100% Organic Cotton Fabrics
For home sewers, businesses, retailers, and anyone who gives a scrap!
 The latest edition to the Harmony Art organic fabric line is Franklin's Tower. This design was inspired by one lonely leaf -- actually it was this very leaf (pictured above). Almost all of my designs start from a walk in nature. I LOVE to hike and being around the natural world somehow grounds and inspires me. So a sharpie pen and many months later Franklin's Tower was created (see below for grey on natural 300tc organic sateen version).  You may be asking, why that title? Well, just as my designs are typically inspired by nature, my titles are typically inspired by music. Franklin's Tower is a song by the Grateful Dead. One of my favorite lines in the song is, "when you get confused, listen to the music play." The last 2+ years of my life have been -- in a word -- CONFUSING. Like nature grounds me, music soothes my soul. I am SOOOO very grateful for both! Can you imagine life without music or nature?! Yikes! This version (below) of Franklin's Tower on organic canvas in Black and White was a direct result of a request from our customers and friends at All Natural Dog. They wanted a heavier fabric and a black and white design. Together we decided on this.  We love helping our customers find the organic fabrics they need and sometimes if they don't exist, we work together to MAKE IT HAPPEN. That's how this fabric came to life. For me, collaborating is the most enjoyable way to work.
So if you can't find what you need, please don't hesitate to contact me and we'll put our heads together and see what we can do! Often I have to direct you to others but sometimes we can collaborate to create your vision! As my dad would say, "The answer is no if you don't ask!". Thanks for those wise words, Pops. Even though your days on this planet have ended, your influence and sense of 'right' encourage me to live up to your high standards.
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 Some years we have had winners respond early in the year. Some years we have had zero participants but in 2015 we had our first last minute winner. . . Jane! She completed the 2015 challenge with just 1 day left in the year! The good news is a new annual challenge has begun and this opens up the opportunity for another grateful soul to win a full roll of organic cotton fabric (a value up to $750!) For more details read our previous blog post. On December 30th 2015 I received and email from Jane stating, "as of just now I have 2,132 thankful thoughts, but I do want to continue on through the end of the year for a final count. The count is not nearly as important as the whole work but I do want to do it up right. You are so right; it changes lives; all in a good way."  Jane's books each numbered 1 - 500.  Yesterday I delivered the winning roll (she picked Vein) to Jane. She is using the fabric to make Therapy Dolls. You read more about Jane's work on her site - Reborn Therapy Dolls and at the moment she is the featured designer on our Service Professionals page. Thank you Jane for ALL you do! I am grateful for YOU!
 Earlier this month Harmony Art turned 11 years old! It's hard for me to believe it. The number of wonderful, thoughtful people I have met on this journey has been awe inspiring. Last year (2015) was a rough year for me personally and my business was definitely neglected. I sincerely appreciate each and every one of you who stuck with me through my prolonged absences and had patience when orders were delayed because of it. THANK YOU!
I am welcoming 2016 with open arms and a happy heart. ALSO . . . I want to launch this year of posts with another Gratitude Challenge! As in pervious years: Be the first person to send me a list of 2,016 thoughtful things you are thankful for and win a FREE roll of organic cotton fabric. The fine print: the free roll must be chosen from my "limited release" fabrics (scroll down for list) and although the entire roll (approx. 50 yards) is FREE, the recipient is responsible for the shipping (UPS ground) charges. You are only eligible to win this giveaway one time. We had a winner of last year's challenge sneak in at the last days of 2015. I will post about them in the very near future. Meanwhile . . . let the gratitude begin! Cheers to ALL OF US! 
I am offering the Gratitude Challenge again this year! Be the first person to send me a list of 2,015 thoughtful things you are thankful for and win a FREE roll of organic cotton fabric. The fine print: the free roll must be chosen from my "limited release" fabrics (scroll down for list) and although the entire roll (approx. 50 yards) is FREE, the recipient is responsible for the shipping (UPS ground) charges. You are only eligible to win this giveaway one time.
What are YOU grateful for? If you want to read more you can look at a couple of our past posts/winners here: 2013 and 2012.  Yes. This week marks the 10th anniversary of Harmony Art Organic Design. It seems impossible but we have been at this since January 2005. When we started down the path of colorful organic cotton printed fabrics we were an anomaly. I can confidently say that back in early 2005 we personally contacted EVERY SINGLE company that had anything to do with printed organic materials. We knew them all -- there weren't that many. NOW... there are so many we definitely have lost track.
Some milestones we have witnessed are:
Harmony Art has developed over 60 different organic cotton fabrics. We have assisted over 200 companies in finding organic cotton fabrics to fit their needs. Harmony has given over 20 lectures on organic cotton and her journey in creating Harmony Art. We followed the organic fiber certification process and are fully GOTS certified. We've made friends. We've watched businesses come, go, flourish and flounder. We've seen births, deaths, anniversary, marriages and a plethora of personal experiences and challenges. As this blog is titled: The Journey is the Prize. Thank you for being on the journey with me. PS On a personal note today is also my friend Mary Sue's birthday. She and her husband's belief in my vision of Harmony Art helped spur my leap of faith. Her love and support over the last 10 years can not be understated. THANK YOU MARY SUE!  I'm happy to say Whispering Grass is back and in a new colorway. This time it's orchid and comes with a coordinating solid Orchid color. Of course I love all of my fabrics but this one is nearer and dearer to me than any other. Why? Well, it is one of the first organic cotton fabrics we ever printed. Back in 2005, our first print run was done in South Carolina and we printed 3 designs: Whispering Grass (aqua), Sweet Jane (pink) and Eyes of the World.  The first three organic fabrics we ever printed. My husband and I flew to South Carolina to oversee and take some film footage of the printing. I remember it was SUPER hot and humid at the plant. I was young and naive. My husband still had long hair and so did I.  I remember being stunned by the size of the machinery. Pictured above is just ONE part of the process. I remember the colorist was a gem. The plant manager. . . a good ole boy. I'm sad to report this plant and the second USA printer we used have closed down. This print run pre-dated GOTS. When we did this printing we were truly the first company to bring color and design to organic fabrics and offer it to home sewers and small businesses. Now, I can't keep track of all the new organic fabric lines there are so many. Now, we have GOTS which keeps the standards high and consistent. Now, we have an Orchid colorway of THE original Harmony Art design. I hope you enjoy it. It's been some journey. . . and so it continues. . .
We've all heard the following statements over and over and over again. . . That's nice and all, but what no one talks about or teaches you is HOW to love yourself. What does that mean?? I use to think it was spa days, pedicures, and saying "no" -- ya know, putting yourself first. It always sounded over indulgent and selfish. Over the last few years I have been trying (sometimes desperately) to define and then live from a space of loving myself. It has not been easy. There is a reason the word "practice" often follows the word spiritual. What I think* I have learned: 1. Loving Yourself is more about what you feed your head than anything else. If you really listen to yourself talk is it kind? To you? To others? *Truth is I am not 100% sure of anything. I tend to try things on and then test them. They either fit or they don't. If they don't I discard. If they ring true after testing I usually enlist a few friends to test them too and report back. Feel free to report back by commenting in this blog post.
Mother's Day is just around the corner. I am grateful we have a holiday for giving thanks and honor the Mothers in the world. My mom and I have had our share of rocky times but I LOVE HER SO MUCH and am SUPER HAPPY to have her in my life!  Mother and me 1969. One of the newest companies to use Harmony Art organic fabrics is Aquarian Bath and they are offering something special right now. All you have to do is leave a comment on their blog and you are entered to win one of their flaxseed pillows (photo below). These pillows are the perfect thing to bring warmth and comfort for you and your mom. The pillows can go in the microwave for warmth or be stored in the freezer for use as a cold pack.  Not only do you have a chance to win a made-to-order lavender, lavender- rose, lavender-spearmint or unscented flaxseed pillow but the winner will win 2! One for YOU and one for your mom (or favorite mom).
Aquarian Bath uses USDA Organic flaxseed and USDA Organic scented herbs for their pillows. Just bounce on over to Aquarian Bath's blog for a chance to win. NOTE: deadline for entry is May 5th so don't delay! Cheers to ALL the mothers in the world we truly won't be here without YOU!  Fabric at our warehouse in South Carolina. It was September 8th, 2006 when our first rolls arrived at this warehouse in South Carolina. For the last 7+ years Peggy has been inventorying and shipping Harmony Art's organic fabric to our customers. What a godsend she has been. Her attention to detail, quick turn around and responsiveness have been truly outstanding. She has been a joy to work with. I have had plenty of challenges creating and producing organic fabrics over the years but I can honestly say NONE of those challenges were ever with my warehouse. I believe Peggy is responsible for my ability to write that. The older you get the more you value and respect the people in your life you can count on.  The most wonderful and my super star shipper: Peggy! Late last year the warehouse was sold to a new owner. They were smart enough to keep Peggy on but sadly they wanted my space for another customer and so the story goes. We are grateful to have found a new location in the northeastern part of the country (Connecticut to be exact) to hold and ship our fabric.  Today our organic fabric was ALL loaded into a truck for its journey northward.
I am excited and sad about the move. I know with any changes there are challenges to overcome but I am looking forward to a new relationship with a new warehouse. Peggy has left some big shoes to fill. In the words of Dr. Seuss: “Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.” I'm smiling, Peggy. I wish you a wonderful rest of the year! You deserve a great one and you will always be an important part of the Harmony Art story.  July 2004 My brother, Christian, and his wife Wendy, have two children - Emma and Matthew (affectionately called Mattman). My husband and I moved to our current location in Gualala, CA in 2001. Shortly thereafter, Emma and Mattman would come up for visits and spend weeks with us in the summer hiking, going to the beach, exploring and enjoying the remote, rugged beauty of northern California and also attending Summer Art Camp. I love them both SO very much. Some of you may have read about Christian's passing in my recent blog post. Losing my oldest brother has been difficult . . . to put it mildly. What must it be like to lose your dad when you are still a teenager?  Emma - March 2005 I am doing my best to support them but I honestly don't really know how. They are both coping in their own way. Mattman is back in college in Illinois. Emma, well... let me let her tell you: My name is Emma Herman. I’m currently a senior at Northgate high school in Walnut Creek, CA. I lost my dad about two months ago. I’m on my own road to recovery and I find that the best coping methods for me are talking to other teens that are in my same situation. I regularly attend a teen support group and I’ve recently become very passionate about adolescents getting the support and help they need. That’s when I found Comfort Zone Camp. It’s a non-profit organization that provides a free camp to children, ages 7-17, who have experienced the loss of a parent, sibling, or primary caregiver. The camp includes programs and support groups that help children cope with their grief and heal. They hold camps year-round across the US. They continue to provide free camps because of all the generous donations and support from donors.  Emma - January 2014 I asked Emma when she was going to Comfort Zone Camp. She told me, "No I can't make it to the camp because it's in the LA area and not at a good time which is why I've chosen to do what I can to support them even though I can't participate."
WOW. She is that kind of kid. I am so proud and honored to be her aunt. She (and Mattman) have both taught me so much. . . So needless to say, I am reaching out to some of my customers/friends and asking for contributions for this healing project. So far the following companies have not only stepped up and offered donations but have sent their kind wishes and comfort as well: If you would like to donate, let me know and I can put you in touch with Emma. And yes, we will be selling raffle tickets at a later date. So, if you feel inspired to help this ambitious, thoughtful, caring, determined 17 year old that would be lovely and we'd really appreciate it! Stay tuned for more details and THANK YOU. You have once again proven to me that indeed I HAVE THE BEST CUSTOMERS IN THE WORLD! Did you catch Emma is wearing a purple shirt and jeans in both pictures?! |
www.HarmonyArt.com
Harmony Susalla
Founder of Harmony Art organic design. 
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PO Box 892 Gualala, CA 95445