In Bali dancing isn’t just for ladies. The Balinese men have important roles in these traditional dances too. In the Ramayana Monkey Chant dance, the male dancers will depict an famous battle from Ramayana, an ancient Sanskrit poem. One of the most sought after roles in this battle dance is that of Sugriwa, the monkey king.
These are pictures that our designers took of the monkey king during their Bali inspiration trip. To see more of our inspiration trip photos, visit our Flickr page.
As former king of the monkeys, Sugriwa heroically helped Rama save his wife Sita who was being held prisoner by the Rakshasa king Ravana. He made an alliance with Rama that if he could successfully help Rama and Sita reunite, Rama would have to help Sugriwa return to the post of king of all monkeys, a title his brother viciously stole from him after a misunderstanding. Sugriwa was able to help Rama and Sita reunite safely and was returned to the post of monkey king. We thought that Sugriwa’s heroism and kindness should be honored in our Bali Safari Spring Collection.
Feel like monkeying around? Check out our Monkey King boys graphic tee.
Our Celuk Embroidered Top was inspired by the ceremonial necklaces of the Legong dancers.
images credits (clockwise): Tea’s Trip Picts, blogbaliwww, celebrate life lah!, dances of bali
Our Balinese Dancer Top and Lengong Dancer Tee were also inspired by the lovely Legong ladies. We loved the style of the paintings we saw in Bali and used that as inspiration for creating these tops. To get the same feel I actually took out my paint and got to painting. See how Bali’s paintings inspired our artful take on the Legong ladies below.
Which Legong-inspired design is your favorite? Share with us in the comments section below.
I loved these illustrations explaining the legong dance poses and costumes.
Island of Bali. Miguel Covarrubias. Illustration.
Covarrubias in Bali. Adriana Williams and Yu-Chee Chong. EDM, Singapore. Pages 130, 131.
images and sources via Gustavo Thomas Theatre
Legong is a form of Balinese dance that tells a story; therefore the dancers use hand gestures and dramatic eyes to express emotion.
Photo taken by our designers on their Bali inspiration trip, view more on our Flickr page.
In the past, Legong dancers were typically very young, starting rigorous training by the age of 3. Also called, “The Dance of The Virgins,” the dancers would retire to marry wealthy merchants or Balinese royalty often before their 18th birthday. However, in modern day, Legong dancers perform into their mid-twenties, sometimes later.
The origins of Legong, even today, are speculative and deeply rooted in folklore. Some history books date its creation back to the reign of Dalem Baturenggong in the mid-16th century as a form of entertainment for royal courts, while others believe the dance was actually adapted from a similar Chinese dance, that dates back to the 6th century.
Our designers enjoyed the treasury of movements the skillful dancers mastered. Watch the video our designers captured of the Legong Dancers.
Learn how our designers interpreted the Legong Dancers into our Spring Collection in our Behind the Design post this Wednesday.
Spring fashion is filled with pops of neon shades from pinks to greens to purples and yellows. We saw fashion runways everywhere explode with new ways express this bold statement.
Photo collage compiled from Pinterest.
We turned on the light and had a bright idea, so we filled our Spring collection with neons for every style. Our neon pink girls leggings will surely excite the fashionistas in your home, while our subtle green neon graphics will fit the cool style of your little guys. Whichever your taste, be sure to electrify your wardrobe with these fluorescent pops of color.
What do you think of the new neon trend? Tell us in the comments section below.
As the national color of Bali, poleng, a black and white check design, is one of the most reoccurring patterns our designers saw on their inspiration trip.
They viewed this pattern tied to trees and statues, on sarongs and flags, and more; everywhere they turned, they saw poleng. They finally asked a police officer clothed in the poleng pattern, why he wore it. He informed them that he wore it for protection; the black and white checked pattern represents the yin-yang which depicts balance as the pattern always has equal amounts of white to black.
Looking for balance and protection in you child’s wardrobe? We interpreted the poleng pattern in our Spring preview through our boys shorts and girls dresses and skirts.
How would you wear the poleng pattern of balance and protection? Share with us below in the comments section.
In late November of 2011, Tea donated one item of clothing for every order placed to the Global Fund for Children, an organization that helps advance the dignity of at-risk children by supporting and strengthening grass root groups and effectively utilizing media to highlight the disparities experienced by this demographic. Our response was amazing, and thanks to you we were able to donate over 2,500 clothing items to at-risk children throughout the world. The Global Fund for Children was so overjoyed with this donation that they sent us this lovely card, pictured below.
Thank you for continuing to help us support this wonderful organization. Learn more about our partnership with the Global Fund for Children on our website. Or, shop our Little Citizens line where proceeds from these items benefit the Global Fund for Children.
Bali is a little place with a whole lot of happy. Our designers immersed themselves in the Bali culture and traditions only to return to San Francisco overflowing with creative energy and excitement. We funneled their enthusiasm into our Bali Spring collection. It’s full of bright colors, lively graphics, and Bali spirit from the neon pinks in our Botanic Garden Playdress to the growling naga on the Growling Naga Zip Hoodie.
Throughout the Spring, we’ll be posting on our Studio T blog multiple times a week about our new Destination: Bali. Find out why we created several pieces using the Poleng cloth pattern, learn how-to create the art of batik, hear real stories from our design staff who visited Bali for inspiration, and more! We also promise to post Bali-themed cultural activity printouts for you to download and design with your children too!
We’re going there. Join us. Discover Destination: Bali.
Tea just launched our best semi-annual sale ever, with discounts up to 60% (or more!). We wanted to provide you with some pro insider practices to getting the most out of our super clearance. Below is our top 3 helpful tips for shopping our semi-annual sale.
1) While you shop, think about what events you have coming up and purchase your outfits on sale ahead of time. We think our Cactus Flower Dress would make a perfect Easter dress. Or our Corzo Chambray Tunic would be a cute Valentine’s dinner outfit for mom. What holidays, birthday parties, or events are you anticipating needing an outfit for in 2012? Buy a new style for each while the prices are low!
2) Buy in bulk! Do you love how durable our boys Workwear Cargo Pants are? Do your girls love how comfortable, yet stylish our Skinny French Terry Cargos are? Great! Stock up on these bottoms now while they’re discounted. Buy one in each size for your child to grow into. When their favorite pants no longer fit, you can be the best mom in the world when you surprise them with the next size up!
3) Hurry! Urgent! Selling out! We sometimes see these messages and ignore them. Then when our size is gone or there is only one color option left, we’re upset. The best way to get what you want during a semi-annual sale is to buy early and often. Don’t wait until your favorite pair of pants is only available in one size. Shop now!
So enjoy our sale while it lasts and happy shopping! What are your tips for shopping Tea’s semi-annual sale?