Out Of The Clouds Good is the New Cool with Eva Geraldine
Today I talk to Eva Geraldine Fontanelli. We begin by discussing how Eva is coping with the lockdow then tells me about her meditation practice. She studies a form of Japanese Buddhist meditation that she discovered in her 20’s. While meditating, she recites the mantra, “nam myoho renge kyo” which she roughly translates as ‘I believe in the law of cause and effect.’ Through her meditation, she finds answers to questions from within herself and declares the practice to also have a practical aspect to the results outside herself.
I was curious to ask Eva about her start in the fashion industry and discover what brought her to a cover shoot with Gilles Bensimon for Elle US on the streets of NYC, the moment she discovered that being a fashion stylist could be (or would be) her career. Eva tells me about her journey from unpaid intern to junior editor and how her determination and being the only Spanish speaker in the fashion department really worked to her advantage. She also believes in her own unique style and sense of humor and explains how authenticity and honesty is at the core of how she works.
I then ask Eva where her interest in sustainability began and we discuss the Social Sustainable program, acting as a mentor for brands like the beautiful Orenda Tribe and the UN Ethical Fashion Initiative headed by Simone Cipriani. She then tells all about Goooders, the platform she created to sell and to promote sustainable brands, like one of her favourites Parafina, and explains the meaning of the motto: “When you do good, you look good!”
I also ask Eva about conscious travel post-COVID-19. She is optimistic and tells me of an Italian proverb: "Non tutto il male vien per nuocere" which she translates as ‘not all bad things come to damage you.’ She is operating from a place of gratitude and sees the opportunities that this global event provides us.
I conclude the podcast by asking Eva these questions:
1) What is your favorite word?
"Grazie. Merci. Thank you. So, basically it's one of my secrets, because I have always been thankful and I try to be thankful all the time. Something really that keeps me happy. So, I'm really grateful for that time. So it's one of the word I say most. Grazie, grazie, grazie, to people in the street to the vendors, friends. You know, a word I really, really love."
2) What are you not good at?
“Laundry. Unless you like tie & dye style, I would avoid laundry”
3) What brings you happiness?
“I have a little gratitude journal where sometimes I force myself to write at least 10 things I'm grateful for every day.
So sometimes I come up sometimes with superficial things like my coffee but these days, I'm really, really thankful for my body and my health.“
You can find out more about Eva here: Instagram
You can find more about Goooders here: Goooders and on their Instagram
Select Links from Eva on both Buddhism and sustainability:
Eva's zen buddhist community is SGI.
Eva’s book recommendations for meditation practice
And another suggestion for introduction to buddhism
Eva’s recommendations for sustainability resources:
To read:
To listen to:
To follow:
https://ethicalfashioninitiative.org
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