From Under the Tree RSS

This guide to ethical fashion supply chain transparency shows you how to trace all four tiers and ask for the coverage figure behind supplier names.

Learn how to choose a capsule wardrobe color palette that works with your life and your existing clothes. Build a palette you will actually wear every day.

Learn how to wash linen clothes properly with cold water, mild detergent, and gentle cycles. Keep your linen soft, smooth, and the right size for years.

Discover the best non-toxic clothing brands offering organic cotton, hemp, and linen. Learn how to choose safe apparel free from harmful dyes.

Buy organic hemp clothing online with our 2026 guide. Compare 100% hemp vs blends, care tips, greenwashing checks, and products from $16.

Learn how to choose and care for clothing when you have sensitive skin. Find fabrics, fit tips, and washing methods that reduce irritation.

Discover why natural fiber clothing benefits your skin and health. Learn how cotton, linen, hemp, and silk compare to synthetic fabrics for comfort.

Build a lasting minimalist wardrobe with durable hemp clothing. Discover 7 essentials that combine breathability, strength, and timeless style.

A durable natural fiber clothing guide covering fabric strength, quality checks, organic cotton benefits, and how to care for natural fiber clothes.

Organic clothes worth it: Explore whether organic clothes justify their cost through durability, health benefits, and environmental impact. Discover what.

Learn how to identify non toxic clothing using labels, certifications, and home checks. Discover natural fabrics and washing tips for sensitive skin.

Discover the best natural fabrics for sensitive skin, plus which materials and toxic dyes to avoid. Find breathable, hypoallergenic options that soothe.

I have to go home! But I literally could not. Something was not letting me go away from that tree. What is it?

So I decided to take a few more minutes to pull a few weeds from under it.  A native totem is resting at the base of that tree making it even more special for us.  Everything about that tree is so dear. 

Summer! For sun lovers - a delight. For some of us, high temperatures are tough to navigate. How do you stay comfortable and look good?
I have an answer for that and it is LINEN.
There is nothing more simple and luxurious at the same time as the linen textile. Maybe it is the thousands of years of usage, maybe it is its unassuming beauty - it reminds us of nature, of freedom, of kindness to the skin.

I see the stress levels mounting around me. Scanning morning paper does not improve the optimism.

In the middle of the night, with my mind full of problems and worries, it saves me to give thanks for the true values in my life. For our sons growing up wonderfully. For my family, simply that they are alive. For my bed and roof. For my breath. I am thankful for the people around me who help me learn and see more. So many people are selflessly friendly, nice, good-natured people. Thank you for showing that heart to us. 
I am thankful to You for being our customers.

I was only a few years old when my family took a long risky car ride across the "forbidden border" of our East neighbor, the Soviet Union.
It took my dad 20 years to gather the courage to try to find his place of birth and place of trauma.

Perfect day last Saturday - sun shining, weather warm, gorgeous. I left for the store early as the new Alpaca socks arrived, I need to price these.

Our contractor was working on a garage, so I stopped by. “Gary, I maybe shouldn't be saying that but I was thinking about you. With all the surgeries you have been having, take a look if there is any stressful situation in your life that needs resolving. Stress contributes so much to accidents and health issues.”

He looked at me, startled, and said “You know, there is something. I never connected the two. But it's a tough one.” “I bet. Otherwise you would just have a cold. Don't ignore it, you are so young. All the best!”

I think that we need a reminder that, despite the circumstances, we are the ones that continue to create the world made for us. That we are an expression of life and as such, we give life to others. It matters.

Through the individual hearts, thoughts, actions - we help life to vibrate with more clarity and strength. Nobody will ever take it away, no muzzle, no six feet distance, no worldly upset.

We make a day better for a person on the street that seems lost and needs help. We wave to neighbors and express sympathy to a friend. We pay for coffee for the person six feet behind us.

A lady walked in our store, looking a bit rushed. She wore a mask (Washington has mandatory masks rule), she sanitized her hands at our sanitizing station, she observed blue arrows on a floor. I greeted her and she asked "How is the store doing? How are you guys holding up?"

I took a breath and stopped myself from answering her question by telling her EVERYTHING uncontrollably

There is a network of waterways close to where we and our store are. It is called the Salish Sea - part of it in British Columbia, Canada and part in the state of Washington, U.S.A.
The area is a home for many Native American tribes with numerous cultures and languages.

To have the courage for the next step, when you feel like curling in a ball with a pillow over your head, has always been a mystery to me. 

Yet, I want to share two survival skills that help me when the anxiety feels squashing me.

First - we are never ever alone.
We are never ever here just for ourselves - we are here to be of service to others.

Second - is even more important.
In each of us, there is a well of resilience.
It’s carried from your grand-grand-parents in your DNA. Via them, you have survived, like they survived moments of unimaginable fear and pain and it passed.