S05 Episode 236 | Educator Emi Ito and Gina Stovall of Two Days Off on collaborating to honor a legacy & getting creative to infuse fashion with more accessibility, generosity and inclusivity

In episode 236, Kestrel welcomes Emi Ito, a Multiracial Japanese American mother and educator, as well as Gina Stovall, the founder of Two Days Off, to the show. Emi, @littlekotoscloset on Instagram, is the founder and co-moderator of Buy From BIPOC, and Gina was featured back on episode 224. The two recently came together on a collaborative collection — The Yoko Capsule — envisaged in the spirit of Emi's late mother.

“I felt acutely my own mortality and the urgent need to leave something behind for my own child, that would also honor the creative legacy of my parents, and particularly — my mother. I come from a long line of creative, powerful women who brought beauty and art into the world.”
-Emi Ito

On this week’s show, Emi and Gina share more on what originally brought them together, and how their relationship developed into collaborating on a capsule collection. Emi walks us through what inspired her to reach out to Gina last year around her 40th birthday — a significant decade for Emi, the one in which she lost both her mother and father to AIDS.

The two came together to build The Yoko Capsule — a 5-piece collection envisaged in the spirit of Emi's late mother — and not only does the collection honor Emi’s mother’s legacy, it also sets new standards for some of the ways sustainable fashion can be more generous, accessible, and inclusive. Emi and Gina share snapshots of some of the conversations they had throughout the development process, that eventually led to the integration of intentional initiatives, in alignment with these values.

• The Yoko Capsule

• The Community Fund, a program to harness the collective power of the Two Days Off community and make sustainable options more accessible. TDO customers and supporters can opt to contribute to the fund, which will be redistributed to other community members to help subsidize their Two Days Off purchase

• Redistribution of Funds, fifteen percent of the profits from this capsule will be redistributed to organizations that reflect the values Emi’s parents instilled in her

• Black Border’s Sliding Scale Policy, Gina and Emi mention this as inspiration for their Community Fund

• Leila Kelleher, collaborated with Emi and Gina to consult on the size expansion aspect of the collection

• Reading Rainbow “Paper Crane” — episode of the iconic children’s television series, in which Emi’s mother was featured; Emi was there for the recording as a child

• Emi’s Patreon >

• Follow Emi on Instagram >

• Follow Gina on Instagram >

• Follow Two Days Off on Instagram >

This week's episode is brought to you by OEKO-TEX® - a worldwide association of 18 independent research and test institutes that sets standards for safer textile and leather production and products. The OEKO-TEX® portfolio of independent certifications and product labels help all of us make responsible decisions to choose products that are safer, more environmentally friendly, and manufactured in a socially responsible way. 

Learn more about their labels at www.oeko-tex.com.