Oliveira Textiles Studio - now open!

Greetings and thanks to all visitors last Saturday to our soiree and shop opening. Our new working studio / shop is officially open and I am loving this new, organized, bright, cheery place of work. It's a dream to be here and I am inspired to create lots of exciting new fabrics and products. Please stop by if you're in Bristol or call for more details.

Oliveira Textiles / 219 High Street / Bristol, RI / 02809 / 401-396-9194

Ocean Explorium

So here we are getting closer to Earth Day, and the opening of our new Bristol, RI shop…what better way to fulfill my love of all things oceanic, promote our company AND the preservation of the planet's resources….spend a few hours in an Ocean Explorium! OT has been invited to participate in The Massachusetts Audubon Society's Annual Sustainable Earth event taking place at The Ocean Explorium in historic downtown New Bedford, MA. on Thursday, April 14th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. We will be among the vendors and are honored to be participating, exhibiting, educating, and offering for sale, OT products - purses, belts, pillows, and brand new water = life t-shirts, all made form our organic cotton and hemp fabrics.
The event is FREE, open to the public, and appropriate for families, adults and teens. It will offer workshops covering topics including “Sustainability 101” by the Marion Institute, "Local Food: Your Carbon Food-print" by SEMAP and the SouthCoast Energy Challenge, and "Climate Youth Leadership" by ACE (the Alliance for Climate Education). We really look forward to engaging visitors and sharing our expertise. For directions, visit - http://www.oceanexplorium.org

Ocean Explorium at New Bedford Seaport

Union Square
174 Union Street
New Bedford, Massachusetts 02740

See You There !

RISD/CE WinterSession

Winter Session RISD/CE "Green Textiles for Home and Apparel" was an absolute pleasure for me to teach. Every one of my 10 students was dedicated to environmental principles of design and production. We brainstormed about sourcing, printing, and production methods. We watched TED talks, started business plans, and shared swatches. Great research, great projects. I wish you all success. (I am not in any of these pics since I was the one taking them--just fyi) ……..Dawn……...

Begin Again

And so we start a new chapter.

Though it has been eons since I've posted on this blog, an unforgivable sin in this day and age of social networking, we have nonetheless been working as hard as ever to keep Oliviera Textiles humming. Along with a new updated website,(as of a few moments ago) new products and new patterns coming, We also have a sweet new storefront/studio in the works right here in Bristol. "Oliveira Textiles Studio" is located at 219 High Street, right next door to "Roxies Consignment Boutique". We plan to open right around Earth Day so look for updates here and on our new FaceBook page - OLIVEIRA TEXTILES.

This will give us the opportunity to connect with our local community, spread our sustainability message, and have a more organized space to work from. Boy will I be happy to have more space here at home…whew…

As well, I've been teaching my Sustainable Textiles class through RISD's Continuing Ed Department. This past session, I've been lucky enough to have incredibly talented, eager and delightful women to share 6 weeks of deep discussions on all things organic. We hope you join us on this journey and really look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks to: Candita Clayton Studio, Green Envy, Kreatlier and Chairloom for featuring all of our fabrics and new products.

And to the 2 loves of my life, Boris and Jacob-the sweetest sons a Mom could hope for.

OK so I'm totally behind the eight ball on this due to many other comings and goings on here at OT...but I have to thank Jaclyn at Urban Dwellings Design in Kansas City Missouri for a wonderful posting on Oliveira Textiles in September. She has an elegant, modern, high style shop and we are of course very honored to be included in her design pics.
Dawn

Thanks to Kelly LaPlante's genius website, The Green Grades-a website created to give "comprehensive reviews and evaluations of companies providing eco-furnishings", we are thrilled to have found Oliveira Textiles.
Jaclyn
www.urbandwellingsdesign.com
Urban Dwellings Design Ltd.

Hello and please check out this great event happening at RISD next week.
I've been graciously asked to join these noted Rhode Islanders: the topic - smart, sustainable design...RISD press release below....come join us.
Thanks very much,
Dawn

RISDCE Special Event :: Thursday, October 22, 7–9pm

Growing Greener Work

If you're thinking about going green with your own career, check out our symposium/topical discussion, Design, Industry + Careers in the Age of Sustainability. Charlie Cannon, RISD associate professor of Industrial Design and co-founder of RISD's popular Innovation Studio, will moderate and be joined by fellow thought-leaders Matt Grigsby RISD '05 ID, CEO and co-founder of Ecolect, Dawn Oliveira, co-founder of Oliveira Textiles (environmentally friendly fabrics for the home) and Meaghan O'Neill, writer/editor for TreeHugger.com and co-author of Ready, Set, Green.Design, Industry + Careers in the Age of Sustainability will help you learn which actions, materials and processes make the biggest eco-impact in the home and workplace, how to express your creativity while "doing the right thing," and maybe most importantly, how to inspire others with your own enthusiasm for positive change. The panelists will also discuss which sustainability-focused companies, locally and beyond, are thriving in this new economy. Thursday, October 22, 7–9pmTuition: $25 Space is limited; early registration is encouraged.
Pre-registration is required. Visit the RISDCE registration page for more information, or download a registration form and fax to 401 454-6218. Registration is also accepted by phone at 401 454-6209, or in person at the RISDCE office, 20 Washington Place, 1st floor, Providence.RISDCE – Where Art is for Everyone All ages and skill levels welcome!

http://www.risd.edu/ce

A Better World

Mark your calendars if you are in the New England area this weekend.
RISD Press release below:

Providence, RI to host annual “A Better World by Design” Conference
October 2-4, 2009

Rhode Island School of Design & Brown Students Create International Community of Social & Environmental Change.

Brown University and Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) will invite a global community of innovative thinkers, professionals, and students to Providence, RI to explore, share, and create experiences of social and environmental design. This three-day internationally acclaimed conference, now in its second year, “A Better World by Design” (www.abetterworlddesign.com) will be held October 2-4, 2009 on the campuses of Brown and RISD in Providence, RI. Nearly 500 guests from around the world will gather to discuss innovative approaches and solutions to extreme poverty, access to basic resources, environmental degradation, the future of our infrastructure, and the design of our societies in order to create a better way of life. Global leaders from the fields of architecture, design, engineering, economics, entr epreneurship, environmental studies, business, politics, and global development will converge during this conference to discuss the critical role of design as an integrative application to improve the world and its inhabitants.
“Art and design have a powerful role in this universe – to take all of the complexity in our world and make sense of it on a human scale,” said RISD President John Maeda. “This collaboration between RISD and Brown is just one example of the difference we can make."

And I will be joining this inspiring group as an invited panelist: "Green Consumer Products", Friday, October 2 at 11:30 am at the RISD Museum. Lisle Room
Matt Grigsby, Ecolect, pvd@ecolect.net
Rosanne Somerson, RISD Furniture Dept, rsomerso@risd.edu
Dawn Oliveira, Oliveira Textiles, info@oliveiratextiles.com

See you there.
Dawn

Great 'greenwashing' article

Found this today through OTA memo.
http://www.bsr.org/reports/Understanding_Preventing_Greenwash.pdf

BSR excerpt-
"Consumer demand for more environmentally responsible products is growing. Once confined to a small market of environmentalists, consumers who choose green products over other options now represent 40 percent of the American market, according to Cone’s “Green Gap 2008 survey.”Although companies are paying it more attention, greenwash continues to grow. This is due largely to a growing demand for green-related products—and to the fact that the companies attempting to respond to that demand lack either the ability or the willingness to decipher and act on what is expected.

It takes time and diligence for companies to get the facts straight, not to mention committment. We're working at it.


Dawn

Yes, it's been a while...

Summer Project - Vintage bamboo chair, Yolo lo-voc paint, latex foam with organic wool batting, 100% hemp cover with OT's 'Madeira Vine' pattern in 'marigold' colorway.

So, here are a few updates:

Our fabrics have been accepted by Material Connexion to be placed in the world's largest innovative materials library accessed by Fortune 100 companies, architects, designers and more. They will be displayed in 4 locations; New York, Bangkok, Cologne and Milan and in the online database. We are really proud to be included in this great source of environmentally safe products.

http://www.materialconnexion.com/

September

• I will be 'co-teaching' another RISD continuing ed class entitled "Eco-Materials for Interior Design". Matt Grigsby will share his expertise in Industrial Design and I will share my Textiles expertise. (go to www.risd.edu/ce for more details)

October:

• 10/04/09, 2 day event - RISD's 'Build A Better World'. It's a student organized event with some notable speakers. I will be on the 'Green Consumer Products' panel and am really looking forward to sharing our research on creating safer, healthier textiles.
• 10/22/09 Thursday, 7pm-9pm - RISD has spnsored a symposium called 'Design, Industry + Careers in the Age of Sustainability'. There will be 3 of us - all Rhode Islanders *Matt Grigsby ( RISD alumni and CEO/Founder of a great green materials sourcing group called Ecolect based in Providence and Chicago.) http://www.ecolect.com/ *Meaghan O'Neill http://www.treehugger.com/ (Meaghan is one of the original founders), *Dawn Oliveira - http://www.oliveiratextiles.com/ (Veteran Textile Designer / Educator) Go to http://www.risd.edu/ for further information.

Thanks for checking in..... Dawn

RISD Summer Class Recap

So my foray into teaching was fun and rewarding.
Thank you Cara, Emily,and Lynne. Your interest and enthusiasm in Sustainable Textiles made teaching a pleasure. I look forward to seeing all of you in October at RISD's "Build A Better World Event".
Dawn