The stories behind the sustainable clothing at Steel Pony - Steel Pony

The stories behind the sustainable clothing at Steel Pony

We were so excited to be featured in  the WHYY show You Oughta Know and want to show you the segment.  So here it is.

Joanne:
started steel pony 30 years ago we've been on historic fabric row for seven years and it's just really great.
i used to come shopping on fabric row and i have friends from when i was a kid who have stores here so it's almost like coming home
design and make our own handbags and clothing we have been sustainable since we started our business 30 years ago
means different things to different people so for us there are four things we primarily pay attention to.
here and we actually create our own colors .  I make collections every season
take my scraps and i make things from
so everything is customized.
I think my clothes in dennis's bags are very organic looking.
Dennis:
graduated I went up to martha's vineyard where i got a job with a leather shop making tourist stuff belts bags sandals.
 
 Fast forward 40 years my wife needed a handbag and asked me to design and make it for her, so people started to admire it and that's where journey bags was born.   I was having a lot of fun doing it one-of-a-kind pieces, even if i duplicate a shape it's always different so nobody has the same bag.  A lot of it has to do with necessity so i started carrying a bag myself to see how the function would work
so it would help me with deciding on howbig to make the bag based on what's going in the bag how light or heavy the
the form i'll look at the grain and then decide how i want to use it but a lot of times the leather is letting me.  It knows where it needs to be
in a buffalo is very distinct the hides come from the animals that are used for restaurants we recently found a supplier of snapping turtle.  Snapping turtle is used to make soup so they were throwing these hides out and that was a great find because the texture in that and the shape of it is just very unique so it's added a lot to the bags that
it's laced its  hand sewn.  It's pretty labor intense but it is a labor of love.   I really enjoy doing it.
designs unfold.  People walk in and tell me how beautiful the store is the clothing and the handbags  kind of naturally meshed but the longer you're together the closer you become in everything
we already had a lot of natural ability to do everything together
and that's the fun part of our business.
I hope yo9u enjoyed our story.  We always love to hear what you think.

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2 comments

LOVE Steel Pony! Have been a customer since the early days, and have timeless pieces to prove it. Glad they continue to thrive.

Anonymous

Beautiful segment on Steel Pony. Really shows who you and Dennis are succinctly but thoroughly. Great advertising of your store and contents. Loved it.

Gilda Edelstein

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Hi I am Joanne Litz Cofounder of Steel Pony.
I graduated in Textile Design from, the Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science. Worked in the "Industry" as a design director before starting Steel Pony. A company focused on slow sustainable fashion over 30 years ago
I love Creative Fashion, Art, and Energy Healing. My mission is to help women find their inner goddess and shine from the inside out.