Tag Archives: Upitees

Skylines and Goodbyes

“Elvis has left the building,” is how La Vie en Orange is feeling this week about moving away from Seattle. Because this panties business has feelings.

As a something special to remember Seattle by and a prelude to the July 25 relaunch of korijock.com and a city skyline mini-collection, this month’s Underwear of the Month Club’s print was inspired by Seattle’s skyline:

Seattle Skyline066 (500x230)

More skyline prints (including an “I see London, I see France” two-pack) will be introduced the week of the launch. What cities would you like to see? Please comment below!

London064 (500x254) France (430x640) (336x500)

My husband Zac and I left Seattle Saturday to start a month-long road trip along the west coast and in the Southwest before heading to our new home just south of Detroit. We are super excited for the big change and so looking forward to spending a month visiting friends, family, and seeing 3 new-to-us National Parks. Boom!

smiles and scenes

Where in the world is LVEO? The one of the sunset & mountains is our last dinner in Seattle. It overlooks Puget Sound & the Olympic Mountains. The other is of the Pacific Ocean on the Oregon coast near Manzanita :)

It’s still mostly business as usual, with my dear friend Andrea (and La Vie en Orange’s first employee!) helping to ship orders while we’re on the road. I’ll also be posting sketches, photos, and teasers about the big korijock.com relaunch (taking place July 25) from the road and with Andrea’s help.

In the meantime, I’d love to hear about any cities that have a special place in your hear, or a super iconic skyline in the comments. See you there!

xoxo,
Kori

One Secret Victoria Couldn’t Help Me Keep: the Panty Horror Story

Green-w-Purple-Polka-Dots

This Panty Horror Story starts and ends in green undies…

Train wreck. You’ve seen someone’s panties when they didn’t want you to, right? Maybe it was the whale tail made by a thong, a visible panty line, or someone’s granny panties sticking out of the top of their low-rise pants…

Could you look away? Were you hypnotized? Were you embarrassed for the panty wearer?

I could’ve died the other day. One of my co-workers, someone super well respected that I just don’t know that well came into my work space at the office and basically spent the entirety of our 5 minute conversation looking down my as$ crack. Like how you might peer over a cliff into the abyss. He couldn’t look away. I was the train wreck.

My panties as flamboyant as the amazing lorikeet. Creative Commons photo courtesy Live♥Laugh♥Love on flickr.

My panties as flamboyant as the amazing lorikeet. Creative Commons photo courtesy Live♥Laugh♥Love on flickr.

Laundry day ignored meant I was wearing a super cute and super ridiculous green thong with purple polka dots, trim, and a purple lace up back. Totally ridiculous. Like the lorikeet (my new favorite bird).

Open back stool + skinny jeans + top that was just a bit too short for sitting in an open back stool in low cut skinny jeans + laundry day ignored = Good-God-when-will-this-conversation-end-and-how-long-will-I-be-reliving-it?

Sigh. I lived to tell the tale.

But it also made me think about wearing the right panties and how the perfect pair of panties is something you put on and only think about it if you want to. Which is why I love my Upitees so much. They’re so comfy and reliable, it’s almost like I’m putting on peace of mind.

I know I won’t be worrying about my panties when I wear them. So I can give my attention to everything else that needs it. And still be pleasantly surprised at how awesome it is to be wearing neon green panties (no polka dots, but with a screen print of the Eiffel Tower) when I take off the same pair of skinny jeans.

Snails ascending the Eiffel Tower. On panties!hjun

My beloved Upitees!

What about you? Any tales of how panties ruined your life (or maybe just your day)? Don’t you think this should be a recurring series? Please comment below with your tales of woe, or interest in sharing a story by writing a guest post. I look forward to seeing you in the comments!

xoxo

Underwear Giveaway with the Non-Consumer Advocate!

Today! For you! A giveaway with the Non-Consumer Advocate! You could win two free pairs of Upitees!

La Vie en Orange Eiffel Tower Undies Close Up

Choose from two of my original silk screens for your panties, should you win!

Katy Wolk-Stanley is the Non-Consumer Advocate, and her whole schtick is “Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.” She doesn’t buy anything new. Ever! Except underwear! Because used underwear skeeves her out. Well. Do we know a thing or two about alternatives to big box store new underwear? We do. :) So I approached her about my Upitees and she loved them!

She even gave them her “Non-Consumer Advocate Non-Wedgie Seal of Approval.”  I don’t think it gets any better than that.  Swing by the interview to enter!  And see you later this week :)

xoxo

Mentioning Unmentionables: An Underwear of the Month Club Sneak Preview

Filling clotheslines with undies!

Exciting things always seem to be a afoot these days, but this past week I got one step closer to offering you, Dear Reader, my Underwear of the Month Club.

The official launch is set for Tuesday, October 9, and you can hold me to that.  The stars are aligning for it.

Until then, I just want to leave you with a few exciting details and some fun photos from this weekend’s photo shoot in my friend Mallory’s back yard.  Chickens and all!  You’ll be seeing some more of these as part of the launch.

As a card-carrying Underwear of the Month Club member, here’s what you can expect:

  • A card.  For reals.  How else will you be a card-carrying member?  This is legit! :)
  • A new, fabulous pair of underwear in your size every month that you’re a member;
  • Limited edition screen prints that won’t be available anywhere else;
  • And much more!  :)  Got keep some secrets for the launch!

Until then, stay tuned!  And imagine this clothesline in your backyard.  Doesn’t it make your heart happy?

xoxo

I introduced the chickens to some undies that had a chicken on them. They weren’t impressed, but I’m pretty sure it’s only because the undies weren’t shiny… Now there’s an idea… :)

Until next time!

Tshirts by the Pound

This is what 20+ pounds of tshirts looks like. Yoda, Cookie Monster, the Grinch and a few Disney Princesses all found their way into the haul :)

Tshirts by the pound.  That’s what happened this week.

I came home with nearly 25 pounds of tshirts after a trip to the Goodwill Outlet with my friend Luci from Idle Hands Yarn Supply (she makes yarn from old tshirts).

I’m so excited to dig in and start making some undies with my bounty- buying them by the pound rather than the piece helped me take chances on some undies that I wouldn’t have considered otherwise.  Mostly little kids’ tshirts that would normally be too small, but not this time!

Some of the super cute kids’ tshirts I found at the Goodwill Outlet. Normally, these would have been too small for me to consider bringing home :)

Coincidentally, I’m reading Overdressed:  The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion by Elizabeth L. Cline.  It’s about fast fashion (think H&M, Zara, Forever 21, Walmart, Costco, Target, etc…) and what happens to all the clothes we buy, the impact on the global economy and American jobs, the environment, and the change in our collective psyche about clothing over the past few decades.  I highly recommend it!

Anyway, there’s a great chapter about all the clothes we donate to Goodwill and the Salvation Army.  I learned that they never want for clothing donations.  Apparently, most of the clothing in stores doesn’t get sold to customers, rather it gets rotated off the sales floor after a month or so, and is then sold to textile recyclers (who make rags or chair stuffing, etc.), or sold overseas, often to sub-Saharan Africa (who, she notes is getting more fashion-forward and pickier about what they’ll pay for).  This way the charity is still making money off of garments they couldn’t sell.

She talks about the “clothing deficit myth” that most of us believe (including me, until reading about it) that “some person in need” would value our castoff clothing (p.s.  It makes me feel awkward to say “some person in need” out loud).  For that reason, until this week, I never chose the best tshirts at the Goodwill- I saved them for “someone who needed them” or someone who get some good use out of them before passing it back to the Goodwill for me to find.

Well.  Not anymore.  If they’re likely going to end up as rags anyway, they might as well end up as fabulous Kori-made underwear.  :)  So I’m excited to not have to be as picky at the Goodwill, and digging through bins and bins of clothing at the outlet with Luci was a ton of fun.  A little competitive (but we look for different things in a tshirt… :)), and a great exercise in teamwork.  :)

How about you?  Any reactions to Cline’s research or ideas?  Are you a thrift store regular (donor or patron)? Please comment below!

xoxo

A Tale of Custom Underwear: Upitees Meet Vulvodynia

Drea’s first ever bespoke undies. She and I discovered that a lot of organic cotton tshirts are chocolate brown… :)

Do you have a pretty predictable fit challenge?  Like you can pretty much count on something usually being too long, too short, too anything?  For my client Drea, there was one fit challenge with underwear in particular that she could absolutely count on (until she met me :)).  Let’s actually start at the end, with her delighted testimonial:

I am a very picky customer. Kori worked with me tirelessly and very graciously to create a set of undies that are absolutely perfect for me. They fit me perfectly and are perfectly comfortable. And I do mean PERFECT!

I have dealt with the pain of Vulvodynia for many years and up until I found Kori, I had never worn a pair of underwear that did not cause me pain. Those days are over. It’s Kori and her bespoke undies forevermore!

-Drea

Can I tell you what an honor it has been to work with her?  After back-and-forthing for months and several iterations of “this works, let’s tweak that,” I couldn’t have been more tickled to hear that we finally got her perfect pair of underwear right!

Before Drea messaged me through Etsy, I hadn’t heard of Vulvodynia.  I learned quickly.  It’s a condition of chronic pain in Ladytown with no known cause.  Degrees of pain vary among women who suffer from the condition, but wearing underwear poses a serious challenge.  Like Drea said, she had never worn a pair of underwear before that did not cause her pain.  Never!  It totally hurts my heart.

So, cautiously optimistic, we embarked together on a journey to craft the perfect pair of underwear.  She was excited about mine because the boy-cut’s center panel was fully lined to the waist (no uncomfortable ridges where the lining ended in a sensitive area).

We talked about fabrics, and I found some soft organic cotton tshirts (best to avoid anything that might have been treated with a harsh or unnatural pesticide).  I emailed her photos of some different options, and moved forward with the one she chose.  I made a pair with a little higher rise, per her specifications, and sent them her way.

I waited anxiously.

She got back to me after a few wears.  They were good, but she needed to cut the lining out, and the elastic bunched uncomfortably around the front part of the legholes.  Did I have any ideas?

Drea bought another pair.  This time, no lining, and with extra care paid to how the elastic was put in.

Better.  But something was still off.  And then!  (I always have my best ideas while running or in the shower.  Never running in the shower, but one or the other.  :))  I realized we could pre-shrink the elastic and then sew it in so that it didn’t bunch around the front half of the leg hole.

Drea loved the idea, so she bought another pair.  And could I cut the waist a little bit lower on these?  Of course.  And maybe shave off a little bit of the fullness from the buns?  Definitely.  And guess what?  They were perfect!  Finally!  Eureka!

Working on so many pairs, Drea and I developed some new prints for the shop, like this bumblebee!

Shortly thereafter, she mailed me back the previous pairs.  This week I’m taking them apart to put the elastic back in and take the waist down just a tad.

And with that, Drea will have a drawerful of undies that fit her perfectly and don’t cause her pain.  Glorious.

This has meant so much more to both Drea and I than than just a few pairs of underwear.  For her, I know, it’s something she’s never had.  For me it’s this incredible opportunity to  be a part of that joy and gratitude.  To craft something special for one woman and her specific needs (no lining, higher waist, less curvaceous bottom and all).  I feel honored by her having shared such an intimate part of her life with me.

And the more I learn about other fit challenges— wide hips, narrow hips, extreme petiteness, plus sized-ness, big booty, no booty, front pouch, strong thighs— the more committed I am to providing a super high quality product, and a safe space to explore what works best for a woman’s unique and beautiful-in-every-shape body.  I love the process, the relationships, and the opportunity to create underwear as unique and cheeky as the women who wear them.  For more about what I do and why, check out my malleable manifesto.  :)

So.  If you’ve ever had a pair (or a drawer full) of undies that haven’t fit you the way you would like, I’d love to hear from you.  Comment below with a horror (or less horrific) story.  Or send an email my way if you’re curious about embarking on your own bespoke underwear journey :) koriel.jock [at] gmail.com

xoxo

The Why

Last week I gave you the what I do, so this week I wanted to give you the why I do.  :)  A little statement of belief— I think it’s ever evolving, so I’m calling it my malleable manifesto :)  And after, the how I got to where I am, otherwise known as my somewhat unabridged biography.  :)

Undies on a line

An underwear revolution blowing in the wind :)

La Vie en Orange’s Malleable Manifesto
I make underwear because it’s something that most people need. It’s not more stuff. Unless they don’t fit well, they’re usually something you buy and then frequently use.

I make underwear out of old tshirts because I believe that we already have more than enough, materially, and I am passionate about finding creative ways to use and reuse materials sustainably. I make underwear out of old tshirts because I think about the impact that fashion has on the environment, our psyches, and future generations. I believe that fashion and environmental stewardship are not mutually exclusive and that we’ve already been entrusted with everything we need to live full lives, and ensure that our children’s children thrive.

I believe that every woman should have the opportunity to wear high quality clothing that is well made and long lasting. I believe that every woman should be able to find clothes that fit exactly how she wants them to and that make her feel good. I believe the world needs more fashion options that respect and honor the earth and all body shapes and sizes. I believe my customers respect themselves and care about the environment. I believe they want to build community. I believe my customers love to laugh and love bright colors. I believe my customers are amazing, wonderful, bright people who fill those around them with joy.

So what do you think? I’d love to hear your reaction in the comments below, or drop me an email at koriel [dot] jock [at] gmail [dot] com.  And read on to learn about how I made it to this perspective :)

The Backstory
I’ve been sewing since I was four, so when it was time to go to college, fashion was the only thing that made sense (despite briefly entertaining the idea of becoming a mechanical engineer). I wanted to be a pattern drafter— I am enamored with how fabric goes from 2D to 3D. It lays flat on a table then turns into sculpture.

My junior year in college I started volunteering with a peace education program, PeaceJam. It’s an organization that inspires youth through the lives and work of Nobel Peace Prize winners, and through my involvement, I found my voice and defined my values. I realized I could work for social justice in every capacity I chose, whether by making small choices every day or taking on big projects and make a difference.

It was then that I started having trouble reconciling my art— my chosen field— with the consumerism and environmental impact traditionally associated with it. I was overwhelmed by the collateral impact of fashion – from being told that products only last three months, to the environmental impact of discarding the same products, the bleaching and disposal of fabrics, to the dependence on cheap labor and unsustainable labor practices – I felt the only thing I could do was to remove myself from the situation.  I had planned on moving to New York after college and didn’t. Instead, I started working with young people, both teaching and with after school programs that empowered youth to find their voices and their causes.

But I still loved to sew and design. So I did. One summer, I realized I needed some undies, but didn’t have the extra money to invest, so I got creative with some elastic and a few old tshirts. I made the first ever Upitees (though the name would come later :)). Years later, that first pair is long worn out, but I got excited because I realized that underwear was something that everyone (well, almost everyone :)) needed and wore.  For me, that meant that it was further removed from the cycle of consumerism and accumulating “stuff.” I also felt really comfortable with recycling old tshirts for the raw materials:  there is an abundance.  Also, tshirts from the United States might do harm when donated elsewhere (Click for articles from Time, Freakanomics, Foreign Policy Magazine and AidWatch.). Sidenote: it will be interesting to see what happens with this weekend’s Super Bowl and whether there will be any of the same controversy.

So Upitees were always in my head as a potential business, but I never felt a strong motivation – I was happy as a clam in Kalamazoo, feeling fed and nourished by my work with youth, and creatively satisfied by my own other endeavors.

Everything changed when I fell in love and moved to Seattle. Far from home, and physically removed from my network of friends, I started looking for ways to ground myself, keep myself busy, and prove to myself that I was still me (happy, creative, driven). I knew that it was finally time to get this Upitees thing off the ground. I started to create [grade] underwear patterns making sizes other than my own. I learned how to screen print at the Vera Project and with my now-husband, started building a home screen print studio. I started talking with my girl friends of all shapes and sizes about their underwear needs and realized that there was a lot more going on down in Lady Town than I had ever realized.

I have been blessed with a long and lean physique, great metabolism, amazing health, and a love for running. Depending on the brand, I wear anywhere from a size 2-8.

A rant: At 5’10”, I think it’s utterly ludicrous that I would ever fit into a size 2 anywhere. Really! Anyway, keep an eye out for a future blog post unpacking the sizing mystery!

I learned that my sweet and petite friends sometimes had trouble finding undies that were small enough (this makes perfect sense if I sometimes wear a size 2…). I learned that my beautiful and voluptuous friends had all sorts of trouble, especially finding underwear that fit correctly and maybe even more so finding underwear that was cute.

I was appalled. How could folks [the market] not be serving these ladies? I believe that every woman should have the opportunity to wear clothes that fit well and make her feel good. I believe the world needs more fashion options that respect and honor the earth and all body shapes and sizes. I don’t believe we have to accept the status quo, or feel badly about ourselves. I don’t believe that we have to compare ourselves to conventional models, or what the fashion industry sometimes tells us we should aspire to. And that’s where I hope to come in.

I’ve got lots of ideas about how to move forward:  grand visions of expanded sizing charts that take into account whether someone is apple shaped or pear shaped (wouldn’t it be fun to know that you wore a “14 apple”?), and ideas for expanded lines and other products that do respect and honor the earth and all body shapes and sizes.

I look forward to getting to know you, and to growing my business with your support. I know I have a long way to go and a lot to learn, but with such amazing people, like you, around me, I’m looking forward to every step of the way!

xoxo

The Anatomy of Custom Undies

This week, I bring you the custom undie, care of an amazing customer, A., who agreed to let me photograph the process for you, dear Reader!  :) A. took the plunge, emailed me just after Christmas asking about whether she could send me some tshirts to make undies out of.  Could she ever!  :) See below the amazing transformation of A.’s beloved tshirts. :)

More Cowbell? Yes, please! Keep that cowbell ringing for years!

A. and I emailed about whether to use the front or back of each shirt for the front or back of the undies (if it ever seems like it could get confusing, I include photos during the process to help clarify).

Party Fowl? Unpossible in these beauties! :)

With every customer, I encourage them to buy a pair in their size or use a tshirt for a trial pair before I go past the point-of-no-return just to make sure we’ve got the fit down pat before I cut into your most sentimental of tshirts.  A. had a Maui tshirt that we used first.  She was super pleased with the results so I had the green light to cut into the rest of her shirts (5 in all!).

I’m so grateful to A. for letting me photograph the process.  It was so much fun to see which tshirts meant a lot to her, and cool to help her clean out her tshirt drawer and replenish her undie drawer!

Thank you, A.!

Do you have a favorite tshirt you’d love to turn into some undies?  Any questions?  Thoughts?  Check out this listing in my shop on Etsy to learn more.

xoxo,
Kori

Photo shooting!

Too exciting to not share!

Carmen, Jina and Inky modeling Upitees

Carmen, Jina and Inky braving the cold to model Upitees!

Today's La Vie en Orange photoshoot!

Mandy shooting at today's La Vie en Orange photoshoot!

Whew! What a day! Met up with a photographer friend, Mandy McGee, who wanted to shoot my beloved Upitees in a vintage-inspired shoot. Carmen, Inky and Jina, three super talented and brave models volunteered to be a part of the outdoor shoot (and the high today was only 42 degrees!). Thanks to everyone for your hard work!

We had a blast, and it was so exciting to see the undies styled in an aesthetic that’s a little bit different from my own- what fun! I’m so looking forward to the final product and Sunday’s tentative indoor shoot.

Stay tuned!  :)  xoxo

P.S. Check out Mandy’s photo of her last shot here :)

The secret to prosperity in the new year

So what’s your secret to prosperity in the new year? Sauer kraut on New Year’s Day (that’ s my family’s… :))? Orange seeds in the wallet (that was the rule in Guadeloupe)?

I learned this weekend that the real trick is all in what you’re wearing at midnight.

New yellow panties = prosperity in the new year.  For reals.  :)

I learned about the tradition from Crystal, a new customer, and the gal behind Crystal Rose Garden on Etsy.  She ordered some yellow panties for her mom for Christmas, and let me know that giving yellow panties is a tradition in her family. I was fascinated, and delighted to be able to meet her in person where I heard even more!

In many Central and South American countries (Colombia, Mexico, the list goes on…), ladies wear a new yellow pair of panties at midnight on New Year’s Eve in order to ensure prosperity in the New Year. If they are given as a gift, all the better. And if you really want to ensure lots of prosperity in the new year, you’d better put those babies on inside out.  :)

So lots of yellow undies are given at Christmastime. And at this time of year you can find them allover Latin America- from department stores to gas stations, to corner stores. Check out some great photos from Peru here and here. Luckily, I know where you can find lots of yellow undies online.  Where, you ask? Why at La Vie en Orange, of course!  :)  Check out a pair nearly identical to the pair Crystal’s mom will ring in 2012 with:

The tradition is said to root from yellow being closest to the color gold (so maybe green would work well in the States too… :)), and should your finances be in order and your heart looking for more luck in 2012, in Ecuador as in other places, wearing red panties instead of yellow will lead to romance and love in the New Year. So what do you think? Will you be wearing new panties at midnight on the 31st? Comment below :)

Does you have any traditions for prosperity or anything else in the New Year? I’d love to hear about them! Comment below :)

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