Imagine how much more expensive Moleskines would be if the Chinese workers who make them were protected by unions and paid a decent wage.
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Posted 8 months ago #
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@Jennifer - I use Moleskine ruled notebook for pretty much everything: my journaling, ideas, to-do lists, planner, when I want to note anything down (like any quotes or reminders on what book to buy which movie or website to check out etc.) It is very light, but sturdy.
On average - I go thourgh one of these notebooks every year and a half. I buy the new one when I run out of pages completely.
It is worth it to me, because although I use it so much it never breaks apart (as was the case with other notebooks I tried), it still looks as good as new when I am done with it. (I keep those books, because they have my journaling or my son's firsts, etc. in it too and I refer back to them when I do my scrapbooking projects or similar and I prefer to write things down, rather than do it on the computer)
But I certainly wouldn't buy it if I was going thourgh a notebook a month or something. It would be way too expensive for that. However, I am not sure that anyone uses notebooks all that much anynmore, so Moleskine price doesn't bother me. It does a great job and is beautiful to write in.
Posted 8 months ago # -
I was in a bookstore yesterday that sells all the moleskin notebooks. I esp like their planners, but the 2012 ones were not available yet. The friend of DH's who is here visiting is a journa keeper. I'm going to suggest to DH that he send him moleskin for Christmas -much nicer than the spiral bound he's using, and I know he keeps thm to refer to.
Posted 8 months ago # -
I went into a Daiso brand store of Japanese goods today searching for a pocket notebook made in Japan. I found clothes, kitchenwares, stationery, cosmetics, and a multitude of itty bitty Japanese gifty things. But upon closer inspection, about 99% of the items were -- you guessed it -- made in China.
I looked at maybe some two hundred items and found only three things made in Japan: musical birthday cards; children's stationery sets with cartoony characters speaking in German (??); and genu-ine Japanese calligraphy paper (however, the calligraphy brushes, ink, and inkstone were all MIC). I also found fake eyelashes made in Korea and washi paper gift wrap made in Thailand. I didn't find a non-MIC pocket notebook. The quest continues.
Posted 8 months ago # -
My take on this question is that it is simply a curiousity game and implies no racism. At the same I take the locavore mindset and try to buy locally made 'stuff' where possible. The price is likely higher so each one is a challenge to justify. Uncluttering also means fewer but well directed purchases going forward so that 'pricer' item becomes reasonable.
My sister forwarded me a 'buy in America' challenge and I in turn challenged her back. She's trying for a month to see if it can be done.
Also Etsy.com might help with the clothing issue.
Iain
Posted 8 months ago # -
@Ella- I'm curious to hear how this experiment ended up for you, as I just finished reading "A Year Without," the book which inspired you. A very interesting read...one of the last paragraphs summed it up best: "I like everything to be nice and tidy, but my feelings about China's place in the world, and its place in our home, are complicated."
Posted 7 months ago # -
On the buying local front, I try to buy some items from the local shops rather than buying everything from the large stores. I figure that if I want local, walking-distance shops then I need to support them and often the only reason the prices in the large supermarkets are low (except for fresh fruit & veg - much cheaper from a green grocer) is because there is actually some competition around.
Posted 7 months ago # -
RebeccaL ~ I forgot to report back at the end of my No MIC month - thanks for the reminder. Not much happened, as I hardly buy much of anything in any given month, but...
I had only one slip-up during the month: I bought a jar of locally made chocolate sauce and carried it home in one of the store's cute little bags. Later I noticed that the bag was made in China. Oops.
In my quest for a non-MIC pocket notebook, I found a charming little store (Maido) brimming with delightful Japanese paper goods of all kinds. Oddly though, by that time my urge to acquire a notebook had subsided. I spent about an hour in the store admiring their wares, but didn't make a purchase. I've been doing fine without needing a pocket notebook. If I had acted upon my initial urge to buy a Moleskine, I wouldn't have reached the realization that I didn't need it after all. Makes sense?
After the month ended, I caved in and bought a mini fan made in China to cool my laptop. I simply couldn't find a fan in a tiny size that wasn't MIC. Although I spent about 4 hours looking at several sources, I feel that I didn't give it my best effort. What impressed me most about the Bongiorni book is how diligently she and her husband searched high and low for non-MIC products... and found excellent alternatives!
So onward...
Since the month-long experiment, I find that I now look for the country of origin label the moment my eye lands on an item of interest. For example, earlier this week I was in Macy's looking for new pajamas. All MIC! Even the pricey pjs made by Donna Karan (DKNY) and Ralph Lauren are all MIC. I didn't buy anything... yet. Unlike the urgency of my overheating laptop, I have the leisure time to shop around for pjs at other stores that hopefully aren't stocked with container-shiploads of stuff from China.Posted 7 months ago # -
This is so interesting! A woman in Beijing discovered the Zero Waste Home blog and has been trying to apply those ideas to her family's life in China. Here's her story:
Posted 5 months ago # -
This article is really nice, given the fact about how much the internet is restricted in her country. It gave me a small glitter of hope, considering the years between the rise of the consumerism lifestyle (after WWII) and now (that is more than 65 years !!!), people like us, unclutterer, minsumer, minimalist, etc. are still considered like we're living an ''alternative'' lifestyle. The consumerism mentality in China really started like what, 10-15 years ago ? But some of them are already thinking about the effects that this lifestyle can have of future generation, and even theirs.
When I read it yesterday (this blog is one of my favorite in my feed), I remembered an article from The Onion, which is a satirical news journal, for those who doesn't know. http://www.theonion.com/articles/chinese-factory-worker-cant-believe-the-shit-he-ma,1343/
I've always imagined, in a little corner of my head, that's how Chinese workers really think about us, Westerner. Each time I buy something that's made in China, I always have a thought for the fictional worker of The Onion's article. I even went to the store once, to buy cup holder for my car, since it doesn't have any, and picked up the same exact thing as in the article. I then started laughing alone in store, thinking about my little Chinese worker, and remembering "A cup holder is not a necessary thing to own." I then promptly put back the cup holder on the shelf and left the store, 20$ richer than if I had bought the thing. I've own the car for a year now, and still haven't miss my cup holders...
Posted 5 months ago # -
I saw a documentary called "Mardi Gras: Made in China". It was about some of the workers who manufacture Mardi Gras beads. As you might imagine, it's not good...the workers are pretty much treated like they're in prison. Anyway, the director showed the workers footage of women in New Orleans flashing the camera to get beads, and they were really confused/surprised.
Posted 5 months ago # -
arthelemis: LOL, that piece from The Onion is hilarious! More truth than fiction!
"But all these extra things — where do the Americans put them? How many times will you use a taco-shell holder? 'Oh, I really need this silverware-drawer sorter or I will have fits.' Shut up, stupid American."
Posted 5 months ago #
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