This is a short and visual post demonstrating our need and will to visually communicate with our following, customers and Friends. our Watermelon Cardigan is so much more than yarn put together in loops, its a quiet yet visual rebellion in a world full of darkness.

Gentle Reminder that our Summer SALE is ending in a few days, so last chance to grab one of our unique, Handmade items on offer before we launch our new collection. If you have any questions, we are always readily available to chat, via email or direct message from our Social media outlets. Thank you

We Thank each and every one of you for your continues support of our small, sustainable and colorful business.

Our garments come from a place of a deep passion for creativity; each piece unique and exclusive to each and every customer. We loathe waste of any form and so we make sure you know we are 100% support of a circular economy, with no materials we use having being part of any new mass production process. High street garments has about 5-6 various production processes involved in 1 singular garment and this is a massive contributor to green house gasses- hence we are adamant we do not want to take part in the further destruction of our planet.

Our business is about fashion you will love and want to keep forever and we want you to be aware of our story when you choose to spend your money with us. You are not only supporting us as a small family run business; but supporting a wider cause- and feel free to spread the word. We are modern day hippies; peaceful warriors; actively working toward a better future as much as we possibly can. This is our thing, our VIBE. if you resonate- come be part of this movement; which stretch further than our business; just dig a little deeper and find out more for yourself.

we will continue to be inspired; create and further inspire. Enjoy the browse and thanks for stopping by.

Anne & Godfrey

This topic is very close to our hearts and we will continue to spread awareness of how you can change your habits as individual consumers. Our business is based on the principles of a Circular Economy as we believe the cycle of PRODUCTION OF NEW MATERIALS and all the chemical emissions into the environment as well as the waste of discarding old products for new needs to be disturbed and ultimately changed in order to prevent further environmental catastrophes.

So how can you change? How can you as a “normal” individual become of service to this cause? It is easy! just follow these steps and encourage others to do the same:

• THINK before you Purchase New items: do you have anything that can be mended / altered / repaired in stead of buying a new item?
• Go through your wardrobe. Separate the items you wear and love and consider if the items you no longer wear can be altered / up cycled to become desirable again? (we offer this kind of service to you)
• Consider our DESIRE to buy new things. WHY do you want them and how would the item change your current situation? is the perception of owning the item in true correspondence to reality? (ie will it actually make you happy / will it actual be useful)
• EDUCATE yourself on real environmental change,. If you start to read about it, you will surely want to do something to change your habits. It is pretty grim and eye opening reading, but a very important one.
• RECYCLE your household WASTE. This is so important, a small, yet effective change
• Look at tour cleaning products: can you use re-fillable containers and are there more suitable eco friendly products available on the market?
• Can you afford to change your plastic toothbrush to Bamboo?
• Buy from small local businesses: do you want to benefit large corporations and businesses with largely unethical environmental and employment policies or would you like your money to go to a small family run business? there are plen ty of ethical and locally run businesses that offer similar products to that of your high street shops.
• eat less meat and dairy (or go fully vegan if you can

These are just a few options available to you as a consumer. There are many more which we will inform you over ht enext few weeks.

Thank you for reading.

FOZ

Once when on an island somewhere in Thailand, I had my astrology chart read. It was quite an incredible experience and the female astrologer, who had never met me before, was able to tell me about myself in personal details certainly unbeknown to her, before reading my chart. One of the of the strong topics we touched on was femininity / women; and the strong influence this topic will have in my life. With Venus as my guiding planet – femininity is a strength if treated correctly, she said (I am an Aries with Aquarius rising, guided by main planet Venus).

This topic makes sense as my life has been dominated by female power and also fragility since I was born. My grandmother, one of 6 daughters in a strong female led family; yet also tinted with tragedy and vulnerability and mental illness was rife in my grandmothers lineage of women. My own mother who was my very best friend and main inspiration / motivation, was also an incredibly smart and artistically talented women, with incredible strength- although I lost her far too soon to a heart disease we did not know she carried.  Furthermore, I also have my Mother in law which is leading a very strong female dominant family with a rich and powerful heritage, yet again, they have all faced their struggles in life, although overcome them and learnt to live through various ups and downs that life throws at us as women in particular. The strength we carry is in relation to our own vulnerability and I find that intriguing. I am also convinced we do carry a sixth sense in shape of our intuition, and that we all need to harness and FEEL this much more in our lives. We can turn our emotions into something very powerful and beautiful.

All of us deal with our femininity an various ways and that is our our own prerogative. I have often been told- and being told still to this day that I am sometimes perceived as arrogant and dominant – qualities that apparently do not suit a woman. Had I been a man, these qualities would not have been a problem, but certainly an accreditation to me.  It is lucky for me, I suppose, that I stopped caring what other people think of me long ago. After some teenage trauma of rumors about me, I came through and realised it didnt really affect who I am at all – my life continues in spite of other peoples opinion, and I stand strong by this. I hope all women felt the same!

I have always been inspired by women, and imagery of women throughout art and photographic history – I feel there is something very magical about women in art and that they portray a certain kind of depth and mystery which I find very appealing. Furthermore, I am incredibly interested and inspired by various cultures and especially women of other cultures. I have learnt slot about west African Women through my mother in law, I am intrigued by native American culture and history and vowed to educate myself further in the field. I also love the beauty of the Geisha, although I am also very aware of the tragic circumstances it can hold. Goddesses throughout history fascinate me as do their history; Venus, Aphrodite, Venus, Khali, Freya, Cleopatra, Ishtar, Selene, Nefretiti, and so so many more.

It is thus quite understandable that I choose to explore this inspiration and fascination in my work, and will continue to do so much more going forward. I will also post many more blogs about female led historical figures and cultures as I think it is vital we all learn more about our own heritage.

to sum up, I would also like to say that although fascinated by this topic, this does not mean we dislike men or masculinity in any way. In fact- we will be toughing on this subject as well. I adore my husband; the man by my side and I am proud to be his wife. I am also a proud woman and so the journey to further discovery starts here. Enjoy.

It is a well known fact that the high street frequently more than borrow inspiration and ideas from prominent designers (up and coming as well as established houses) and replicate their designs in cheaper versions on the high street (TopShop, Zara, Asos, prettylittlething.com you name it). But what has also surfaced to the general population is that high end designer houses such as Dolce & Gabbana also shamelessly take other designers ideas and (try to) pass them off as their own. However, since the rise of social media, it has become much harder for the perpetrators to hide. In fact, there are several Instagram Accounts completely dedicated to calling out knock offs; @diet_prada, @fashion.fakes, @thefashionlaw to name a few. They are so good at their job that they have made many high end friends along the way, although they remain completely objective when naming and shaming and do not cut corners for any brand. In  fact, the previously mentioned designer duo of Stefano Gabbana and Domenicio Dolce are really quite the “borrowers” and when recently caught out by @diet_prada , they refused to even come close to a confession. The Instagram page came about a few years ago when a duo of colleagues in the fashion industry were duly noticing this worrying trend within high end (as well as mid-to low end fashion) and decided to call them out on Instagram, tags, links and hashtags – the full works. The page now has  400K + followers and have become a verified institution of their own- gaining the support of many, including ourselves of course.

We very much support this calling out / naming and shaming culture because, even though a famous designer once told us that if he was not being ripped off, he would be worried; we find the design industry extremely LAZY and too darn concerned about making a profit by churning out endless collections; main, pre and bi collections 6-8 times / year rather than actually harnessing the incredible CREATIVE talent that is out there to be found and utilized into forward thinking and ground breaking fashion! Don’t get us wrong- these groundbreaking, forward thinking design houses do exist, however, they are very likely to be ripped off by a bigger name before they get the recognition they deserve! We have read about small independent designers seeing their ideas on the racks of high street shops and not being able to have the finances to take them on; thus with a duo like @diet_Prada there is finally retribution for the Creatives! finally, someone has the guts to call out all the injustices in the fashion industry and not only about knock offs but also about bad behavior in general like sexually predatory photographers and sexist employers. there still is a very long journey ahead for true change but we consider the paradigm shift upon us and thus the process becomes a little easier to face.

As for ourselves and our little family run brand; we may not be entirely groundbreaking in our own ways and we do not proclaim exclusivity and entire original ideas; upcycling, especially of denim and ex army wear has been done for decades. However we do believe we have a unique handwriting and our products can easily be recognized as ours. Furthermore, we believe that the ethical and sustainable foundation upon which our business is built is indeed groundbreaking. All of our materials are 100% re-cycled and part of a circular economy. Imagine if this ethos could spread- say to a bigger design house. Imagine they would visit their large warehouses of stored fabrics and trims and re-use them all in one of their collections. Imagine them taking previous styles not sold and re-working them: removing / adding on, shortening, frill them up or down?! the possibilities are almost endless and so in that sense of the word, we do not mind being “knocked Off”.

We are also saddened by the re-occurring trend we spot on social media where young, small independent creative businesses get copied,Knocked AND Ripped off by bigger companies trying to cash in on their unique creativity; often using the designers OWN pictures while doing so! Fellow Creative brand Claudia Pink , Shop Willows Call well as our chums Moonluxe Candles, Everybody Massage and Navajo Dreams have all experienced this and it is Shameful.

So what is the answer you ask? How to get ahead in the game? Well, In our own experience, with some other Instagram accounts starting to do very similar things to us, obviously borrowing or straight up copying- we say this: Beware, because we are about to KNOCK YOU OUT with creativity that you cannot keep up with and a passion for what we do which cannot be replicated in any way shape or form. And beware, because the public is becoming increasingly aware.

Photocredit:

@babyimastar

@claudiapink

@bedaringbefree

We use the phrase alongside other similar ones like “Power to the Peaceful” and Power of the People” and we do not do so because we are following a fad. We truly believe in their meaning. Freedom of Ztyle is a brand for everyday people who are and become Non Conformists by wanting to do good for the greater good; not only for them selves. For the People. For Like-minded souls and equal peaceful warriors who spread awareness. This world is in a bad way, but there is a lot of good in it and together we can spread the good and make change. We truly believe that.  Lets reclaim our Power and continue to be peaceful, yet fearless and a force to be reckoned with!

Peace, Love and Light!

Like many of us do know, they sprung from the Native American culture and in the Ojibwe native tongue they are called asabikeshiinh, which means “Spider”. they were originally always made by woven willow in a hoops with yarn woven in the middle to resemble a spiders web. They were often decorated with sacred items such as beads and feathers and hung above babies cribs / sleeping quarters for protection. The word DREAM CATCHER didn’t hit the mainstream until the 1960’s when the pan-native tribes adopted the custom as a means to sell traditional craft items and make a living- hence they were bought by western Americans and popularized as a home decor item. In actuality, Dream Catchers were actually coined as a term for the consumers who bought in to the very romanticized spirituality of the Navite Americans and not for the “spider web Hoops” themselves.

We find this strangely symbolic of modern day and the Spirituality Quest we see so many people embark on. This is not a negative – an en masse collective of individuals in search to catch spiritual dreams is exactly what this world needs right now; and so we hope that all of us Dream Catchers who in fact love Dream Catchers will spread our positive vibes and thus create more awareness of their origin. We must give thanks to The Native Americans for sharing their fantastic culture and kindly accepting our adoption of their custom!

Now; please go catch your Dreams!

Angels of course mean different things to different people but the fact that they have remained such an integral part of our spiritual and religious beliefs for so long does bare credit to their status. Personally I think that because they symbolize positive attributes such as hope, protection and caring nature – humankind will be reluctant in letting them become forgotten in decennials to come.

We too have found inspiration in these mystical creatures and have managed to create some fab Angel winged garments for your perusal. Remember that each and everyone is unique in their own right and exclusive to each of our customers.

Angel or No Angel, you can get your wings right here!