Hey y'all,
Thanks for checking in with us. We've begun this little project slowly but surely, and we're not exactly sure where it will take us, but the important part is that we've taken the first step. To those of you who supported us during our first show at the "First Fridays" event in historic downtown Florence, Alabama-- we appreciate you're support and taking the time to look at what we have to offer.
In case you're curious, let me give you a little background on "roots & wings designs." This project arose at the height of my teenage frustration with being from a small town and feeling the absence of any sort of artistic expression and cultural community to enjoy and be a part of. As a person who has always been creative and had a vivid imagination, I would throw myself full force into any sort of creative project I had to do in high school, usually gaining the "over-achiever" label. But then, after moving off to California to college for a year, and then studying abroad in Italy the next year, I realized this world has so much to offer me and so many great things to see, but I also had a deeper appreciation for home--as cliche and simplified as that is. It was the clash of these two concepts that took me back to a quote I remembered and a painting I began my senior year of high school before I had made the leap of faith to move to California.
The quote came from the movie "Sweet Home Alabama," which although a completely different story and an arguably cheesy chick-flick, spoke to me during one particular part. As a short synopsis, Melanie grew up in a small town in Alabama, then moved off to New York City to “make it big” in the fashion industry. But, some family business that needed to be settled brings her back home, which is when she realizes she’s trapped between her love for two different people and places. It is then that her high school sweetheart and “ex-”husband Jake Perry reassures her when she says “ I go up there (New York) and that fits, then I come down here and this fits too.” He responds, “You don’t have to choose. You can have roots and wings, too.”
I've attached a photo of the painting, because that's the best way to describe the image that took on the philosophy I adopted, and the inspiration for our name and logo. This back story partially explains why everything we sell is in some way traditional- or travel-inspired. And as a side note, often by "traditional", we specifically mean inspired by the hospitality and nostalgia of deep south we loved growing up in.
So far we've had photographs, paintings, hand-made t-shirts, and hand-made recycled journals. They all have a slightly unconventional touch, because I started painting without any experience, except for fifth grade art lessons that I gave up because I wasn't very good. I started making t-shirts because I was fed up with the fake "vintage, distressed, made to look hand-made" clothes I saw everywhere, that were way too pricey for being mass-produced. Plus, I thought what better to have something that is actually significant to me than to make it myself. After sporting a few designs around and getting numerous compliments on them, I decided I might be on to something. As for the photography, I have been dabbling in that since I was age 12.
You might have noticed that I've been saying "we" a lot during this post. That's because my good friend and all-around-creative cohort Tyler Jones inspired me to show off what I have to offer. With his help, I gathered together a few things I had created, and he and I made some vintage journals from old children's books. Thanks to his encouragement and extra pair of hands, we had a successful first show a little over a week ago.
I've rambled long enough, but as I alluded to earlier, at this point we have big dreams for this project, but we're not sure how or when this project will expand, so please check back occasionally to see what's new.
Thanks for your time,
Blake Franks
