Updated: Aug 21, 2021
You’ve seen her. She moves through her days with style and grace, and looks good doing it. She’s made living itself a work of art. What’s her secret?
From a distance, her life looks all rosy and soft, but up close you can see the many different colors and details, the layers and textures that all work together to create a masterpiece.
Even the way she dresses is an artistic expression. No-one could be that put together all of the time, right? She makes getting dressed for any occasion look easy. She never looks contrived or overdone. She’s mastered the concept that less is more. After all, the secret to creating great art is knowing when to quit. It’s all about editing.
The same principle can be applied to how you choose to live your life. By focusing on the activities and people who bring out your best, and avoiding what brings you down, you are creating a life that is your own work of art.
We invite you to explore our new collection of handmade luxury kimonos by going to the KIMONOS tab on this site. Made to be worn every day and dressed up on occasion, they smooth over whatever troubles you have, wrapping you in style and grace as you twirl through your days.
Updated: Aug 21, 2021
There's something about limitations that ignite creativity.
Designing the life you love is a privilege that we haven’t always had. What a luxury to be able to create our home environment and plan our lives around what we enjoy doing and who we want to be with in the process. Our homes and the lifestyle we live, and even the wardrobe we have, are things we have curated over time. As our tastes and circumstances have evolved, our lives have looked very different from one decade to another. And here we are now, looking forward to a new chapter with new things and places to explore.
Whether it’s interior design, landscaping, entertaining, art acquisition, fashion or travel, we are always on the lookout for things that inspire us, and that help us live our best life. I, for one, am a huge advocate for
reinvention. Throughout my career as a corporate communications and public relations specialist, my biggest successes involved reinvention — making the best out of whatever reality we were faced with. In many cases, the end results were better than they would have been if we’d had ideal circumstances and a huge budget. There’s something about limitations that ignite creativity.
At J.Mullin, our motto has always been, “Using what we have to reinvent our lives.” That philosophy continues to guide us in our new endeavors and our commitment to featuring repurposed textiles in our creations. We thrive on turning limitations into strengths, and we enjoy the adventure along the way. Our clients love the results: a handmade kimono or scarf made of carefully chosen combinations of new and repurposed fabrics that is a one-of-a-kind statement piece they are proud to wear.
As we move past the Covid nightmare, and make plans for moving forward, we hope you find joy and meaning in whatever adventures that are ahead for you. Whether your plans are big or small — travel, visiting friends and family, getting out to enjoy live music performances and art and museum exhibits, and fine dining — it’s all a wonderful feast of opportunities to keep on living the good life and having great stories to tell.
How the Slow Fashion Trend is affecting the way we dress.
The term “slow fashion” is appearing in fashion publications, and being talked about on fashion industry podcasts for years, but I’ve been noticing a lot more just recently. It is clear that the Covid Pandemic has had a big impact on the fashion industry. There is much more talk about sustainability and reusing materials in an effort to reduce waste and to be more conscientious about the environmental impact of modern manufacturing.
Designers and manufacturers are becoming more serious about the issue at large, but specifically when it comes to incorporating repurposed materials in their current and planned releases. There is a growing fascination with the hidden narrative that repurposed textiles hold. We still want fashion, and the excitement, but we want clothes that feel right for the times we are experiencing. The industry buzz is saying that its clients are recognizing the power clothing has to elevate our spirits,
comfort us, and make us feel good about ourselves. We keep clothes that have made us happy in the past and that we look forward to wearing again. We are choosing pieces that are practical but still beautiful. The focus is on clothing that is more genuine and relevant.
J.Mullin Apparel has been incorporating repurposed textiles in our creations since the very beginning. We started with repurposed denim jackets, reinvented with vintage and repurposed materials. Now we feature repurposed fabrics in all of our kimonos and scarves. Our motto has always been, “Using what we have to reinvent our lives,” and that philosophy continues to guide our efforts.
