M.T. lives in all of us, and with the correct breathing or yogic technology, i.e., kundalini, we can get high on our supply. You are your greatest drug. The chemicals that can be released in our body by these techniques are astonishing when practiced. Please take a look at this Woodstock 1969 video of a group of people expanding their consciousness through breath.
Enlightenment does care how you get there.
]]>Much love and gratitude to our lovely priestess: muse: artist: model: Baelyn Elspeth. She is true creator of sacred space in many beautiful ways. Learn more about her www.allmattersofspirit.com
None of it would have been possible with out our sister Bunni Wyldeflower. She captured the magical moments with her Hasselblad film 120 camera. She also made it all happen with all the Topanga Canyon hook ups. One of which was the super special land we got to shoot on called Elsewhere. A must-stay for the star seekers, guaranteed to spot a shooting star while soaking in your private cedar hot tub.
And special thanks to the newest member of the Stoned Immaculate family, Nikki Houston our Super 8 Director and vintage muse. A real lover of all things vintage.
The whole Elsewhere shoot will be under look books, soon! Until then here are a couple of our favorites.
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BORN IN FASHION
I really was born into it. I grew up on the Venice Beach boardwalk with my Dad and Aunt, whom at the time had a clothing company called, LA GLO. They sold tube tops to the roller skaters that would dance and skate around Venice Beach. LA GLO, grew from a rolling rack on the boardwalk to a global enterprise which, I was present for all of my youth and into my early 20’s.
As every summer was spent working with Dad in DTLA, I took on tasks such as shipping, cutting service, printing patterns, photoshoots, selling at trade shows, and working with designers at a young age. This was when I got my hands dirty and really learned all aspects of the business. My favorite room in all of them was the design and photography room. I have this memory of sitting at this huge drafting table where our team of designers would create sketches of dresses and with my rainbow-colored sharpie box, I’d fill in all the dresses with my own designs and patterns.
After observing and living in the fashion industry my whole life, by the time I was in high school, I knew I never wanted to work in fashion. I even remember making defiant statements, that I would never be in the fashion business. Instead, I was much more interested in playing music in my band and taking photos of up-and-coming artists and musicians in LA. When I graduated high school, I wanted to be a Musician, Photographer and Music Director.
At the age of 19, I met Ozzy Osborne through mutual friends. We got to talking and he asked what I was doing for the summer? I said, “Continue to shoot photos and travel.” He responded with, “Great, come with me and the boys for Ozz Fest 1998 and do that.” I said, “Okay, but I need to ask my dad.” So here I just graduated from high school with my 35 mm camera around my neck standing on the side stage in England while Black Sabbath plays to a sea of fans taking photographs of these Rock Legends. After 3 months of a world tour, my life was again forever changed. While on that tour I became friends with many bands that were on the tour and got to work with them by directing projects and taking photographs for their albums and various press releases. A couple of those bands include, System of a Down & Deftones.
From 1998 to 2003, I was playing music in a band and doing fashion photography for numerous bands, albums covers, and directing music videos and commercials. I ended up on another 3-month life changing experience going behind the scenes as Director and Assistant Producer to the movie Rush Hour 2. Working endless days, we shot in Vegas and Hong Kong and lived in both areas for a month in a half each until I was sent home on medical leave from exhaustion and extreme illness.
MY FIRST CLOTHING BRAND
In 2003, my band mate Eric and I decided to make some t-shirts in our house for our band’s merchandise. We found out very quickly that there was a need for vintage punk rock distressed t-shirts. At the time, there was nothing like this in the market. I told my buddy, “Let’s make a ten-piece collection!”, which consisted of images from my photography to graphics like Abandoned All Art Now, Protect Yourself from Hollywood, and Happiness is a Warm Gun, to name a few. Then we’d sell it to high end boutiques in Los Angeles for a $100 retail price.
So, we each threw in $500 and with our $1000 budget we came up with the name, Morphine Generation. From there, we bought blank tees from American Apparel which, we then silk screened in our house, proceeded by numerous ways to make it look like Sid Vicious just played a concert in it. We started off by shooting buck shots at the tees which put 100 holes in the shirt to taking a razor blade and creating small little, tiny holes at random.
We also grinded the shirt’s edges on a hand grinder that we bought at Home Depot. Then adding the final touch of dying them in coffee grinds and tea bags to antique the colors. One-of-a-kind pieces of art that stood on their own. Here we were, with our first 10-piece collection of completely fucked up beautiful pieces of artwork. We stuffed them into a backpack and headed to the top boutiques in Los Angeles like the well-known, Lisa Klein. We told the girl at the cashier, that we were there to sell them some shit and we threw our bag of shirts on the counter like a case of beer.
As timing would have it, we happened to walk in the exact moment the owner and buyer Lisa Klein was there. She asked who we were, and we replied, “We’re nobodies, were musicians and we have tee shirts for you to sell for $100.” At the time the most expensive tee shirt in her store was $60. She laughed at our cocky confidence and said, “Show me what you got.” 30 minutes later we walked out with our first PO that equated to $7800. We played it cool all the way down Robinson Blvd until we got to our car and screamed at the top of our lungs, “Holy shit, what just happened?!” This was the day I embraced all the years of training in the fashion world and became a designer. Fast forward 3 years, Morphine Generation went from $8000 to $8 million and became a global critically acclaimed clothing brand.
I went on and co-founded Literature Noir and Stoned Immaculate as well as becoming the Creative Director & Designer.
WHAT I FIND MOST REWARDING ABOUT STONED IMMACULATE
As Co-Founder and Creative Director, my favorite part is the initial vision and inspiration I see for a new collection, envisioning our customers, and turning it from a dream to reality. I love shooting everything on film and seeing that whole process from vision to vision. And seeing someone wearing our designs when out in the wild is the most rewarding experience.
THE INTENTION BEHIND THE DESIGNS
I really want women to feel free, confident, empowered, beautiful, and unique. It’s the vision that keeps me inspired, knowing that SI really speaks to independent and free-spirited women in the world.
WHAT INSPIRES ME MOST WHEN DESIGNING
What inspires me when designing are the 60’s & 70’s. Under that umbrella, all of the events that occurred during that time frame light me up. My number one inspiration is music, including Bowie, Zeppelin, The Doors, Hendrix, and The Grateful Dead. The second, was the hippie free loving movement, Woodstock 1969, Ram Dass, Timothy Leary, The Source Family, yoga, cults, communes, and the psychedelic movement, all things that expanded consciousness and broke the mold of the Leave it to Beaver lifestyle.
I’m inspired by the voices that stood up for change which I am echoing generations later. I am tilting my hat to the leaders of this consciousness expansion. The hippie fashion was breaking the mold with what was and what is.
HOW I DEFINE FASHION
It’s a movement, it has a voice, and it can be a cause.
HOW TO STAY RELEVANT IN A WORLD OF TRENDS
Honestly, I don’t follow trends. I really don’t know what’s poppin as I don’t look at fashion magazines. I stay connected to our core customer and the brand’s identity which has its’ own lane of unique expression.
WHERE I SEE THE VISION OF STONED IMMACULATE
I want to bring awareness to sustainable fashion and create high quality products that last for generations to come. I also see Stoned Immaculate becoming a fully integrated lifestyle brand with home décor, footwear, perfume, and kids wear. My personal vision and passion, however, is to build a community that promotes growth and embraces our higher consciousness via in person events and lifestyle + wellness retreats.
THE WEAKNESS THAT TURNED OUT TO BE MY GREATEST STRENGTH
My greatest weakness was having ADD & Dyslexia. My greatest strength is having ADD and dyslexia. Anyone that has ADD knows the struggles of being organized and those with Dyslexia, the struggle with writing an email that takes twice as long as it should. My weaknesses are also my superpowers and learning that balance has proven to be the ultimate reward in my life.
IF I COULD GO BACK AND TELL MYSELF ONE THING BEFORE STARTING MY CAREER...
Learn to meditate. Owning any business in any industry is like juggling plates and putting fires out and if my mind is not in a place of peace of mind, which meditation yields, I’m being pulled in every direction and feeling overwhelmed, stressed out, and checked out. I found meditation 10 years ago as a daily practice which has allowed my mind to find peace in the storm.
]]>The 1967 California festival remembered for the first major American appearances by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, the Who and Ravi Shankar, the first large-scale public performance of Janis Joplin and the introduction of Otis Redding to a mass American audience.
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The Who’s Roger Daltrey had, like so many others, spent hours in the traffic jams trying to get to the event. Then he and his band had waited backstage some 10 more hours before performing. Daltrey later said there wasn’t any food backstage that wasn’t laced with LSD and he accidentally dosed himself when he made a cup of tea before going onstage.“Looking out unto the predawn gloom of Woodstock, making out the vague shape of half a million mud-caked people as the lights swept over them, I felt in my sleep-deprived, hallucinating state that this was my nightmare come true,” Daltrey wrote in his memoir, Thanks a Lot Mr. Kibblewhite. “The monitors kept breaking. The sound was sh**.” Read More
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