The backpack.

If you are not already on the backpack bandwagon it’s about time to jump on. These days it feels almost every designer has a backpack as part of his or her collection, especially for spring and resort 2013. I love this new trend and am extremely impressed with Stone and Cloth. What’s better than a fashionable backpack? Why a fashionable backpack that gives back to the community, of course! When you purchase a Stone and Cloth backpack you help provide a scholarships for students in need.

“Carry an education!”

I met Matt, the creator and designer of Stone and Cloth a month or so ago and was really impressed by him and his brand that I wanted to do a feature. I find that often times we like a certain brand or designer but we don’t know very much about the person behind the curtains. Matt created Stone and Cloth after a trip to Africa where he climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro. He was inspired by his porter, Benson, who carried his belongs during his week long trek. After learning how little money Benson made, hardly enough to provide an education, Stone and Cloth was born.

Continue on to see how I styled the backpack and to learn more about Matt and the brand!

Dress: H&M

Sneakers: Nike

Backpack: Stone and Cloth

Sunglasses: Ray Ban

Hi hi!! Above I am wearing my newest sweater dress from H&M. I’m really into sporting dresses up lately with sneakers or oxfords which is exactly what I did here. I paired the dress with aviators and my Stone & Cloth backpack for a casual but fashionable look for a day spent running around town. I hope you like the look and are excited about this feature. I always have so much fun working with designers and creative types in general that I was stoked to get to know Matt a little better. Below is a question and answer about the brand. Hope you enjoy!

I love your story about Benson, what is it about him that particularly inspired you? Benson is the most charismatic person I’ve ever met. There is something magical about people in Tanzania, they taught me, and Benson in particular, how to embrace the present moment. He always had a smile on his face and was really just a magical person to be around. Very welcoming and energizing to be around.

Who is Lucas? Lucas was another porter that was helping us out on the trip. There were a handful of porters that led us up the mountain, and Lucas was one of them that helped guide us to the summit.

What is the process for selecting students to receive these scholarships? We’re partnered with The Knock Foundation. An organization that’s well established on the ground in Africa. They have a scholarship program that we contribute to. They select students based on their potential for the future. We like to grant scholarships to kid who lack some of the basic resources needed to attend school, but are eager to be in school, have a ton of potential.

How long do the scholarships last? We’re all about quality of quantity. We are focusing on putting the same students through school year after year. It’s really exciting actually. The Knock foundation has students in the program that started in first grade and are now going off to secondary school. We believe that investing in the same students year after year will leave a much larger impact on their family and their community in the long run.

What do you hope these scholarships do/encourage in these students? We believe that giving them the gift of an education will help them realize their own dreams, will help set up the foundation for building their community stronger in the ways they see it. We are not in the business of giving hand-outs — we know that if we can educate this younger generation, they’ll soon be able to solve any other problem that arises, they’ll be self sustaining, and we’ll be able to go off and help other communities (which is something we starting to work on.)

How do you see Stone & Cloth expanding? We think we have a massive opportunity to grow up to be a platform and a voice that advocates for education. I’m not an educator, but we believe strongly in education. It just so happens that my skill set and passions are more in line with design. So we will continue to use fashion and design as a platform to advocate and promote this global issue.

Be sure to check out the full Stone & Cloth website!

If you like what you see be sure to follow on instagram, twitter and bloglovin’!

Cheers to fashion, seeing the world and always having fun!

Miss Zias