Eco Fashion World

It is human nature to search and explore. Some people push a little harder than others to try new things, find ‘their place,’ and make an impact. New discoveries lead to personal growth and almost always, the influence radiates into the lives of those around the diligent movers and shakers. Andrea Rodriguez-Tarazi, the founder and designer of Knots & Stones, is one of those diligent movers and shakers, creatively converting her inspiration and taking her self-assigned role in the green revolution, armed with tiny knots, delicate seeds, and earth-made stones.

Rodriguez-Tarazi was born in Bogota, Colombia and lived there until she was 12 years old, subsequently relocating to New York with her family where she has lived ever since. Her family is talented in various handicrafts, including her great-grandmother who is a skilled seamstress (she still lives in Colombia and is 101 years of age), and other women in her family who sew, paint, make pottery, and craft jewelry. Early on, Andrea learned the basics of beading and jewelry-making from her aunt who studied fashion and jewelry design and remembers her aunt’s recounts of how she made accessories from bone, horn, garbage and seeds. These stories fascinated Andrea. During a visit to Colombia 8 years ago, she saw her aunt making jewelry with seeds and immediately fell in love with their smooth texture, beautiful colors, ranges in size and shapes. From that day, she started working with seeds.

Through research, Rodriguez-Tarazi became aware of the benefits that come from using seeds in jewelry making: the gathering and preparation of the seeds and manufacturing of the jewelry provide income to the local communities; a demand for seeds increases the value of the rainforests which can lead to a decrease in deforestation and hopefully reforestation. As she saw it, switching to seeds for her jewelry-making was a win-win situation; it would allow her to work on something she loves while helping others in their path to self-sufficiency.

To this point, Andrea had been making jewelry for personal use as she had no formal education in jewelry-making and had chosen an alternate career path. She was the first in her family to go to college and had made it a primary goal to find a career that would allow her to influence some type of positive change in the world. She first worked as a social worker with people affected by HIV/AIDS and people with physical disabilities for approximately 7 years. She felt she would be of more service to the population she was working with as an attorney so she became an attorney and practiced law for a few years but there was something missing. Andrea says, “In July of 2009, I had a moment of lucidity or insanity (depending on who you ask) and I resigned from my job.” In an effort to contribute to the household expenses she began selling jewelry at a local market in Brooklyn and was pleasantly surprised to see people liked the jewelry and really cared about the materials she was using. K&S was incorporated in October of 2009 and has been operating formally since then.

EFW: Tell me more about your background in relation to international studies.

ART: I did field work in Bangladesh as a graduate student working with a micro-grant program and saw, first hand, the life-changing results of microenterprises. I was there to evaluate the benefits to the participants of the program and our findings were very encouraging. The seed money, guidance and support they received really changed their lives. In a relatively short period (3-5 years in many cases), these families now had access to basic necessities they never had before. In the case of longer term participants (10+ years), families were able to send one child to school and by then their business had developed considerably. I always kept that experience in mind, knowing that the only true way out of poverty was to provide people with a means to provide for themselves.

EFW: What is it about jewelry that motivates you?

ART: Jewelry is the frosting on an outfit. Generally, what makes a great cake or cupcake is the frosting. The frosting makes baked goods pretty, unique, and fabulous. I believe jewelry plays the same role. Most of us can’t afford a new wardrobe every year but jewelry provides a relatively inexpensive way to spice up your wardrobe. Beyond that, jewelry is a means of self-expression, it is art.

EFW: Do you work alongside the artisans to design and make the jewelry?

ART: I am the designer but I collaborate with the artisans. They are the ones with the knowledge about the seeds and how to best work with them and I respect and appreciate their input. I work with artisans in Otalvo, Ecuador and Bogota, Colombia. Both sites consist of small workshops that have been trying to develop their business. In Colombia, the workshop has approximately 14 artisans, 10 full-time and 4 who work at their leisure from home. Many are displaced people who were forced to leave the countryside because of the guerrilla war and are now trying to make a living in the city.

EFW: How do you find and prepare the materials?

ART: The manager of the workshop in Colombia, Alfredo, travels to the Amazon and selects the seeds. He also treats them and prepares them for use. He oversees the dyeing, cutting, and drilling of the seeds.

EFW: What types of things influence the colors, textures, and shapes you decide to use?

ART: I browse through magazines and do a lot of people watching to be aware of trends. I also enjoy the work of Latino artists such as Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and Fernando Botero (I love his robust, colorful people). Often though, I just sit down at my table while listening to some Ella Fitzgerald or Louis Armstrong and play around with the materials and things start coming together naturally.

EFW: Tell me about projects you are working on now.

ART: I’m working on our next collection. I want to expand the variety of seeds used and incorporate other organic materials like orange peels and coffee beans. I want to develop the accessories aspect of K&S, for example, some belts, hair accessories and one or two items for men. I get requests for men’s products and I don’t have anything at this time.

EFW: Can you share some personal insight into how you see the world of eco fashion?

ART: It’s amazing and wonderful to see how the industry has grown. I love the fact that through fashion we have been able to bring much needed attention to issues like child labor, poor work conditions, wages, and fair trade practices. Many people who would not have been interested in or aware of these important issues are now learning about them through fashion.

EFW: What do you hope to personally contribute to the world of eco fashion?

ART: I am aware that making jewelry with seeds is not a new thing. I think that my life experiences and cultural background will allow me to give a new twist to a traditional handicraft. I know and understand the culture, history, needs and passions of our community in Colombia and now, as a “New Yorker,” I can add a little extra flavor to what I learned from my family.

EFW: What other information would you like to share with the world about yourself and K&S products?

ART: I am looking forward to K&S growing. I would love to increase the number of workshops and home shops we work with. We have an account set up to which we contribute 10% of all wholesale orders and 10% of our annual profits; this money will be used to fund small projects in Bogota. This year we have committed to assisting with the purchase of shoes for some 20 students that cannot afford them, as well as contributing to a toy drive that will give toys to a few children who are not expecting a visit from “El Niño Dios.” (That is our Santa Claus)

Andrea says that in her daily life she tries to follow the three Rs: respect for self, respect for others and responsibility for our actions. K&S requires a lot of hard work, commitment and time (time away from other important things in life like family and friends), and she firmly holds that she would not be able to give so much of herself to an endeavor if it didn’t fit within those parameters.

At this moment, Andrea is focusing on introducing the brand to local retailers and expanding internet sales. She would like to establish K&S as a presence in NYC by continuing to bring “some of the Amazon Jungle to the quintessential urban jungle.”

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