Toyota designs the Prius C…for Summer Rayne Oakes
WATCH THE VIDEO HERE. This past May I received a surprising call at my office on behalf of Toyota: The designers and engineers had designed a new family of Prius vehicles, and the compact version – the Prius C – had been inspired by my life and work. As it was described over the phone [...]
The IOU Project & Source4Style Launch Global Independent Design Competition
Source4Style teams up with The IOU Project, Fab.com, and others to find the next designer for The IOU Project “Made in NYC” Capsule Collection.
eXtinction releases on Daily Motion but only for 2 days
eXtinction – the environmental art short that I shot with director Clayton Haskell is up for the Audience Choice Award & Best Editing at Super Shorts Film Festival. They have it open and viewable for only two days so do be sure to check it out and pass along. Thank you for viewing. Super Shorts [...]
Source4Style wins the 2011 Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards in Deauville, France
Source4Style has been announced as the Cartier Award winner in business for 2011 in Deauville, France.
MODO eco by Summer Rayne Oakes
The eco by Summer Rayne Oakes collection combines Oakes’ sustainable expertise and creative direction with Modo eco’s optical manufacturer’s high quality standard, the result: Design-forward frames made from recycled plastic and hypoallergenic/non toxic stainless steel.
Prepping for the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards
This week Benita and I leave for Paris and Deauville to speak at the Women’s Forum and compete in the final round of the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards for Source4Style. It’s been over a two month journey in midst of bringing on new suppliers, forging some incredible partnerships, and building a brand new Source4Style 2.0 site [...]
Backpacking in Desolation Wilderness
I cast off domesticity this past weekend and went for a three day camping-backpacking trip in the subalpine region of Desolation Wilderness. Giant granite boulders, smoothed and bleached bone-white by eons of weather, heave themselves upwards from the craggy lodgepole and fir that seem to be permanently misshapen by the wind. The first camp-night we [...]
A little missive from Blake at TOMS Shoes
It’s been over four years ago now since we’ve done that shoe drop, Blake, but I think about it often as well. I forged some meaningful friendships over those weeks. Thank you for your missive. You are very dear to me.
“Last of Summer” Salad: Portobello, Bibb, Asparagus
This “Last of Summer” Salad with succulent portobellos and crisp asparagus will have your mouth watering for more…
eXtinction: the teaser
So I’m a bit of a hack behind the editing studio – and nowhere nearly as impressive as Stavros – the brilliant editor behind eXtinction – but I did manage to cut a teaser to give you a little flash of the film. We’re just now hearing back from film festivals, so we’ll have dates, [...]
Safia Minney’s Book on “Naked Fashion”
I met Safia and her label People Tree in Hong Kong at the World Trade Organization back in December of 2005. I believe I picked her up on stage after walking in her runway show. The pictures would confirm such a memory. Rest assured – we’ve been friends ever since and am honored to be [...]
“Last of Summer” Salad: Peaches, Apples & Sprouts
As the summer draws to a close, the sweetest of the season fades with it. Fruits from faraway countries replace their local brethren on supermarket shelves. A few remaining watermelons and ears of corn stick out among the reigning fruits – (apples, oranges and grapefruits stand their ground year round). And fall veggies – squash, [...]
Brooklyn Made: Art & Culture in 11211
Summer may be winding down but the past number of weekends in Brooklyn (minus Tropical Storm Irene) have been glorious. On days like this, Bedford Avenue is always at it’s best: Fairly starving artists perform for other fairly starving artists; women put on beaded headgear and transform into palm readers; that guy who sells his [...]
eXtinction releases website, goes on festival tour
This past March, as many of you know or have read, I produced an environmental art short with my good friend and colleague, Clayton Haskell. A confluence of events brought about the film – from a poignant speech that was building inside me for three years to the passing of my dear mentor, Tom Eisner. [...]
A weekend of reconnecting and relaxation with Angela
Quite a bit of time has passed since I’ve seen Angela, but on a whim I sent her a message en route to Ojai via JFK to LAX. Just so happens we were on the same plane. What are the chances?!? We made a plan the week after next to see one another, so I [...]
A barn raising in Northeastern PA
I took a weekend away to visit with my grandparents and my father, all of which live back in Pennsylvania. I had missed my family reunion on my Grandfather’s side the week earlier since I had to be out in Ojai for a speech, but made up for it the next weekend with a little [...]
Urban gardening & gastronomy
I finally found some time this weekend to transplant and thin out my Babylonian botanosphere of a bedroom…not to mention whip up some power meals with some fresh homegrown ingredients compliments of Gram & Gramps. Hope you enjoy the succulent shade of Freshness…
Having a “pink moment” in Ojai Valley
A couple weeks ago I headed out west to give a talk at Ojai Valley Inn & Spa. Over two years had passed since I first went to Ojai to speak on Style, Naturally but have to say that the halcyon and restorative splendor of the valley and the inn itself has remained unchanged. Every [...]
Fresh from the garden…
One of the things that I miss most in Pennsylvania (besides my extremely cool grandparents) is the prolific explosion of greenery and gardening. Luckily they sent me back to New York with a bag full of fresh butter beans, garlic, tomatoes, and cucumbers, which I proceeded to make into a number of appetizing dishes (caprese salad, [...]
Who is Obama? An Open Letter to the White House
I received this letter from my friend Scott Perez – whose friend, Virginia (and many more), were arrested in a peaceful demonstration in front of the White House for demonstrating against the Keystone XL Pipeline – a $13BN 2,000-mile atrocity – a scar through Indigenous territory – that will pipe out some of the dirtiest [...]
Weaving one’s way through the Sacred Valley of Peru
This past May I traveled through the Sacred Valley of Peru with Benita, sourcing fabrics for Source4Style. Peru has a rich history of weaving alpaca and naturally-colored cotton. Just a couple months before the trip, I was fortunate enough to meet Annie from Awamaki Lab who photographed me (above) in my home wearing some pieces [...]
Private screening in NYC of eXtinction
Summer Rayne Oakes (Producer) and Clayton Haskell (Director) recently held a private screening of the film eXtinction at Phaidon | Store and benefiting Charity: Water on July 7, 2011. The film will debut in film festivals in 2012.
From Rainforests to Runways
Join Summer Rayne Oakes at Cornell University for a personal talk on Fashion, Activism and Entrepreneurship.
Establishing a Sustainability Plan within a Business
Last week I had a good conversation with INC Magazine for an upcoming issue about working with larger brands on their sustainability programs and thought it would be helpful to summarize not only what I think about it – but also a general framework to working with brands who are new to building sustainability programs [...]
