Making Things with Natalie Chanin

The Green Dream with Dana Thomas

My guest today on The Green Dream is Natalie Chanin, founder of Alabama Chanin, a slow fashion brand in Florence, Alabama. This year, Alabama Chanin is celebrating its 21st year in business with a new book called Embroidery: Threads and Stories from Alabama Chanin and the School of Making, about sustainability, community, artisans and makers, published by Abrams. The book’s preface was written by Natalie’s friend, singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash, who, along with her husband John Leventhal, wrote the 2014 Grammy-award winning Best American Roots Song “A Feather’s Not a Bird,” about Natalie and Alabama Chanin. On this special episode, listeners will get to hear both Natalie’s story and that hit song.

• Read the transcript of this episode
• Get to know Dana Thomas and her book Fashionopolis
• Watch the documentary Stitch, from Alabama Chanin
• Discover the fashion brands Another Tomorrow and Phlox