First off, a disclaimer: I have known Karina Kallio since 1996, my first week in Australia. She came up to me during the first week of uni, during an excursion to Bradleys Head on the Sydney Harbour, and said hello in Finnish. We’ve been friends since. We worked together at Marcs. We were roommates in Sydney in 2002. When I moved from Australia to NYC, I stayed at hers for a week. I’m happily biased in this post.
Last year Karina took an unimaginable leap from a secure corporate career and established Kallio, a line of kidswear made from second-hand men’s shirts. The idea isn’t new; Junky Styling have made upcycling post-consumer fashion waste their beautiful business since the 1990s. The unfortunate reality is that each year there is more material for companies like Junky Styling and Kallio to work with. What’s brilliant about Kallio (and Junky) is that the clothes are beautiful and wearable, fun and timeless.
Kallio is a nominee in the Martha Stewart American Made Awards. I request you vote Kallio. The garments are made in New York, and a vote for Kallio is a vote for the future of American fashion manufacture.
