Day 83 Literature Sunday on Monday from `I Am The Addressee`

`Even if I knew what was going to happen, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything about it. I was a mistake, I know, but didn’t care at that time. I just went with the flow. Flowing on a bed of flowers and never looking down to see where the innocence gone. Weather it is acceptable or not, but it has gone. Being forced out of its shyness it has gone and will never come back.

Dripping down the drain I found some old memories flowing by and cried where that grant impulse has gone that was believed to surround me forever. I listened carefully, in case I could unfold any of the mysteries of those days, but had no clue left between the lines. A fish on the shore with dried mouth flapping to survive as the encouraging sound of the sea flows by.

Later on I decided to get up and cut myself out of that place of dryness and look for something better to do. It was a sunny day, no more rain and I skipped along the side of the house and looked for memories there. I remember having a tin kitchen, one of my favourite toys and the rainy days when I made mud pies and mud sauces with mud ham and chicken. I remember playing with the Wolf kids from the neighbourhood and just being plainly kids with lots of fun. I can`t recall what happened to the tin kitchen, but I do remember mum telling me off one day that I couldn’t look after it properly after losing some of the saucepans and the oven door. I think it happened when I took the whole thing in the garden under the corn-stalks surrounded the walnut tree. Indeed, no matter how long I look that is my last memory of it. It is strange how all these things come back to me since I boarded this ship. Long forgotten and lost pieces from the past cheerfully creeping back with a haunting romance.`

Day 82 Project One: The Single and The Lonely Toolbox versus Educating Bombshells How Not to Dress Like Prostitutes in the Church

Long day yesterday, taking minutes for almost 6 hours for Project One a new exciting toolbox a bunch of us developing about singleness to churches. Being a single Christian this has been on my heart since I became a one during an Alpha course at HTB in 2006. I remember having all sorts of questions in the first couple of years about how to live life to the full as a single Christian, whilst the church clearly promotes marriages, but haven’t really got any direction for singles apart from the frustrating all over chanted advice: `It is between you and Jesus, just pray!` and `Just Enjoy your singleness!`. Well, singleness comes in all sizes, shapes and forms and there are times when one feels rather having enough of trying to enjoy something, that is an overwhelming burden instead of a place of tranquillity as our married Christian brothers and sisters try to make it sound. Well, the grass is always greener isn`t it. But in reality as I was told, it is greener where it is watered. Well, once I got to that place of willing to water my grass and become a conscious and content gardener my grass is actually start looking green instead of that burnt out cracked barren land it used to be. The soil has been prepared with many tears and unanswered questions though. That is why I`ve spent a considerable amount of time since 2006 praying that God would raise up people to take on the delicate subject of The Challenges of Singleness and Loneliness in and outside the church. Jojo with all her amazing organisational and project coordinator skills got theologians, sociologists and experts together and we had our first meeting yesterday to set a clear vision.

I came home very happy and very tired with no intention to open my laptop for the whole evening, in case I got one of those over-staring-the-screen-eye-aches I had in Hungary a couple of months ago and wasn’t able to do any thesis writing for a whole weekend. That was when I decided last minute to visit the Steigervald Horse Farm.

We are all bombshells and I would argue my case with anyone who has anything say against it with the Biblical truth: God has made us into His image and everything He did was good. That to me means we are all beautiful, handsome, smart and valuable.

One of the challenges I had to encounter on my epic journey over the years as I was banging the doors of my church at that time that the churches in general don’t want to be seen as dating grounds. Yesterday one of the theologians said mosques and synagogues are set for single men and women to meet and there is a real awareness in the community of helping people to find their marriage partners. We all agreed whilst the church promotes marriages, they don`t want to be seen as dating ground, therefore leave the singles on their own and wonder why there are not enough Christian marriages. I mean church here as a generalisation, but do bear in mind some of them have brilliant singles ministry. Also I think one of the problems is even if someone was single for a long time and ministered to singles by giving talks and encouraging them once they get married they are automatically written off and discouraged to carry on encouraging singles. The biggest encouragement for me personally hearing people`s stories who were single for years and got married, no doubt about that. I can whinge with my single friends, whenever I want to but all of us love encouraging stories.

Going back to the dating ground. The male - female ratio in churches are 2/3 women and 1/3 men. That can wary from 60-40% to almost a female congregation. As I learnt yesterday women 20% more in tuned for spirituality than men, therefore the ratio of females would always be higher. I have also learnt yesterday that one of the churches 6pm service is called the sex o`clock as all the girls in their 20`s are trying to get the few guys attentions and to achieve that their skirt is getting shorter, their boots are longer and they look more like prostitutes than anything. I totally understand their logic: where would you try to find a good Christian guy if not in your church and as the guys say the world is their oyster having so much choice, the girls are really trying hard to make that pearl look bigger and shiner. This whole Oyster-Syndrome led the church leadership to try to find ways, how to educate the sex o`clock service to dress modestly, completely missing the point that they need to attract more men to come to church and stop telling single people to `Enjoy their singleness` without helping them to learn how in their fear of being seen as a dating ground, which they are already and there is nothing wrong with that as far as I am concerned.

Day 81 The Art of Tailoring – Director`s Cut

I completely forgot yesterday that it was the 80th post since I started writing the blog. Life has changed in a way `quite dramatically` since then. I moved countries, well came back to London from an extended holiday, which never meant to be a holiday but time off to work on the thesis. I have lost the privacy of The House with The Garden and still getting used to the idea of sharing a room which is strangely enough seems to be quite fun on its very own ways. I also became a voluntary part-time inner city missionary, which involves a lot of playing and singing with little ones. I am also reviving and improving Vondores through the thesis in a very complicated way, which is in its complexity actually quite simple.
I just had a bottle of Marks & Spencer chocolate mousse base I found in the cupboard from the days when I was able to afford things like that. (Well, this one actually came through a free coupon, when they launched the product.) But I am also learning since my return to England that blessings can come in any shape and size from a pancake to a massive Sainsbury’s shopping. Yesterday morning for example I bumped into a friend who offered me a Custard Tart from his bag on The Highway. How fun is that!
Anyway, I really wanted to write a longer and more theoretical piece about the Art of Tailoring yesterday, but I fall asleep as usual with my hand on the keyboard leaving long lines of p`s and k`s as a reminder by the time I woke up. I crashed a lot earlier than usual, but managed to post before there was no way back but forward and sleep until 7am this morning.
Tailoring is not only about making garments but having a relationship with the client. Good customer service is essential and finding the right waves of communication. The understanding of the personal consciousness about body shapes, the intimacy of sharing worries and the fluctuating levels of wills and wants is a delicacy of the trade. That is what I love in meeting clients, talking through the initial ideas and looking at their inspiration over a coffee or a cup of tea. Getting to know the person behind the occasion they need the dress for. Asking questions and sharing stories, listening and taking a step back at the right time and encouraging the moving forward in a natural flow. I had a meeting a couple of weeks ago, which really fascinated me. The wedding is based on hiring people through recommendations by friends. I love this idea. That is how Vondores came to the picture from a dear alumna from MA.
I also love the fittings, shaping the material at the right places to make it even more personal to the wearer. Constructing and deconstructing are both elementary parts of the process. As every single body is shaped differently, made-to-measure tailoring creates a uniquely fitted outer cover complementing the inner beauty of the fundaments of creation. Thus, as we go along with the idea of standard sizes and factory fitted everydays travelling through years after years in our wardrobes, it is a tranquil beauty in itself to rest for treasured moments at the island of made-to-measure.

Day 80 The Art of Tailoring

Creation is art. As God created the world, when a tailor makes a garment it is creation. It has a purpose of covering and protecting the body, giving warmth, creating a look, attracting and distracting someone or something. Creating a 3D garment from a 2D piece of textile takes time. The preparation: searching for inspiration and the design process. And the big chunk: the pattern constructing, the toile making for the perfect fit and the final stage: cutting the main fabric, the lining, the overlocking, the stitching, the ironing and all the hours it takes.
Yes, tailoring is an art, even though people easily think it is just all about stitching fabric pieces together. And of course the old myth of it should be cheaper compering to what one can buy in a shop. Well, ladies and gentlemen let me tell you, that tailoring and dressmaking is a specialised, high reliability skill and it is not cheap, at least not in this part of the globe. But of course there are places where people work for less than $1 a day and we happily buy clothes from the shops stocked with piles of fashionable garments made by them telling our friends about our bargains and worshipping the stores for their good prices. This is one side of the story. And the other is when that extremely cheap bargain needs alteration and we face the reality of the hourly wage in England.

Day 79 Priorities versus Poverty

A late night again, but a day with many surprises including two food parcels. I feel so blessed. I have finished a series of job for a client which had been going on for days and it was all good altering a wedding dress and two bridesmaid dresses and table decorations for the wedding. So Vondores rocks with little bits and bobs even during thesis writing.

I`ve been trying to pick up where I left posting about the thesis, but I can`t seem to find it. Someone asked me the other day why I prioritise things over the thesis that should be the most important things until hand-in. I totally agree with that, but the truth is rent still needs to be paid and many other things and I can`t leave a message instead my direct debits: `Payment is delayed due to thesis writing! Try again after Christmas, please!` It is indeed easy to judge people`s situation and rationalise their way of dealing with things in our comfortable manner, bank account and home. We all do that at some point in our life. But there are situations, when you just can`t enlighten the other person. Ok, my eyes are closing, I better go…Good Night!

Day 78 The Mystery of Literature review is Sold

I had one of those days, when at 1pm I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I looked like someone who has danced through the night, had a tiny bit of sleep and could crash any minute, but certainly after lunch. But I kept going. The mystery of literature review seems to be sold by a member of staff at the study support, LCF. It is all clear now, what I need to do, I just have to find the time for it. I have not done any studying in the past few days and it does concern me a lot. But at the moment as things are I have to grab any work I can to survive the months. And the next one. And the next one. And so on.

The felted wool has dried (still hanging of the radiator though) and it looks more like a sheepskin than anything. I can’t wait to get started on experimenting with it. And once I have the product I could get started on the website. I need to find someone, who could help me with that in return for an item designed and made by Vondores. I find London a hard place to write. In The House with The Garden writing seems so easy. Here there is constant struggle of finding the time, whilst running after being able to keep our head above.

Day 76-77 A Frustrating Day

23.30 in the evening. Very tired. I`ve been trying to find some important documents I got through the post in 2010. I have moved my stuff twice since then and have no idea where they are. I might even throw them away over my illness on those days when I was fit enough to do a bit of tidying.

I have been spending enormous amount of time on registering for my little part-time job, even legging behind on the blog. My roommate is sleeping and I shouldn`t really be typing this time of the night when other people are trying to rest. I am overall disappointed that some of my time goes by dealing with stuff that`s been happening last year and should not affect my life now. I think I`ve lost my P60 and my unique tax code, not a good position to be in juts few days before my tax return is due.

But the good news is the first felted piece done and drying on the radiator. It is coarse The wool is not the best quality, but I decided to do an experiment with this and use the merino wool as a back and front base, sort of like a sandwich in between the lower quality one. I see tomorrow how it is going to work. Good day at uni, got some ideas for presenting visual work.

Ps. Been blessed with a lot of food!

Day 76-77 A Frustrating Day

23.30 in the evening. Very tired. I`ve been trying to find some important documents I got through the post in 2010. I have moved my stuff twice since then and have no idea where they are. I might even throw them away over my illness on those days when I was fit enough to do a bit of tidying.

I have been spending enormous amount of time on registering for my little part-time job, even legging behind on the blog. My roommate is sleeping and I shouldn`t really be typing this time of the night when other people are trying to rest. I am overall disappointed that some of my time goes by dealing with stuff that`s been happening last year and should not affect my life now. I think I`ve lost my P60 and my unique tax code, not a good position to be in juts few days before my tax return is due.

But the good news is the first felted piece done and drying on the radiator. It is coarse The wool is not the best quality, but I decided to do an experiment with this and use the merino wool as a back and front base, sort of like a sandwich in between the lower quality one. I see tomorrow how it is going to work. Good day at uni, got some ideas for presenting visual work.

Ps. Been blessed with a lot of food!

Day 75 Wool Combing and the Bike Ride to the Felt Making Summer Camp

Long walk in East London trying to rationalise thesis and the new the challenge of having to produce visual work. You know when you really long for something for so long, that by the time you actually get it you just think it is too late. I always wanted to do visual work for MA. I took on a felt making course with the Folk Art Association of Bekes County in their summer camp learning all about traditional Hungarian motifs, felt making techniques and natural dying. It was great fun. I remember cycling from the train station every day and it was so hot my clothes that got soaked by the felting water dried during the 10 minutes bike ride back to the station. I also remember the conductor one day telling me off for taking my bike on the Intercity (international `posh`) train. I did have a bike ticket and my point of argument was that almost all the trains to my village from town were Intercity trains, so I had to transport my bike on them somehow. He very quickly lost his argument.

I do feel a bit like it is a bit too late now. 6 weeks until hand-in and getting started on visual work now, is a bit too ambitious I believe. I have to say I can`t really remember why at the end I didn’t do the visual bits. I remember someone saying once I shouldn`t and I remember once being very concerned about the financial side of it and all the laser cutting and digital printing was going to cost a lot of money I didn’t have. It might have been that I decided myself not to do it. That area is quite blank. But I do remember having a tutorial once before I got ill and coming away with a sad face, but it might have been that I wanted to change my subject and it was a `no` for that. I really can`t remember, but this whole visual work got wired in me as a greatly missed opportunity to show my design skills on the final exhibition.

Well, I set in the living room with Rachel yesterday afternoon and combed the wool I have washed with mum back in the village over the summer. Our hands got sticky from the lanolin and we managed to comb 3 bags of it, which am going to try to felt this afternoon. I also found some merino wool from my BA final project, which I could use for decoration and I have the bolts already, so it is only a matter of willingness to work on it. I also decided to carry on with the thesis, I have done so much research on it. It would be a real shame to abandon it 6 weeks before hand-in and start everything all over again. Also I really don’t think it is realistic at all.

Conclusion from Case Studies:

The cases suggest, that some of the women in Hungary have the same will to be able to earn money to support their families as those in Africa. Getting out of the benefit system would be B’s and C’s main priority but currently, because of the low wages and high taxes, their products are not competitive with those brought in from abroad. This is a direct result of Hungarian women not supported by their government’s policy making to be able to use their skills as artisans and use their initiative to become entrepreneurs in the English sense and without paying extremely high entrepreneurial taxes in the African sense. As it was examined in detail the lessening of the local artisans is a direct result of their high entrepreneurial taxation (D to Fodor). This process put artisans in a position, where they either have to have a main job to be able to carry on with their craft - skill (Petrovszki to Fodor, 2009) or they are unemployed and living on benefits while carrying on practicing their artisanship to earn some extra money (Ékes). Currently there is no legal opportunity in Hungary to practise a craft skill, unless high taxes are being paid to the government from the moment of registration, regardless of making any profit or not (Source from APEH to Fodor, 2009).

The three case studies were taken from County E. The struggle with the financial part of becoming artisans either they live in a village or a town is the same. This conclusion and the extensive research leads the author to believe that this is a nationwide problem, which is cannot be resolved by only helping individuals. This needs be addressed on a wider scale by embracing on Hungary’s heritage, building on community spirit and collaboration, creating jobs through empowerment and building trust within people, amongst people and between the state and its residents.

Although the government has initiatives to train people to be able to either get back to employment or start their own businesses, because of the same problems mentioned above it is not effective. Considerable amount of the young unemployed have already obtained six - seven OKJ14 certificates in different professions, some of them became artisans by qualification (Rural source to Fodor, 2009), but unable to start a small business due to lack of financial, business and marketing support.

`…policy making plays a major role in the future of Hungarian artisans and their opportunities for empowerment. The global economical crisis could open up new opportunities in regional development, which could affect the relationship between traditional craft and contemporary fashion. Glocal Trinnovation is set to investigate the possibilities of bringing artisans and policy makers together. Rethinking what artisans can offer, what the consumer needs and what the possibility to combine these to come out with a creative solution is the challenge of the future. Adapting the same strategic thinking that global players use when revaluating and acting on the structural changes on the consumer side (Ohmae, 1990) could be the way forward. In “The Future of Work” Charles Handy writes, that “the status quo cannot be the way forward –we shall have to change one way or another. How we change is however, largely up to us.” (Hardy 1984). The future change could be the most effective if its results conclude from the constant dialog between the individual and the state. The change of policy making and lowering the taxes might be the way forward to job creation in Hungary by embracing on local heritage and artisans. Parallel with this the increase of the standard of living and wages could also help local development on the long term. The close relationship between makers and consumers could even create a natural flow of financial growth for the revival of …’ Hungarian artisanship. (Fodor, 2009 The Loss of the Sunday Dress.)

Day 74 From Buki`s Kitchen to Debbie`s Little Sparrow and the Art of Slowing Down

I kept falling asleep last night and never posted this. I woke up 3 times until 5am reviving my laptop, but never made it.

Dinner at Buki`s (http://www.bukiskitchen.co.uk/index.html). Ah, the blessings of good food. We had a delicious lentils curry with bread and heart shaped cookies with a glazed cherry on the top over fulfilling conversation, enormous amount of laughs and sharing songs, stories. Debbie sang Dolly Parton`s Little Sparrow on her husky voice and we were all amazed by her performance. She was born to sing, one would think listening to her performance. She lived the song and set very comfortably in the emotions portrayed. I can`t wait for her next gig. I red parts of Day 55 from the blog, the second day I returned to London, the uncertainty , the questions, the stress, the anxiety and asking God where he was in that situation. We all sat in silence after that for a while. Buki read from the Shek and she talked about how God feels our sorrows and pain. Mary shared a story about her experience of provision while in a silent retreat. The evening was a peacefully slow island of sharing stories in the big city-life rush of London. We need to do more of this.

I met my course leader earlier on the day. We still haven’t set what I need to hand in, but I was asked to do more visual work. She encouraged me to go back to the original felted bag idea, the very first Vodores bag. In doubts now: going through a long illness, I am quite aware of my own limitation when it comes to deadlines and drive to meet them. I only have 6 weeks left, 2 days only each I can dedicate to MA and starting experimental work now I fear a bit too late. I rather do things in a pace where my body, mind and soul are in a healthy balance of the input I have to perform to produce an outcome. This is just a fact I am still learning to live with. The superficiality of crazy long hours, lack of sleep and eating in order to produce more and more, better and better results has gone out the window and the reality of taking each day at a time graciously hit home. And I feel incredibly blessed to welcome this on-going change in my life. There is nothing, no deadline, no learning outcome, no peer pressure that worth getting ill over it. Life is not meant to be a rat race. As long as we have a roof over our head, food in our stomach and clothes to keep us warm we have the richest of the rich. Anything else above that is what we choose to chase in the rat race.

I am most likely to go and see my MA course mates` presentations on Monday. I need to make sure, though I won`t start to panic when I see the progress of their work. I have to remind myself I only have a budget of £20 for this dissertation and I can only hope my printer will come out of its broken mode and print the thesis out for me. I need to make sure I take the positive and encouraging elements from the others` work and won`t feel condemned by the lack of progress I might assume to achieved comparing to them. I know my journey, I have a full circle experience of it. I have lived with it in these past 6 years. I simply don’t know how it feels to study only and not having to work. I don’t know how it feels to be able to have a quality life whilst at university. I always had to work very hard and I need to remind myself on Monday, that I came a very long way on that journey and that journey is not an inch less from somebody else`s journey, who had the wonderful opportunity to only concentrate on his/her studies, because of funding for it or just simply had the finances to make really innovative or glamorous products.

Case Study III. Bureaucratic burden:

During the communism hand – made products were considered to be cheaper than mass produced ones. This is still a popular error in Hungary. Whilst in England hand crafted goods have a more realistic price range, in Hungary even those who according to the survey would pay a realistic price because it is a one off piece still could not pay more than for the goods bought in English second hand shops or Chinese Clothes Shops. This theme comes through from C’s case study.

C. is in her mid 30’s, living in small town D. She is currently on maternity leave with 24.000Ft benefit per month from the government. She desperately tries to make ends meet. In the hope of opening an English second hand clothes shop she started a course in shop management. English second hand clothes shops are always successful businesses with relatively good income. Only the customs and the shop’s utility bills need to be paid the rest is profit (Kiss to Fodor, 2009). Without the shop manager qualification she is not able to obtain the necessary documents to open a shop. Whilst she has been waiting for the papers to come through two other English second hand shops have been opened in her town, which put her out of business even before she started. As C has not much income, she was unable to speed up the process by paying bribe in the right offices. This is an unfortunate heritage of communism and the underpaid bureaucratic system in Hungary (Entrepreneur Source to Fodor 2009). C’s dream however is to become a jewellery maker. She already sells beaded bracelets and necklaces in the shop where she helps out. The most she is able to sell a bracelet for is 250Ft (around 70p) per piece which includes the material cost of 170Ft. C said she has stopped waiting for higher wages, when people could afford to buy and pay higher prices for her jewellery. She just tries to make the most out of what she can. The bureaucratic burden of shop opening was a big disappointment to her whole family. Whilst for tailors the appearance of English second hand clothes shops means loss of clients, for individual families like C’s it could have been their way of making ends meet.

The unused skills are a direct effect of oppression resulting in distrust with people, learning not to have faith in their own and others skills. The lack of interest in innovation and still waiting for the state to solve peoples’ individual problems is a direct result of living in a post centralised country. To change peoples’ general view this matter could take up to 70 years. However innovation could be a way out as a long – term motivation but it needs to be supported by policy making to reduce unemployment (Szerb to Fodor 2009).

Day 73 Case Study II. Distrust and Disempowerment

I had a really good day at work and got home completely exhausted. There came a blessed dinner looking through the Budget Sheet we all got from Mission Year. It is difficult to budget, when you haven’t got enough to budget from for necessities, let alone luxury like hairdresser. I`ve been blessed with the best chicken dish and pudding with lots of custard.

Thesis case study II.

First of all we need to understand what parts distrust plays in people’s life to understand B’s case study. Distrust could be translated into both political and economic terms: undesired effect of oppression (communist approach, dictatorship and its role in everyday life, the Big – Brother syndrome, Orwell, 1984) or too many legislations in a country for example France (Aghion, 2009). Hungary as a post – communist country with a transition economy and an ever changing legislation system to fit into the EU expectations suffers from both. This translates into a Fast Fashion parallel: before the legislations are implemented in everyday life, they often become invalid and are replaced by new ones. Distrust is in every level in Hungary amongst people and between people and the government. This and the underpaid bureaucracy have a direct effect on the scale of uncivic behaviour, which has also flourished during the communism behind the scenes. This has been destroying the community spirit for decades, which resulted in isolation and the lack of understanding of the benefits of working as part of a team to achieve better results. ‘Közös lónak túrós a háta.’ is a Hungarian saying and symbolically translates into: collaboration is trouble (B to Fodor, 2009).

B has several examples of working as part of a duo or team. She often did not get paid an ethical wage or did not get paid at all. She does not find it beneficial to work with others any more, but do everything on her own. Her experience led her not to embrace the opportunity of working with a business partner, who is good at marketing. She works entirely on her own, which means spending time on marketing which is not her strength and taking time away from her painting and decorating skills. Business opportunities are more likely to become successful if people with different skills and strengths come together and develop a product or service in the form of a ‘Dynamic Duo’ (ECCA).

By examining B’s situation we can see that current policy making indirectly promotes the benefit system and makes her feel disempowered. She is a single mother in her mid-thirties in Village B, where there are very few jobs. She has been living on benefits for years and gets around 30.000Ft (half of the living wage) per month. Her background is ceramic painting and she worked in a famous ceramic factory, until it closed its doors due to privatisation in the 1990s.

A few years ago B was chosen for a 1 million Ft loan from a Job Centre initiative to buy a kiln and start her own business. On the same day she was offered a one year contract by the local ‘elderly care’ home to work as a carer. As a responsible mother she has chosen the job, as she did not trust in the government in terms of frequently changing its policy. She was aware, if she would not be able to pay the taxes, the loan and make a living for herself and for her son it would made them bankrupt. She would like to come off benefits and provide a better future for her son, who inherited her creative talent, but under the current policy making from the minute she would start her own business she would have to pay the high taxes.

B has a few regular customers around Easter and Christmas buying her ceramic jewellery and interior decorations (prices are between 250Ft and 1500Ft). Her activity is illegal and she is constantly worried about being found out by APEH (Hungarian Tax and Financial Control Administration). As there are very few jobs in the village B has no other option but relying on the 30.000Ft benefit per month. She would like to have her own product catalogue, but to the question if she would consider having a website her answer was no. Going public would mean a visit from APEH and a huge find, which would jeopardise her and her son’s future. (The fine would be around 100.000Ft. Data was collected from source with similar fine.)

From this case study it is clear, that instead of empowering a woman to start her own business with a low or even tax free starting up period, the current policy making rather keeps her on benefits, without using her skills. By examining B’s situation it can be clearly seen that for her to earn her living as an artisan and become an entrepreneur therefore lose her benefits would result in extreme poverty.

Day 72 Case Study l. Village Tailoring, a Historical Overview and the Lack of Customer Base with Disposable Income

I would so love to write, that I have written at least a 1000 words on the thesis, but instead I share one of the case studies in 1800 words:

Through three Hungarian case studies it is going to be analysed how the entrepreneurial taxation of artisans effects the decreasing number of artisans in Hungary. It is also going to be looked at how these individual women are affected by the lack of financial support in the form of a possible micro credit system. The women chosen for the case studies have different backgrounds: D has a full – time job as a seamstress in a clothing factory, B lives on benefits, although she is a trained ceramic painter and C, who is a self – thought jewellery maker is on maternity leave. All three of them face the same problem, not being able to start and make their own products within the legal boundaries of the current policy making and not being eligible of bank loans to start up.

D’s case study – village tailoring

The bureaucratic burden in a transition economy and the effects of policy has on an artisan’s life is examined through D’s case study, who is in her early 30s. She works in a clothing factory in Town A and does alterations and small sewing jobs in Village B where she lives. She is often asked by locals why she does not practise as a village tailor in Village B.

Background information about clothes shopping habits in Village B.

The internal effects of the current policy making: incredible high taxes and low wages were examined through the results of a quantitative survey undertaken in Hungary. The questionnaire targeted 84 individuals and focused on consumer behaviour in clothes shopping, tailoring and local hand – made products.

Most of the respondents were between the age of 30 – 59, and 75% of them were women. It is important to point out that the largest age group in the village was the 50 – 59 - year olds, indicating the ageing population in rural areas.

The ageing in Village B is an important factor in D’s case, because the majority of the older generation lives off small pensions, which affects their clothes shopping habits.

50% of the respondents were in full –time employment, the second biggest group was pensioners and the third was other (mainly agricultural workers) and those who live on benefits. Part –time employment in Hungary is minor comparing to those in England. The high number of full – time employment is down to the high number of respondents between the age of 30 – 39 in the town, where there are more jobs. 64% of the respondents have had clothes made – to – measure for them before (more amongst those who live in the town) and 43% had their clothes altered. The respondents named fifteen people from D’s village, who made clothes for them. Nine out of those had been trained to be tailors (not including D, who was trained to become a seamstress in the clothing factory).But only two of the trained tailors are still alive and none of them practices the trade. The rest of the group (four) has not been trained as a village tailor, but has a potential to use their skills to earn some extra money. Under the current policy making and bureaucracy in Hungary their attempt is illegal, classed as black economy and tax evasion (Ékes, 2003). D’s small jobs (alterations) are also classified illegal.

Through the result of the survey and interviews with both village and town tailors, it was investigated how taxation and the standard of living affects artisans. The analysis is based on the current situation of tailoring in Hungary.

82% of the respondents said they would have their clothes made by tailors to help micro economy. 96% said they would more likely to have their clothes made by tailors to help social sustainability, job creation and long – term, local economic growth. When examining the respondents’ shopping habits and the amount of money they would be able to spend on locally made clothes it is clear that although they have the will to support local producers, the reality of their financial situation does not make this possible. Most of them only buy clothes when it is necessary. The average amount of money they spend monthly on clothes is around 2000-5000Ft (£5.72-£14.3). This is not more than 3-10% of their monthly income (estimate based on exchange rates on 06 March 2009) of 30.000Ft - 60.000Ft (£85.85-£171.7). Majority of their clothes shopping is done on the Market, which is the only place where women meet and socialise.

Under the current legislation a tailors have to pay 50.000Ft/month (£143) in tax, national insurance and superannuation tax regardless of their monthly income. This is exactly the same amount as an entrepreneur has to pay. The profit is further taxed at the end of the tax year by 18% (Necessity Entrepreneur11 to Fodor, 2009).

The effects of low wages and incredible high taxes on tailors show a direct decline in the interest of made – to – measure clothing. The minimum wage (just over 60.000Ft) is under the living wage and every third person in Hungary lives on minimum wage (www.adozona.hu). This has a direct effect on the amount of money the respondents would be able to spend on made – to – measure clothes. It can be concluded, that realistically with these wages, benefits and pensions it is almost impossible to revive tailoring, unless the government’s policy making has a different approach on local development, which includes lowering the tax levels on artisans and increasing the minimum wage.

11 Necessity entrepreneur is the opposite of opportunity entrepreneur. Necessity entrepreneur is a direct result of transition economy, privatisation and high taxes. Many positions can only be filled, if the applicant holds entrepreneurial status, which means paying the 50.000Ft tax per month, therefore the employers does not need to pay taxes to the government after the employee.

Although the respondents indicated they would use tailors, all the tailors interviewed both from the village and the town believe that under the current economic situation with the level of unemployment and low wages and high taxes, the only tailoring services people could afford and have real need for is alteration. To lengthen or shorten a pair of trousers in the village costs 300-350Ft (£0.85-£1) and 600-700Ft (£1.7-£2) in the town (D to Fodor, 2009). To break even with the 50.000Ft (not including utility bills, machine maintenance and hourly wage), let alone making profit a village tailor would need to alter around 160 pairs of trousers a month, whilst a town tailor, around 80. D currently does 1 – 2 alterations a week.

The majority of the respondents, who would have their clothes made by village tailors indicated to pay a realistic wage to the maker, because it is a one – off piece, but it is still the same percentage as they pay for Chinese or English second – hand clothes 3-10%, 2000-5000Ft (£5.72-£14.3), which means an average 15 order would need to be placed to D to break even with the 50.000Ft alone:

2000-5000Ft ≈ 3500Ft 50.000Ft ≈ 15

3.500Ft

3500Ft is 5.3% of the average wage (minimum wage, benefits or pensions) that people live off in the D’s village. It is 10% behind of what a pair of made – to – measure trousers costs (10.000Ft). In comparison a pair of trousers in a Chinese clothes shop or an English second – hand shop costs between 3000-4000Ft or less. D would need to have clients ordering at least five trousers a month to be able to pay the 50.000Ft entrepreneurial tax to the government (let alone making a profit). Nearly 93% of the respondents said they were satisfied with products made in Hungary. During research in many conversations people indicated the quality of Chinese clothes were not good enough, but in the current situation it was still more affordable for them to buy more often on a lower price, than purchase good quality on a higher price. As most of the respondents (more in the village than in the town) said they only buy clothes when they need it, that indicates D would not have enough clients to be able to pay her taxes.

Analysing the change of taxation in Hungary from the 1970s and its effect on tailoring in D’s village it clearly shows how the ill-proportioned rise of taxes effected village tailoring. Looking at the tailors’ price list issued by the Hungarian Material and Product Office in 1976 table and examining the Monthly Payable Tax table it clearly shows the monthly NHS and pension outgoings are around the same amount as the lowest priced items on the Womenswear – 1976 list. (All the prices included expenses, utility bills and wages.) And a further 100Ft tax per month was paid to the government after the profit. To lengthen or shorten a pair of trousers in the 1970s cost 20Ft, which meant to be able to pay the average tax of 300Ft, a village tailor had to alter 15 pairs of trousers a month, whilst in 2009 in proportional conversion D would have to alter 160 trousers a month to be able to pay her taxes. This suggests that during the 1970s village tailoring was a profitable occupation, but not in 2009. Further more by 2009 the village have shrunk by the half (from around 4500 residents in the 1970s to 2300), which also plays a huge part in the lessening need for village tailoring.

Comparing the 1970’s data to the 1983 Payable Tax table nearly 10 years later it clearly shows a four times growths in expenses, whilst the profit stayed low. By this time the first boutique had opened in Village B, which directly effected the lessening need for village tailoring. In 2009, comparing the price of a suit between a tailor (50.000 – 80.000Ft) and a Chinese clothes shop (10.000 – 12.000Ft), it shows that the Chinese clothes shop prices are a lot more affordable to those, who took part in the survey. Whilst in 1976 the monthly tax was nearly the same (300Ft) as the price of one and a half made – to – measure pairs of trousers on the Womenswear – 1976 price list, in 2009 it is five times as much (trouser price – 10.000Ft, monthly tax – 50.000Ft).

From the analyses above we can clearly see, that for D to leave her job in the clothing factory in Town A and open her own workshop in Village B would force her under the poverty line, as regardless of not making any profit she would still need to pay the 50.000Ft per month to the Hungarian government.

Day 71 From a Cup of Hot Water to a Cup of Tea and The Journey from `Mission Possible` to `Glocal Trinnovation`

Noon

I am sitting at the university canteen waiting for Amanda. I haven't been here for a long time and it feels very different from any other occasions. Open Access has changed, we have to pay for black and white photocopying now and I left my photocopy card at home. I can't afford to get a new one or to buy a cup of tea either. I could get hot water as I did many times before during the past 6 years here and before that at Guildford College, but I try not to spend on that either. I need to buy shampoo very soon, that's more priority than a cup of tea, err... I mean hot water at the moment.

12.15pm

I found a cold water machine which is free, but no cups and at the canteen you have to pay for the cups. Let's try to enjoy being thirsty instead of mourning over the loss of non-delivered and non-refilled cup stands! I am munching on the biscuits I brought from Hungary instead and can't wait for the evening to have that cottage pie I got in Helen and Steve's food parcel. Until than I am gonna have a tutorial, a nanny job and my client is coming to pick up her dress and finally I am going to have a little bit of money towards the direct debits, which I didn't calculate at the beginning of the months, so praise God I am not going to be in as much of a minus as I thought. What simple joys of life we have to be content with! I enquired about downgrading my phone contract this morning. No more e-mails on my BB. I am really sad about this. I went into the shop with the line: 'I believe my contract is due for an upgrade`. But when I actually explained I need a downgrade the assistant brushed me off with a you need to do it on the phone. So I need to do it on the phone. Another thing on the need to do list.

13.30pm

Amazing, amazing, amazing! Walking down the stairs from the tutorial, I got a text with the most unexpected news of blessing ever. It is so wonderful, but I can`t tell what it is. I got so touched when I read it I nearly fall off the stairs. Next Tuesday I will not only be able to get a cup of hot water, but a cup of tea!

It was great to see Amanda for tutorial. She thought me at BA and I know how calm and encouraging she is. She asked me to think about my audience to whom I would like my findings of thesis to communicate and how. Concerning I wasn`t able to read or write for nearly 6 months on my year out, having a tutorial about my written work is just awesome. I am so glad I feel I can have time until hand-in. It is reassuring.

The journey from `Mission Possible` to `Glocal Trinnovation` (I keep falling asleep, so I have to read this tomorrow morning if it makes any sense at all.)

From the African experience of setting up sewing projects to the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans. Drawing upon research and the challenges of product design development from `Mission Possible` (Fodor 2008) undertaken for final major project on BA, PDDFI – Clothing (product Design and Development)at London College of Fashion, it was intended to deepen the research and further explore the possibilities of sustainable development in disadvantaged African communities.

Throughout the research, it was identified that high percentage of the people living in the First World, who has disposable income have a limited understanding of the challenges people in disadvantaged communities have to face on a daily basis. The role of the volunteers in setting up sustainable sewing projects on ground and supporting from the First World not known, either. The financial, medical, environmental, social and gender differences between Western customers and Sub – Saharan makers comes across with a significant difference in reasoning why clothing and accessories are made and bought. Setting up projects based on skills and materials, that can be sourced on ground and sold for Western customers is more than a challenge.

By working in partnership with an existing organisation an analytical journey of a product designed and made by women in disadvantaged communities, and sold for western costumers was proposed to be written and illustrated with photographs. The aim of the book was to show a real picture of both makers and customers from their everyday life, which could educate and inform readers about sustainable development in a visual and easily readable way. The idea was to create a bridge between the disadvantaged and the wealthy by introducing people from both sides of the label.

Early on the research during conversations of the theme of the thesis in Hungary it was identified that there is a need there in local development in craft to create sustainable livelihoods, which was not encouraged by the policy making at that time. Few factors had been eased since 2008 due to the change of the political scene, which has a more favourable effect on necessity entrepreneurs in terms of reduction of bureaucracy burden when registering. The shift of the research has given the author a unique insight in the relationship between policy making and the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans. The need for sustainable development projects on local level to create jobs locally by using local materials and local skills for the local market to generate income in areas where the unemployment level is high in order to keep the money flowing within the community made it necessary to concentrate not only on the design elements of the products, but on the surrounding main factors: business and economics.

The challenge of applying PDDFI principles in an environment, where there is no electricity and running water gave an opportunity of constant problem solving in order to create products that the women could learn to make in a short period of time to reduce the leeway for turnover.

During the research into an ethically aware consumer base in England with disposable income, it was realised, that although the target customers are more and more interested in sustainable products, they know very little or almost nothing about the makers and the challenges they face on a daily bases. This led to discover a huge gap in knowledge between the third world maker and the first world customer, giving an idea, to create a bridge by telling stories from both sides of the label.

During summer 2007 the author volunteered for Hope for Africa Missions to carry out research in Southern African communities. The aim of the research was to identify possibilities for setting up sustainable sewing projects in order to empower women in disadvantaged communities.

During the mission trip the author developed a deep interest in research and problem solving for sustainable development through translating the skills learnt on BA Product Design and Development for Clothing. Through the realisation of the final year project a sustainability model was developed for the charity, which could since been used in the visited communities in Lesotho and Mozambique. During this process a keen interest in sustainable development was deepened even further in combining local skills, materials and markets.

The fashion industry is going through a significant change concerning sustainability and ethical issues. I would like to gain a full understanding about what this change is bringing into the industry from the product design development through customers’ needs and expectations on an international level. I strongly believe by given the opportunity to study on MA Fashion and The Environment course, the skills and knowledge I gain would significantly affect my ability to help the disadvantaged and would give me a chance to be able to obtain a job in the field of research and practical development working for both the fashion industry and the social sector.

Day 70 Celebrating 70 days blogging with the Methodology from `Mission Possible` to `Glocal Trinnovation`

Methodology rocks! You know when you are supposed to do things in a strict order, but somehow things work out differently in certain times and spaces, but still falling into place just in the right order and the right time. Well, this is how I feel about the methodology. I still have to write up the theoretical and practical elements of it.

Kerst very kindly has read through the introduction I sent him yesterday and came back with some extremely valuable thoughts about sentences that need a bit of tweaking to be more understandable and clear.

We had our Mission Year dinner this evening in Bermondsey and discussed about the importance of being open and share not only our joy but difficulties as well, including finances during the next 9 months we are in volunteer inner city mission together. It was great to share testimonies about God`s provision during the last couple of weeks. My biggest fear was not being able to afford to buy food, but so far there was always enough.

From the thesis:

Methodology:

The focus of this thesis is on the relationship between policy making and its effect on fashion and traditional craft on a local level in Hungary. It is important to explain why this particular research area was chosen. This is a subject that has been little explored; therefore it was felt to be a valid research field for this project. ‘The creative economy has the potential to generate income and jobs while promoting social inclusion, cultural diversity and human development’ (UNCTAD)1.

Policy making affects traditional craft and fashion on every level, in every part of the world. However what happens locally is surprisingly not as researched as on the industrial level. Although it is crucially important what role it plays in people’s everyday life for centuries.

During the research journey, which shaped the field of interest in both primary and secondary form, it was identified, that to be able to fully analyse the opportunities of the project new areas needed to be explored. These research tools started a new venture, which changed the grass roots of understanding local development and empowerment in small scale fashion related projects. The new interest of the unknown territory is the relationship between fashion and economics.

The identification of the importance of this relationship between these areas has opened up new opportunities for research. By visiting public lectures at London School of Economics (especially inspired by Professor Philip Aghion’s series on Designing Policies for Growth) it became clear that the relationship between fashion and economics is a lot more important in local development and has a lot more effect on its success than it was estimated. The question, if a fashion student should venture into the field of economics was thoroughly thought through and concluded that the relationship between policy making and its effect on fashion on a local level (artisans) is a valid research field. This was underpinned by a conversation with Professor David Throsby from the Macquarie University, Australia, who is one of the few scholars researching the field of economics of arts and culture.

Background: The journey from `Mission Possible` to `Glocal Trinnovation`

From the African experience of setting up sewing projects to the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans. Drawing upon research and the challenges of product design development from `Mission Possible` (Fodor 2008) undertaken for final major project on BA, PDDFI – Clothing (product Design and Development)at London College of Fashion has laid the foundation of intending to deepen the research and further explore the possibilities of sustainable development in disadvantaged communities.

Throughout the research, it was identified that high percentage of the people living in the First World, who has disposable income have a limited understanding of the challenges people in disadvantaged communities have to face on a daily basis. The role of the volunteers in setting up sustainable sewing projects on ground and supporting from the First World not known, either. The financial, medical, environmental, social and gender differences between Western customers and Sub – Saharan makers come across with a significant difference in reasoning why clothing and accessories are made and bought. Setting up projects based on skills and materials, that can be sourced on ground and sold locally for Western customers could be a rewarding challenge.

By working in partnership with an existing organisation an analytical journey of a product designed and made by women in disadvantaged communities, and sold for western costumers was proposed to be written and illustrated with photographs in a form of a book. The aim was to show a real picture of both makers and customers from their everyday life, which could educate and inform readers about sustainable development in a visual and easily readable way. The idea was to create a bridge between the disadvantaged and the wealthy by introducing people from both sides of the label.

Early on the research during conversations of the theme of the thesis in Hungary it was identified that there is a need there in local development in craft to create sustainable livelihoods, as well. Creating sustainable livelihoods is not only a third world phenomenon, but a legacy that needs to be practised everywhere in the world where poverty exist. It is just as much a valid area to research and try to bring change in for City Gateway in Tower Hamlets East London as for Besom around the United Kingdom, for Hope for Africa Missions in Chiaqualane Mozambique, for Five Talents in Uganda, for Worldviewimpact in India (Appendix) and for the author in Hungary, where entrepreneurship is not encouraged by the policy making. Few factors had been eased since 2008 when the research started due to the change of the political scene, which has a more favourable effect on necessity entrepreneurs in terms of reduction of bureaucracy burden when registering. The shift of the research has given the author a unique insight in the relationship between policy making and the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans. The need for sustainable development projects on local level to create jobs locally by using local materials and local skills for the local market to generate income in areas where the unemployment level is high in order to keep the money flowing within the community made it necessary to concentrate not only on the design elements of the products, but on the surrounding main factors: business and economics.

Theoretical research:

During extensive desk research both in Hungary and England it was identified that Hungary’s current position in a transition economy requires more in-depth understanding from the author. Due to the fast changing policies and laws since the great fall majority of the theoretical research took place on the internet. Unexpected challenges occurred on a regular basis with the changes of the political scene and the recession. Since the 2010 elections the cabinet was restructured and some of the government related online research material cannot be revived. At the same time the recession had a major effect on cut backs in the cultural departments and County Seat`s library which was proposed to use in the main part of theoretical research been decreased in its size of research books got sold off, leaving less accuracy for historical research during the communism.

Day 69 Success, Success, Success: Full Introduction and the Pure Joy of Satisfaction

Yes, yes, yes, the unbelievable thing happened today!!! I have officially written up my introduction to the thesis. It is all headed and edited and sent out to friends to check if it makes sense for them to read it or not. My head is a bit full of the whole Glocal Trinnovation and transition economy and low carbon footprint considerate design and all of that, so at the moment I am not sure if it makes sense to me at all. But after hopefully getting feedback rather soon, I can change things that are needed once it settled down in me. I am just so so so happy. It feels like something is started and 10% of the work is done. Hallelujah!

Also amazing blessings! I got a whole bag of wonderfully delicious food from friends, which means I have Waitrose dinner for a whole week. Even so, if I am careful enough for 2 weeks. Today I was also invited to a delicious scallop salad with fresh herb cuscus at Christina`s. Yum!

Comments are more than welcome! The headings can`t be seen and acknowledgement needs to be extended and so on, but it feels so good to get to this point!

Glocal Trinnovation

-A comparative study of the effects of policy making on the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans versus opportunity entrepreneurship and the English sole-traders-

MA Fashion and the Environment Thesis

London College of Fashion 2011

Eszter Fodor

Student ID:

Date:

Word Count:

Acknowledgements:

Foremost, I would like to thank my parents to make it possible for me to take part in MA Fashion and The Environment program and encouraged me throughout the last three years. I also would like to express my gratitude to Dilys Williams and Susan Postlethwaite the MA course leaders to oversee my progress. Furthermore I would like to express my thanks to Amanda Johnston and Kate Fletcher for their mentoring guidance.

Last but not least I would like to thank to all of those who I have interviewed both in Hungary and England and who gave their precious time to contribute to the research either in a formal format or by having a conversations over a cup of coffee during the course of the past three years.

Glocal Trinnovation

This thesis is set to analyse the differences between the burdens of necessity entrepreneurship in a transition economy in Hungary and opportunity entrepreneurship in a first world economy in England by looking at artisanship based on local skills, materials and markets by using the principles of low carbon footprint considerate design.

Background:

- using global experience on local level and combining traditional craft with innovation: a social and practical study-

Coming from a Hungarian artisan family, being educated in England and gaining experience in researching sustainable development projects on a local level in Southern Africa gave the author a unique insight how the economic development of a country affects its policy making, innovation and entrepreneurship programs. The better the economic development of a country is the more support and funds an artisan can get to start an enterprise. Whilst small businesses in developing countries can be supported by western funding and volunteer programs (Sanderson to Fodor, 2008), Hungary is trapped in the bureaucracy burden of transition economy¹. The lack of trust in the society, politics, business and the lost values of collaborative skills due to the forty years of communism resulted in an over legislated economy and the stagnation of entrepreneurial ventures. Comparing Southern Africa and Hungary, based on the ground research: with western help it is easier to start a micro finance program based on traditional craft in Southern Africa, than in Hungary, where the high monthly payable necessity entrepreneurial taxes² can hold artisans³ back from starting their own enterprise to earn a living. Therefore a high number of artisans have no opportunity to create added value and contribute to Hungary’s economic growth on the long – term. This also affects the cultural heritage of the country as the lack of enterprises does not take traditional craft forward in the form of innovation to make products more appealing to the contemporary consumer. Folk art⁴ is therefore not only affected by the global profit-driven market economy and not only challenged by both global and local consumer behaviour and mass consumption, but the country’s policy making and economic development.

¹ Transition Economy: ‘Since about 1992 transition economics has come to mean the subject of the transition of post-Soviet economies toward a Western free market model.’ http://economics.about.com/od/economicsglossary/g/transition.htm

² Necessity entrepreneur: is the opposite of opportunity entrepreneur. Necessity entrepreneur is a direct result of transition economy, privatisation and high taxes. Many positions can only be filled, if the applicant holds entrepreneurial status, which means paying the 50.000Ft tax per month, therefore the employers does not need to pay taxes to the government after the employee. Artisans are classified as necessity entrepreneurs in Hungary if they want to make a living out of their skill. Therefore, many only practice traditional craft as a hobby.

³ Artisans: A skilled manual worker, a craftsperson, usually referred to someone in Hungary who is practising folk craft either as an occupation or hobby: embroiderer, (basket) weaver, lace maker, ceramist, felt maker etc. In this thesis artisan is also referred to case studies both in England and Hungary.

⁴ Folk art: Traditional craft in Hungary is called folk art, such as traditional felt making. In this proposal I am referring to traditional craft with the Hungarian meaning.

This Independent Project originally aimed to redefine the meaning of trust and the values of collaboration by using traditional craft as a vehicle to demonstrate the findings based on local skills, materials and markets in order to strengthen the community of artisans, design and business students on a social and practical level.

During the research findings above mentioned question of trust and collaborative values is shifted towards the elements of economic growth by extending the research into business and economics. This unique insight how the economic development of a country affects its policy making, innovation and entrepreneurship programs with regards of sustainable economic success from a business point of view gave a strong outline of the main research questions: How policy making could have a positive effect in Hungary to increase the numbers of artisans by not having to carry the burdens of heavy necessity entrepreneurial taxes?

Introduction:

The research has taken shape from its tangible fluidity over a three year period and drew its conclusion from interviews with experts, extended field and desk research, case studies and the journey of practical product design and development principles.

As the thesis has taken shape from the initial ideas of trying to find a new entrepreneurial way of bringing women together to be able to generate income in Bekes⁵ county in Hungary, where the unemployment rate is extremely high, but also have a long history of traditional craftsmanship, it was understood, that even if people get up skilled, which is already happening in several colleges not only for young students but adults as well, there is no statistical evidence of how many students have taken the skills they learnt forward and try to make a living (Barcsai to Fodor, 2009). Even though, some of the students are exceptionally talented and would only need a structured apprentice program, the tools to get started and the lowering of high necessity entrepreneurial taxes most of the them progress onto studying a different skill or unrelated course to keep their social security (Kocsor to Fodor, 2009). These courses are widely popular amongst the unemployed more for the benefits of cooperating with the Public Employment Service, than gain jobs to become entrepreneurs which requires a substantial financial backup to pay the monthly compulsory tax, pension and national insurance contribution, which is almost twenty times higher than in England.

Whilst according to the survey taking part locally there is not enough disposable income in the area to give an artisan a sustainable living concerns also rose that the thesis would not be able to influence the change of policy making in Hungary and was taken in another direction of looking at how it would be possible to embrace the elements of team work between artisans and design students by building trust and collaboration. That was originally a side line of interviewing case studies. But the question at the end of the theoretical analysis remained the same: even if the best products are designed and made by exceptionally talented students from MOME⁶ and LCF⁷ and other colleges, still how an artisan (like the case studies) are able to start up as self-employed freelancers having to pay extremely high entrepreneurial taxes in Hungary comparing to the English sole-traders? Later it was realised the MA proposal lost its original purpose by taking the concentration away from the challenges of starting up and concentrating straight away on the products by not considering the lack of financial stability in the case studies` life.

⁵South-East region of the Great Plain in Hungary

⁶ Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest, Hungary

⁷ London College of Fashion, England.

By standing back for a considerate amount of time and going through the research material including the proposal the original idea strongly came back and as the process of the research progressed the thesis organically started to evolve as a comparative study. Comparing the English and Hungarian processes of becoming a freelancer/sole-trader when giving an overview of the original idea of the thesis at interviews to Hungarian interviewees, a new insight was formed: entrepreneurship (high taxes, national insurance, pension and bureaucracy burden) could operate in different ways in different countries.

The conclusion to demonstrate these differences made it possible from a fashion point of view to come up with two product range ideas one for Hungary and one for England and through that give an overview between the differences of an English Opportunity entrepreneur and a Hungarian Necessity Entrepreneur within the principles of local skills, materials and markets. And with that make a suggestion for a comparison study and data base within the EU to be able to get an understanding how craftsmanship is able to be preserved either with the current policy making in each country or is there a way to unify these policies and encourage artisans and the younger generation for local production using local, skill, materials and markets as a possible way towards low carbon footprint principality in product design and development. Further suggestion is to set up an organisation for the above mentioned task and create a website as a database for local artisans by country, by craft and by product type.

These research findings, lead the Independent Project to a relatively unexplored area: researching the relationship between business, economics, policy making and traditional craft in order to preserve and transform it into contemporary fashion whilst creating jobs. This process created the foundation of Glocal Trinnovation⁸, a grass route process: using global experience on local level and combining traditional craft with innovation with a bottom up approach.

⁸ “Glocal Trinnovation” is a new way of approaching the relationship between fashion and traditional craft by using local skills, local sources and local markets under the umbrella of global knowledge and innovation.

Glocal is a portmanteau word of global and local, which means to think globally and act locally. Trinnovation combines the words tradition and innovation to enjoy the benefits of both, the experience of tradition and the advances of innovation.

Glocal Trinnovation is a new term created by the author meaning the “analyses of the relationship between empowerment and social sustainability in traditional craft and contemporary fashion through policy making and its long – term effects on local economic growth”.

Traditional craft is part of an ethnical group’s cultural heritage. It used to define a sense of belonging to a family, village, county or nation. Through the intricate visual language of craft, history and emotions were expressed and kept alive. It was a tool to communicate and for many a means to earn a living. Whilst historical and political changes have played a major role in shaping the heritage of traditional craft, globalisation is playing an even more serious part in the decline of artisanship. This impact together with the current policy making has a negative effect on the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans, even though there could be countless opportunities in the fashion industry to team up with artisans to create value and explore areas where aesthetics and design innovation could result in products that are more sustainable and designed with a considerate design approach in all the three fundamental areas: materials, skills and market.

Throughout the research in traditional craft in Hungary, where there are more than fifteen different ethnic groups living, it was realised that the European Union as a whole has a rich and varied number of traditional craft techniques and variation of skills, which are not explored to the extent that could benefit the already existing problems of climate change. Glocal Trinnovation’s design approach aims to reduce the negative impact of product design and development processes on the environment by using local skills and materials for the local market.

Day 68 From the Ibsen Craft College to the Transformation of a `Harvest Jug` into a Wine Cooler

This day was set aside to write the thesis. I got up around 9am and did an hour work when my roommate woke up giving instructions to a friend of hours on the phone over the course of an hour. At least it seemed an hour for me. After nearly pulling my hair out and relocating to the living room I found myself in a deep conversation with a dear friend about how Mission Year will change my life and it was time to hit the town and see the wonderful lady who oversees the ins and outs of Vondores. By the time I got back we had people coming around. Not having a room of my own is just really stressful at the moment. I have been suggested to go to several libraries in the city and study there. I am just so used to be able to close the door on my room and be able to sit by the desk for hours until late at night and get on with the work.

Living in a community house I can imagine would be a lot more ideal without the pressure of having to concentrate on finishing an MA. We are supposed to spend time together with bonding and have lots of cup of teas and long chats about our aspirations how to serve the local community. (My future flatmate on Mission Year just made me a cup of tea and cooked dinner with his girlfriend. That was so nice! He has just finished a thesis himself and carries great understanding of the pressure.) To be totally honest my only aspiration at the moment is trying to write 25000 words in 7 weeks and being able to put food on the table. Let alone my ideas with Vondores, which once again frustratingly been pushed down on the list of do`s.

I`ve found an interview I did with the Head of Ibsen Craft School of Bekescsaba (http://www.ibsen.hu/kezmuves/) in 2009 as part of my research. Reading through it I found some very interesting facts, about craft preservation.

In 1993 Mrs Pal started the Ibsen Craft College, when the House of Culture in Jamina was closed. There were similar craft schools in Budapest and Zala already and Mrs. Pal started the first semester based on the experience of those. It started with basket weaving and wood carving and from 1994 it was extended with leatherwork and ceramics. The current Head of College, Miss Barcsay started 17 years ago as a ceramist student before progressing on to leading the institution. The aspiration of the college is to keep traditional craft alive in the form of an educational institute for both young and mature students. The subjects have been widened with machine embroidery, lace making, reed making, folk play house management and craft teacher training. Students come from all over Hungary, Transylvania and Vajdasag.

In 1997 when the County Culture Centre was closed the college was under threat of closure as well. The staff and students petitioned to keep the college opened and at the end, because nobody wanted the building and the equipment it stayed open and was operated by a public company owned by the local government. Because of the recession the College is in more difficulties than ever and has to be more innovative every year trying to find funding for its running. Miss Barcsay writes 8-10 founding applications every year and initiated to start teaching new skills: till stove and filigree making.There are 70-90 full – time students per academic year, 130 mature students and a further 150 primary school students are in close connection with the college.

Generally customers like the student`s products especially the woven baskets and the ceramics bowls, but they often find the latter more challenging to use than a plastic bowl. Hand made products are very expensive. The raw material and the kiln usage for a ceramic bowl is around £2, whilst IKEA sells them for 0.33p. The hand-made dining table and chairs we set on while contacting the interview costs £1500, in the shops a mass produced version is only £250. There is not enough customers with disposable income to give artisans a secure monthly income. The college is constantly marketing its profile around the country in order to publicise the importance of our roots. There is no data on how many of the students make a living out of the skills they learn at the college. Most of them become a member of the Folk Art Association of Bekes County and practise the craft skills as a hobby. Some of the student progress to further education, though. Within the Folk Art Association after 3 years membership members can progress onto becoming full-time artisans or carry on practising their skills as a hobby. As a full-time artisan high necessity entrepreneurial taxes need to be paid. Otherwise if an artisan has a main job, he or she can become a part-time opportunity entrepreneur without the financial burden and practise his or her skills as a second job. The Folk Craft Council jury (consisting of 4-5 experts) decides if an artisan`s work has been made up to the right standards, if yes it gets a number in category A or B. A is traditional work with a small contemporary change enhancing the traditional elements, B is purely traditional and whichever product is made up to a high standard but neither in category A or B is classed as souvenir (http://www.hagyomanyokhaza.hu/nmm/zsurizes/)

A conference was held in 2009 about `Where is craftsmanship going?` Which discussed the future task of the association and the college: to preserve what has been done in the past 150 years in traditional folk craft or think it through and possibly make products that would be appealing to the younger generations. This is already showing in students work at the Fashion and Textile College of Bekescsaba, where in one of their projects they use traditional embroidery motifs, but instead of hand-embroidered printed on the dresses. In ceramics there is also a new way of approaching product design and development. The `harvest jug`, which keeps the water cool and has been used for more than 200 years has gone through a marketing transformation. For over two centuries people used to take water with them to the fields they worked on in them. Nowadays there is no need for a `harvest jug`, because the work is done by machines on the fields, but the technology of the traditional technique still exist and is used to make wine coolers instead. According to the Head of College in folk craft, technology needs to be recognised and people need to become more open to be able to embrace on the advantages of innovation.

Day 66-67 Chasing the words

Catching up on the days. I am up-to-date with the blog now. Nothing written on the thesis, I`ve been working all day. But the pressure is mounting. I really try not to get lost in the expectations, but be realistic about my aspirations. But what are my aspirations really? Can I catch them in a sentence perfumed with desire or just a must-have accessory in my life?

It is reassuring to hear friends` encouraging words and will to help.

…continue…

Well, I fall asleep last night again, before I could post this. Finally, I finished altering the wedding dress and feeling a sense of success. From today I am officially sharing a room. That is definitely not the most successful arrangements of 2011, but I am trying to look at it as one long holiday and after back to The House with The Garden. Can`t wait!

…I am just about falling asleep again…

`well you have enough to share, roots, history, life journey, crossing paths, passions, interests and writers hands.. even if you don't think your going to make the thousands of words you still need to do.. A Novel By ... :-)`

…and at the moment I cannot write anything…

Day 65 Blessings and Transition once again and the Story of My Third Generational Village Tailoring

Amazing things happened today: I got an unexpected food parcel, an extremely generous amount towards my Mission Year fee, I found a fiver walking down the street and had two dinner option/invitation. People who`s done Mission year already keep saying the blessings are coming once you commit yourself to volunteering and work with the poor and the needy. Finally the internet is working in my room and I am over the moon!

Legging behind the blog by 1 day, I fall asleep last night with my hands on the keyboard and the lights on. London juts has this busy buzz constant noise and heavy polluted air comparing to The House with The Garden.

I haven’t managed to do my target with the thesis in the past 2 days. I find the days fling by without a trace. The closer to hand-in I get, the more excited I should be, but it all seems so pointless at the moment, the rush, the buzz, the falling asleep whilst trying to create academic sentences and orders of chapters to be pleasing to the passing by eyes. My life is in transition once again and the uncertainties swallow up precious minutes. I am very close to losing my privacy having to take on one of the unexpected sacrifices coming with Mission Year by sharing a room. I am hanging on to every minute of the present I can have in private and mourn the loss of space and beauty in The House with The Garden. We make choices and by making choices we make mistakes at the same. Only time will tell which way this transition goes.

As I was looking through my interviews I came across the synopsis of the one I made with my mum:

Mum was trained to become a village tailor as part of her family tradition. When she got married eventually she gave up sewing in the early 1990s, as second – hand and Chinese shops started to appear in Hungary, which had an unforeseen effect on village tailoring. Farming also was more profitable option to keep her family going. Her mother, my granny Veronika learnt her sewing skills from a local village tailor in her teenage years. She supported her parents and brothers and sister from the money she earned from sewing. She made every kind of garments from winter coats to bras and duvet covers. Later she got married to Jozsef, my granddad, who was trained to become a tailor in Transylvania, Romania. Later, because of the political situation, he escaped to Hungary carrying his sewing machine on his back. First he became an apprentice in Szeged, where he furthered his knowledge in suit making for the militia and the upper –middle class. Granny and granddad became very popular village tailors from the late 1940s in our home village up until granny`s early death in 1982. They made every kind of clothing and interior pieces. granny was also a talented “riseliő” machine embroiderer. She is still remembered 30 years after her death as the best dressmaker and “riseliő” embroiderer in the village. After mum finished her sewing school, she got married and had her children (me and my brother), she carried on the village tailoring, but in the 1980s the first boutique opened in the village, which was slowly followed by the opening of other shops. That led to the decline in the need for made – to – measure clothes. The closing of the local fabric shop in the 1990s, created a problem in fabric sourcing. Furthermore the appearance of cheap second – hand clothes from the west made it possible for people to buy clothes, they have never seen before. In the late 1990s with the growth of globalisation, the fast appearing Chinese shops took over the clothing market in Hungary, which put an end to an era, which was the heyday of village tailoring. From then on people only use village tailors for alterations, which does not produce enough income to keep a family going. (And that`s how my thesis comes to the picture. I wish things would settle as soon as possible and I could regain my enthusiasm about it.)

Day 64 From the Small Essays to the Lowering Expectations of Taste Buds

I started to write yesterday, but kept falling asleep. The chapter is about: `What is Glocal Trinnovation? Think globally, act locally and combine tradition with innovation. Low carbon footprint considerate design and its long-term advantages of local skills, materials and markets for the local community. ` I try to think about it as a small essay as Christina advised. I woke up this morning at 4.30am and suddenly daunted on me: literature review! I started to panic and suddenly couldn`t even remember what it was. I suppose this is quite normal when one is behind schedule and the rest of the life`s circumstances are not in favour to write and complete a thesis. However, I am pressing on.

Yesterday I had a day off and it went without trace. In the morning I attended my first staff meeting at SPS, which was a great experience and breakfast was sorted at prayer breakfast. Someone offered cooked food, which I got two portions out so I had 3 good meals yesterday. This is very different from what I was writing about food back in Hungary. There it was all about overflow and the excitement of taste buds in a uniquely traditional way. Here in England at the moment it is all about being able to eat 3 times a day no matter of taste buds excitement or nutrition intake. Well this I certainly wasn`t prepared for neither physically, emotionally or mentally when in great excitement I said yes for Mission Year. I suppose it will all be better once I finish the thesis and can take on more work. That is other 3 months. It is a new challenge to be on the receiving side, I`ve been on the giver side before and now I am over the moon when offered a pack of rolls and a bag of tomatoes. Writing is very different as well. While in The House with The Garden I was surrounded by peace and inspiration from nature in the pace of unique quietness flowing from the birch trees. Here it is overcrowded, noisy and time-chasing once again not leaving a chance to capture the beauty of nature. This is a big city. Almost 12 million people are living in greater London, while less than that in Hungary itself.

I am hoping to be able to chase the beauty of nature in Hungary once again from next July until than I take one day at a time.

Day 63 Vondores is Rubbing Shoulders with the Rich and Famous at the London Palladium

Life is just amazing! Supposedly I am a part-time `inner-city-missionary` with barely any income and with a master`s thesis hanging over my head and yet I set in the London Palladium tonight and watched Venezuela Viva at a British Red Cross function. Amongst many others there were Mr and Mrs ambassadors, some very famous misses of some very famous misters: Mohamed Al-Fayed`s beautiful wife and Bruce Forsyth`s other half. And by the rumour I`ve heard the King of Greece himself was there as well and plenty paparazzi outside.
But back to the thesis, I got up at 5pm and wrote the introduction. It still needs to settle a bit.
Thesis Introduction
Glocal Trinnovation
-A comparative study of the effects of policy making on the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans versus opportunity entrepreneurship and the English sole-traders-
This thesis is set to examine the effects of policy making and necessity entrepreneurship on the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans. Furthermore through case studies from both England and Africa it provides a comparison on why starting up small businesses in the field of craftsmanship in Hungary has a decline of success stories. Finally by looking at possible local skills, materials and markets the thesis provides a possible solution for community development by using traditional craft as a basis combined with global experience and innovation.
The idea came from the author`s personal experience of being brought up in a Hungarian artisan family, being educated in England and gaining experience in researching sustainable development projects on a local level in Southern Africa. This unique insight how the economic development of a country affects its policy making, innovation and entrepreneurship programs with regards of sustainable economic success from a business point of view gave a strong outline of the main research questions: How policy making could have a positive effect in Hungary to increase the numbers of artisans by not having to carry the burdens of heavy necessity entrepreneurial taxes?
Glocal Trinnovation is a new term created by the author from two portmanteau words. Glocal has been used by Glocal (Media and Communication for Development). The word Glocal is derived from glocalization, meaning ‘think global, act local’ 1. Trinnovation combines the words tradition and innovation and enhances a connection between the experience of tradition and the advances of Innovation. Glocal Trinnovation is the analyses of the relationship between empowerment and social sustainability in traditional craft and contemporary fashion (product design and development) through policy making and its long-term effects on local economic growth. Glocal Trinnovation is a new way of approaching the relationship between fashion and traditional craft by using local skills, local sources and local markets under the umbrella of global knowledge and innovation of low carbon footprint considerate design meaning during the making process from local materials the carbon footprint created during the transportation between raw materials, makers and markets is kept minimum.
The main questions of the idea, which the author tries to answer through this thesis has sprung from historical evidence of the decline of village tailoring by the effects of policy making in the author`s village tailor family history, who is a third generational designer-maker. In 2004 after spending 4 years in England and before starting university the author took a gap year which she spent in Hungary and that was the time when she first encountered the term: necessity entrepreneur2, which is the opposite of opportunity entrepreneur. Reynolds at al. explicitly distinguishes between “opportunity-based” and “necessity-based” entrepreneurship in the annual report (Global Entrepreneurship Monitor) to measure the rate of entrepreneurial activity across countries. Necessity entrepreneur is a direct result of transition economy, privatisation and high taxes, whilst
1 http://www.glocal.nu
2Reynolds et al. (2002, p.16)

according to Reynolds et al. it is possible to label more than 97 percent of those who are entrepreneurially active as either opportunity or necessity entrepreneurs. Opportunity-based entrepreneurship involves those who choose to start their own business by taking advantage of an entrepreneurial opportunity. Necessity-based entrepreneurship involves people who start a business because other employment options are either absent or unsatisfactory. `There appears to be a positive relationship between self-employed parents and the probability of reaching a later stage in the entrepreneurial process, in particular for opportunity entrepreneurs. For necessity entrepreneurs there is a negative effect of the perception of a lack of financial support on the probability of active involvement in the entrepreneurial process.` Lack of government support from a policy perspective it is important to understand what drives and characterizes opportunity and necessity entrepreneurship. Do opportunity entrepreneurs indeed have a higher preference for entrepreneurship than necessity entrepreneurs (i.e., are they more motivated to become self-employed)? Reynolds et al. (2002) suggest that necessity entrepreneurs may not necessarily be affected by the same factors as opportunity entrepreneurs. This would imply that current programs designed to encourage entrepreneurship may be appropriate for opportunity motivated entrepreneurs, but not for necessity-motivated entrepreneurs. Opportunity and necessity entrepreneurship may also differ with respect to performance. It has been argued that opportunity entrepreneurship is more likely to have a higher contribution to the economy in terms of innovation and job creation (Reynolds et al., 2002). Hence, policy makers may need to develop different sets of policies to support opportunity and necessity entrepreneurship. The main goal of this study is to investigate whether opportunity and necessity entrepreneurs differ with respect to socio-demographic factors and attitudes towards entrepreneurial activity. Moreover, do opportunity entrepreneurs perceive and experience different obstacles to starting up and running a business than necessity entrepreneurs?
The journey from `Mission Possible` to `Glocal Trinnovation`:
From an African experience of setting up sewing projects to the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans. To start with drawing upon research and the challenges of product design development undertaken for final major project on BA, PDDFI – Clothing at London College of Fashion, it was intended to deepen the research and further explore the possibilities and the road to success of sustainable development in disadvantaged African communities.
Throughout the research, it was identified that high percentage of the people living in the First World, who has disposable income have a limited understanding of the challenges people in disadvantaged communities have to face on a daily basis. The role of the volunteers in setting up sustainable sewing projects on ground and supporting from the First World not known, either. The financial, medical, environmental, social and gender differences between Western customers and Sub – Saharan makers comes across with a significant difference in reasoning why clothing and accessories are made and bought. Setting up projects based on skills and materials, that can be sourced on ground and sold for Western customers is more than a challenge.
By working in partnership with an existing organisation an analytical journey of a product designed and made by women in disadvantaged communities, and sold for western costumers was proposed to be written and illustrated with photographs. The aim of the book was to show a real picture of both makers and customers from their everyday life, which could educate and inform readers about sustainable development in a visual and easily readable way. The idea was to create a bridge between the disadvantaged and the wealthy by introducing people from both sides of the label.
Early on the research during conversations of the theme of the thesis in Hungary it was identified that there is a need there in local development in craft to create sustainable livelihoods, which was not encouraged by the policy making at that time. Few factors had been eased since 2008 due to the change of the political scene, which has a more favourable effect on necessity entrepreneurs in terms of reduction of bureaucracy burden when registering. The shift of the research has given the author a unique insight in the relationship between policy making and the decreasing number of Hungarian artisans. The need for sustainable development projects on local level to create jobs locally by using local materials and local skills for the local market to generate income in areas where the unemployment level is high in order to keep the money flowing within the community made it necessary to concentrate not only on the design elements of the products, but on the surrounding main factors: business and economics.
During BA(hons) PDDFI Clothing, the author`s final year project was based on a volunteer – research trip to Southern Africa for Hope for Africa Missions, where an in – depth research was undertaken to set up self – sustainable sewing projects to empower women in disadvantaged communities, in Lesotho and Mozambique. The research undertaken both on ground and in England gave an overall understanding of the social, economical, environmental, medical and gender differences between the first world and the third world. Through meeting charity board members, social entrepreneurs and researchers involved in microfinance projects in Africa and Asia I have a priceless knowledge base of the business and financial issues involved behind every project set up was gathered.
The challenge of applying PDDFI principles in an environment, where there is no electricity and running water gave an opportunity of constant problem solving in order to create products that the women could learn to make in a short period of time to reduce the leeway for turnover.
During the research into an ethically aware consumer base in England with disposable income, it was realised, that although the target customers are more and more interested in sustainable products, they know very little or almost nothing about the makers and the challenges they face on a daily bases. This led to discover a huge gap in knowledge between the third world maker and the first world customer, giving an idea, to create a bridge by telling stories from both sides of the label.
During summer 2007 the author volunteered for Hope for Africa Missions to carry out research in Southern African communities. The aim of the research was to identify possibilities for setting up sustainable sewing projects in order to empower women in disadvantaged communities.
During the mission trip the author developed a deep interest in research and problem solving for sustainable development through translating the skills learnt on BA Product Design and Development for Clothing. Through the realisation of the final year project a sustainability model was developed for the charity, which could since been used in the visited communities in Lesotho and Mozambique. During this process a keen interest in sustainable development was deepened even further in combining local skills, materials and markets.
The fashion industry is going through a significant change concerning sustainability and ethical issues. I would like to gain a full understanding about what this change is bringing into the industry from the product design development through customers’ needs and expectations on an international level. I strongly believe by given the opportunity to study on MA Fashion and The Environment course, the skills and knowledge I gain would significantly affect my ability to help the disadvantaged and would give me a chance to be able to obtain a job in the field of research and practical development working for both the fashion industry and the social sector.