Read: Rosewater by LIV Little
From the Publisher:
For fans of Bolu Babalola and Tia Williams comes a “tender, soulful, and sexy” (Phoebe Robinson) debut novel about finding love in an unexpected place. “An electric and captivating debut, Elsie’s story teaches us that sometimes home is not always where we are, but who we are with . . .”
We say:
This one’s about as buzzy as it gets in queer world – gritty characters, subtle social commentary, the messes and marvels of life itself inform this debut novel that you won’t be able to put down. A sometime stunning mediation on friendship deepening unexpectedly into love, intermixed with poetry by Kai-Isaiah Jamal, this little gem about a poet trying to make it in South London, is nothing short of gorgeous. A welcome read on the eve of pride.
Watch:What’s Love Got to Do With It
Earlier this year, after a storied reign in the British Isles, a queen died. Yesterday, The Queen died– and arguably, her impact was more indomitable. We are mourning the loss of Tina Turner, an Icon whose impact crossed generations, resiliency showed the way, and sheer artistry reverberates through the next and the next generations of women speaking their truths.
“How do we say farewell to a woman who owned her pain and trauma and used it to help change the world?” asked Bassett, who was nominated for the 1994 Oscar for Best Actress for the role. “Through her courage in telling her story, her commitment to stay the course in her life, no matter the sacrifice, and her determination to carve out a space in rock and roll for herself and for others who look like her, Tina Turner showed others who lived in fear what a beautiful future filled with love, compassion, and freedom should look like.”
And of the woman herself – she sold over 100 million albums, received 12 Grammy Awards, and received a Kennedy Center Honor. What’s Love Got To Do With It comes from Turner’s 1st memoir.
So sit back and watch Basset embody Turner in a show-stopping, heart-rending, off the charts (worthy of the Queen herself) performance.
Listen to: Wardrobe Crisis with Clare Press What Can We Learn About Sustainability from Central Asia’s Textile Traditions? Meet Fashion Revolution Kazakhstan’s Aigerim Akenova
With our ongoing interest in natural dyeing and fibers as well as fashion incorporating traditional craft motifs, we thought we’d (re)listen to this episode of Clare Press talking with Aigerim Akenova.
From Clare Press: Whether it’s the joy of dyeing cloth with pomegranates, the age-old practicality of turning sheep wool into felts and knits, or the rich legacy of complex embroideries and silk Ikat weaving, Central Asian textile traditions are bonded by cultural meaning and a respect for the natural world. And resources: nothing gets thrown away, as this week’s guest Aigerim Akenova explains through her love for patchwork – her nomadic ancestors’ answer to upcycling.
Aigerim is the country co-ordinator of Fashion Revolution Kazakhstan. With a global outlook (studied in Milan, lives in California), she’s also a contemporary Kazakh designer determined to center sustainability in the national fashion conversation, as the country she was born and raised in scales up its design and creative industries. Still, the big money in this former Soviet territory of 19 million people, is still in mining. The economy is based on oil, coal, gas, but also things like copper, aluminum, zinc, bauxite and gold. As Aigerim puts it: “We’ve got the whole periodic table.” And Kazakhstan is the world’s largest uranium producer.
What role could sustainable fashion play in growing newer, lower carbon industries here in line with SDGs? What do young urban Kazakhs and Central Asians in neighboring countries want from the fashion today? As well as its craft heritage, Kazakhstan also has a vibrant modern fashion scene, its own fashion week, and (doesn’t everywhere?) fast fashion – so how can these two sides find balance in future? Aigerim says we have much to learn from nomadic traditions of sustainable clothing systems.
–kl dunn
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